Good morning. Kerry Johnson was handpicked to run Queensland police’s First Nations unit. But efforts by the commissioner, Katarina Carroll, to improve community-police relations have been dealt a serious blow, with Johnson accused of alleged racism and bullying.
We also have exclusives on a rental application site’s use of personal data, and the government’s plan for aged care in-home fees. Plus, more dramatic reporting on the NSW floods.
Australia
Exclusive | Snug, a fast-growing rental application platform, is using renters’ data in obscure and potentially discriminatory ways to “score” applications, and gives them a higher score when they offer to pay more rent, a Guardian Australia investigation has found.
Police race inquiry | The superintendent in charge of the Queensland police First Nations unit is under investigation for alleged racism and bullying, Guardian Australia has confirmed. Superintendent Kerry Johnson has been accused of racism by a person of colour who worked in the unit, including allegations he blocked her promotion and that he was disrespectful to community members at a funeral in the Indigenous community of Cherbourg.
Care ‘gouging’ | Fees for in-home aged care packages will be capped under new federal reforms amid concerns some providers are “gouging” clients with charges of up to 60%.
Medibank anger | Customers whose personal details were posted on the dark web by hackers have expressed anger at not receiving any direct personal communication from the insurer.
Editor quits | The editor-in-chief of the Australian, Chris Dore, has resigned suddenly and will be leaving News Corp, citing “personal health issues”. The company said he was undergoing surgery this week.
World
G20 tension | Xi Jinping has angrily rebuked Justin Trudeau at the G20 in Bali after Canadian officials shared details of a previous meeting. Anthony Albanese used his last day in Bali to seek ways to boost Australia’s defence capability, while you can check out the five global takeaways from the summit.
Missile fears eased | The missile that landed in Poland killing two people was probably stray Ukrainian anti-aircraft fire, according to the Polish president, contradicting initial reports that it was a Russian strike.
Qatar apology | World Cup organisers have apologised to a Danish television station whose live broadcast from a street in Doha was interrupted by Qatari officials who threatened to break their camera equipment.
‘Only he can lose’ | Donald Trump’s decision to run for president in 2024 is bad news for the Republican party, according his own former chief of staff, while his daughter Ivanka Trump will not actively join her father’s bid to retake the White House in 2024.
Spacey charges | Kevin Spacey will be charged by prosecutors in the UK with seven additional sexual offences, on top of five he has already denied.
Full Story
The whistleblower tapes exposing racism in Queensland’s police force
Police tapes leaked to the Guardian by a whistleblower reveal that several officers and sworn police using racist and offensive language while working in a Brisbane watch house. Our Queensland state correspondent, Ben Smee, explains what they tell us about the culture of the state’s police force.
In-depth
The figure of 10.8 metres will be on the minds of residents in Forbes in central NSW this morning with the Lachlan River expected to peak at this record mark and bring a second major flood in two weeks. With the region inundated, a family in nearby Tichborne had to take refuge on top of their water tank (pictured above) before being winched to safety. New modelling suggests La Niña and El Niño events will intensify by 2030 thanks to global heating.
Not the news
Amir Abdi has overcome a lot in his 33 years: losing his sight in a botched operation in his native Iran, immigration detention after fleeing to Australia, and years of rejected visa applications. But he has found strength in adversity and is now hoping to lead his adopted country’s team at the 2024 Paralympics in Paris. Kieran Pender meets him.
The world of sport
Rugby league| As Samoa prepare to take on Australia in the Rugby League World Cup final on Saturday, the national loyalty of their NRL players could spell trouble for State of Origin.
Socceroos | Martin Boyle’s World Cup is in serious jeopardy after Marco Tilio was flown to Doha as a potential injury replacement.
Tennis | Novak Djokovic has spoken of his relief at receiving a visa to enable him to play in January’s Australian Open. “I was very happy,” the Serb said.
Media roundup
Labor is seeking to cut university fees as part of a “university accord”, the Australian reports. The partner of Cheng Lei, an Australian journalist jailed in China, is more optimistic about her situation after Anthony Albanese raised her case in talks with Xi Jinping this week, the Daily Telegraph says. Shane Warne’s former manager has demanded an apology from ABC’s Norman Swan after he suggested the cricketer’s death could be linked to a previous Covid infection, the Age reports. The main news in the Newcastle Herald is that today’s planned strike by tug workers has been called off after the Fair Work Commission called a full bench hearing of the Svitzer dispute to start in Sydney.
What’s happening today
Netherlands | The verdict is expected in the trial of those allegedly responsible for the downing of flight MH17 over Ukraine in 2014.
Economy | Unemployment figures for October are due out at 11.30am.
Cricket | The first one-day international between Australia and England starts at 2.20pm in Adelaide.
Sign up
If you would like to receive this Morning Mail update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here. And finish your day with a three-minute snapshot of the day’s main news. Sign up for our Afternoon Update newsletter here.
Prefer notifications? If you’re reading this in our app, just click here and tap “Get notifications” on the next screen for an instant alert when we publish every morning.
Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day – with plenty more on the Guardian’s Puzzles app for iOS and Android. Until tomorrow.
