Please Explain podcast
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Morning Edition
Our guide to the most important stories, analysis and insights.
What in the World newsletter
Our foreign correspondents on what’s making headlines around the world.
Joyce returns with demands to test Coalition policy
The Nationals leader will demand security for regional jobs and industries, as fellow MPs warn against cutting greenhouse gases to net zero emissions by 2050.
Analysis
Nationals
Old grievances drove spill, leaving mystery over Nationals’ future
The leadership spill was so personal and poisonous that some MPs left the room shell-shocked after Joyce’s sudden restoration as leader.
Opinion
Political leadership
Five reasons why Joyce is a terrible, horrible, no good choice for the Nats
In the year that has sharpened focus on women in the workplace, the Nationals have re-elected a man whose relationship with a staffer led to a so-called bonk ban.
Jenna Price
Columnist and academic
Most eligible people unvaccinated in NSW as new venues added
Two in five NSW residents aged 70 and over have not received a single dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.
‘I have done nothing wrong’: MacGill speaks out about alleged kidnapping
The former international cricketer has broken his silence about the kidnapping, revealing the heavy toll the incident has token on his work, family and friends.
Killing of Sydney solicitor ‘done with some incompetence’, court told
Abraham Sinai is on trial in the NSW Supreme Court accused of providing assistance to the gunman who walked up to Ho Ledinh in 2018 and shot him dead.
Mouse plague forces evacuation of NSW prisoners
The mouse plague in the state’s central west is causing chaos at a prison.
Vaile quits uni chancellor role amid backlash over coal links
The former Nationals leader’s appointment as chancellor was met with significant backlash from staff, students and potential donors.
Samuel Johnson in hospital after being struck by car
The Gold Logie winner was awake, talking but still recovering, sister Hilde Hinton said in a social media post.
Explainer
National security
‘The game is back on’: How does spying work in Australia?
Our spy agencies recruit a mix of talent, from computer whizzes to people skilled in cultivating sources. What do our spies do, and who are their bosses?
‘Batteries on wheels’: Smart-charging tech in garages needed to drive EV boom
One of Australia’s biggest power companies wants governments to promote smart chargers in garages to prevent EV motorists from overloading the grid.
How do you cope when you get the disease that killed your mother?
Nai Palm was only 11 when her mother died. At 29, she got the same diagnosis. “It gave me an understanding of how strong she was.”
Analysis
Privacy
What you need to know about Google’s ad-tracking change
The internet giant is throwing tracking cookies in the bin, prompting big questions about privacy, competition and advertising.
Gerrit De Vynck
‘Disgraceful’: Gould slams Queensland for throwing Walsh to the wolves
Phil Gould launched an attack against Queensland, mystified by the decision to throw the seven-game rookie into the Origin arena.
Sydney
‘She was costing developers millions per day’: The theories behind the death of Juanita Nielsen
Juanita Nielsen was an activist who advocated against developers via her community newspaper to preserve the heritage of her inner city community.
Roberts-Smith denies murdering prisoner, encouraging second execution
The former special forces soldier has told the Federal Court the two men killed on Easter Sunday, 2009, were enemy combatants who posed a threat.
Exclusive
Courts
Lawyer has charge of leaving car unlocked and windows down dismissed
David Keith Allen had his case proven but dismissed in a Sydney court, describing it as trivial and obscure.
‘Buyer beware’: Sydney agents selling units despite defect notices
Real estate agents are selling apartments off the plan when defects have been identified, but they say they haven’t been told about the new Building Commissioner’s orders.
‘Act of vandalism’: Plan to cut down trees in Parramatta Park under fire
The People’s Loop is designed to improve Parramatta Park by removing conflict between vehicles and other park users, but the removal of trees to build car parking has been criticised.
Politics
Nation has waited long enough for anti-corruption watchdog, former judges, politicians say
The group of eminent Australians has written an open letter to PM Scott Morrison calling for an end to delays in establishing a federal integrity commission.
Business
MYOB turns up the heat on Xero in small business lending
Accounting software firm MYOB is muscling into the small business loans space through a partnership with Valiant Finance in a bid to take on its major rival.
Opinion
Kerry Stokes
Boral’s $3.4 billion windfall both a celebration and a headache
Elizabeth Knight
Business columnist
Opinion
Commodities
Iron fist losing its grip: China’s latest crackdown looks destined to fail
Stephen Bartholomeusz
Senior business columnist
World
‘In all our interests’: NZ approves Pfizer jab for 12 to 15-year-olds
NZ has 10 million doses of Pfizer on order in 2021, enough for two doses for its entire population.
Opinion
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Property bydomain
'Ultimate luxury getaway' hits the market for a cool $20m
Interstate well-heeled lead a surge of buyer demand for Queensland's trophy homes as Mandalay House is returned to the market.
The seven-year slog: Sydney first-home buyers' new challenge
Sydneysiders have it tougher than anywhere else in the nation as the pandemic property boom pushes the time it takes to enter the market to record highs.
Life & Culture
Ex-ABC weather man, a ‘friend and mentor’, Mike Bailey dies
Mike Bailey, who became a household name delivering the nightly weather report for the ABC’s Sydney bulletin, has died.
![Michelle Williams: “[Depression] is sometimes a numbness. It’s this pervasive sense of nothing-matters-and-nothing-ever-will-really-matter that lingers in the background of every moment.”](http://web.archive.org./web/20210621155040im_/https://static.ffx.io/images/$zoom_0.2133784928027096%2C$multiply_0.7063%2C$ratio_1.5%2C$width_756%2C$x_0%2C$y_197/t_crop_custom/q_62%2Cf_auto/f2ee7fc67067925e94fae2889dc6a4618870228f)
Sport
Opinion
State of Origin
Queenslander! The Origin horror movie Fittler doesn’t want to watch again
Thumped in Origin I, injury-ravaged Queensland have turned to broken-down veterans and a rookie who has played just seven NRL matches. This is when they’re at their best.
Andrew Webster
Chief Sports Writer
Analysis
Tokyo Olympics
Tokyo Olympics face their first gender test
As New Zealand’s Laurel Hubbard becomes the first transgender Olympian, more work is needed to balance inclusion and integrity in women’s sport.
The A-League’s $1 million question: Melbourne or Sydney for the grand final?
Melbourne City have earned the right to host Saturday night’s A-League grand final - but holding the decider in Victoria, rather than Sydney, could cost clubs a significant financial windfall.
Kyrgios, Barty go to Wimbledon without grasscourt warm-up
The star Australians will go into third grand slam of the year decidedly underdone in terms of their grasscourt preparation, with both having struggled with injuries.
Updated
State of Origin
Finucane back in Blues squad as Maroons gamble on Walsh
Brad Fittler has turned to one of the most dependable forwards in the game as part of his extended squad following Jake Trbojevic’s injury.
Updated
Tokyo Olympics
‘She’s a woman, that’s it’: Aussie coach defends Laurel Hubbard, first transgender athlete at Olympics
Paul Coffa, who trains current Olympic and world class weightlifters and worked with Hubbard at his Oceania Weightlifting Institute after she had transitioned, said there should be no qualms about Hubbard’s place in the women’s 87kg category in Tokyo.
Updated
Tokyo Olympics
With his NBA playoff run over, Simmons can turn to Boomers’ Olympics bid
Simmons may have taken a punch or two for a poor eastern conference semi-final playoff series which led to Philadelphia being eliminated, but the star guard will be welcomed into the Boomers’ fold this week.
Have Your Say
DHP’s decision to keep playing despite the danger sends chill down spine
Only once before have I been brave enough to write a column suggesting a player should consider retirement, but the concussion factor is too serious to ignore.
