Morning everyone. Jim Chalmers has given us the big buildup for his economic summit next week but the Coalition is now comparing him to Willy Wonka giving away golden tickets for a “privileged talk-fest” (with economic reform, presumably, as the chocolate).
Back in the real economy, new figures show property investors are borrowing more than ever and edging first-time buyers out of contention. Donald Trump thinks Vladimir Putin is ready to make a deal in Alaska, while the AFLW season is up and running with a win for Carlton over Collingwood.
Australia
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Koala threat | Habitat for threatened koalas that are part of a population described by one expert as nationally significant would be bulldozed under plans to extend a Queensland coalmine.
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‘Candy man’ | The Coalition has likened the treasurer’s much-anticipated economic summit next week to Charlie and Chocolate Factory and dubbed Jim Chalmers “Australia’s candy man” as it challenges Labor proposals it says would increase taxes and pass debt to future generations.
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NSW | The Minns government will establish a $1m program to combat anti-Muslim hate, including establishing a support hotline for victims and a program to build awareness of Islamophobia.
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Investor record | Property investors borrowed a record sum, nearly $130bn, to buy homes over the year to June, supported by interest rate cuts but squeezing out first-time buyers, according to figures out today.
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Stratton tributes | Legendary film critic David Stratton has been remembered for his “incredible insight”, “humility” and “deep love of cinema” in tributes after his death at age 85. Catch up with Luke Buckmaster’s personal tribute here, and our obituary of the revered cinephile.
World
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Deal or no deal? | Donald Trump believes Vladimir Putin is ready to make a deal on the war in Ukraine as the two leaders prepare for their summit in Alaska, but his suggestion the Russian leader and Volodymyr Zelenskyy could “divvy things up” may alarm some in Kyiv. The Russian president is expected to tempt his US counterpart with financial incentives from Russia’s “untapped” economic potential in exchange for siding with him. Keir Starmer and Zelenskyy met in Downing Street (pictured) and hailed “a visible chance for peace” – so long as Putin takes steps to prove he is serious. And our American politics podcast asks if Trump is too weak to be a strongman.
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Settler split | Israel appears set to give formal planning approval to a highly controversial settlement project for more than 3,400 new homes – which has been frozen for decades – which critics say would split the occupied West Bank in half.
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Cholera outbreak | The “worst cholera outbreak in years” has killed at least 40 people in the past week in Sudan, according to the medical charity Médecins Sans Frontières.
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India floods | At least 37 people have died and more than 200 are missing after a sudden rainstorm in Indian Kashmir, the second such disaster in the Himalayas in a little over a week.
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Aztec gold | Nearly five centuries after Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés signed it and decades after someone swiped it from national archives, a priceless manuscript page has been returned by the FBI to Mexico.
Full Story
Newsroom edition: can Labor jumpstart the economy?
Bridie Jabour talks to the head of newsroom, Mike Ticher, and our economics editor, Patrick Commins, about whether the Albanese government has the ambition for big reform.
In-depth
The Greens have urged Labor to stop allowing manufacturers of F-35 fighter jet parts to sell to global suppliers that can then pass them on to Israel – but the government says such claims are “misinformation”. So who’s telling the truth? Henry Belot investigates.
Not the news
After an opening volume called Young Hawke: The Making of a Larrikin, the second part of David Day’s biography of Bob Hawke is The Making of a Legend and explores how he quit drinking to help become prime minister. Paul Daley writes that “those of us voted for him … won’t regret it when they read this book. But they will understand a lot more about the man’s fabric.”
Sport
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AFLW | A slick Carlton performance saw off Collingwood in the AFLW’s opening match in Melbourne last night and there were enough flashes of brilliance from the league’s newest faces to show the competition has a future.
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Rugby union | The Wallabies’ promising backs will come up against the formidable South African forwards in Johannesburg this weekend, but veteran James O’Connor will lead the playmaking duties after being recalled for the start of the Rugby Championship.
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Swimming | Michael Phelps has launched a scathing attack on USA Swimming’s leadership with the 23-times Olympic gold medallist branding the body weak and demanding sweeping reforms after what he sees as years of decline.
Media roundup
The University of Technology has suspended enrolments for more than 100 courses next year amid financial problems and plans to axe about 400 jobs, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. Transurban says it will refund drivers for incorrect toll charges, which it blames on an increase in number plate duplicates, the Canberra Times says. Changes to Western Australia’s gun laws have been backed by parliament despite an attempt to stop them, WAtoday reports.
What’s happening today
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Economy | CommBank data release on household spending.
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New South Wales | Committal at Parkes courthouse for the man accused of the domestic violence murder of Molly Ticehurst.
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Arts | Children’s book of the year award winners announced at the National Library in Canberra.
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Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.
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Quick crossword
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Cryptic crossword
