Good afternoon. Shane Drumgold, the outgoing ACT director of public prosecutions, has launched a court challenge to the findings of the Bruce Lehrmann prosecution inquiry.
The Sofronoff inquiry criticised Drumgold’s conduct, but the inquiry itself has faced controversy. The ACT government revealed the report appeared to present a paragraph from the Australian newspaper as the opinion of a New South Wales supreme court judge.
Meanwhile, federal MPs and ministers received their biggest pay increase in a decade, with the average backbench MP now earning about two-and-a-third times the average salary of a full-time worker.
Top news
Dutton accused of ‘undermining’ faith in electoral system | The opposition leader hit a “new low” when he questioned longstanding rules about ballot papers, says Greens senator Sarah Hanson-Young. The independent MP Monique Ryan said Dutton “will do anything, even undermine faith in our democratic processes, to score cheap political points”.
Human bone found at Queensland’s Mossman Gorge | Police divers have recovered what appears to be a human leg bone, after being alerted to it by a member of the public. Police hope the remains could help in the search for a 54-year-old missing Victorian woman, who was last seen in distress at the gorge on 6 January.
US marines named | Corporal Spencer R Collart, 21, Captain Eleanor V LeBeau, 29, and Major Tobin J Lewis, 37, were named as the three victims who died in a military plane crash in the Tiwi Islands on Sunday. Three marines remain in hospital in Darwin, with one in intensive care in a critical condition. Seventeen others injured in the crash have been treated in hospital for minor injuries and discharged.
Super blue moon | A super blue moon is expected to appear on 31 August, the first time since 2009. It will reach its closest point to the Earth about 11.35am AEST, which means it will unfortunately be invisible in Australian skies. But keep on the lookout for a big and bright moon on Thursday night.
PNG killings | An outbreak of tribal violence has killed up to 150 people in the Highlands of Papua New Guinea, local police said. Last week the prime minister, James Marape, condemned the violence as “domestic terrorism” while more forces have been sent to calm clashes in the Enga Province.
Eminem demands Republican candidate cease using his music | The rapper sent a cease-and-desist letter to presidential hopeful Vivek Ramaswamy, who mounted an impromptu performance of Eminem’s Lose Yourself at the Iowa State Fair earlier in the month.
Prehistoric bird returns to New Zealand wild | Eighteen takahē birds were released in an alpine area of the South Island, where they have not been seen for about 100 years. The birds had been formally declared extinct in 1898, their already reduced population devastated by the arrival of European settlers’ animal companions: stoats, cats, ferrets and rats.
Spanish football federation leaders demand resignation | The federation’s regional presidents say Luis Rubiales must “immediately resign”, pulling support for the football chief days after its members heartily applauded his vow to stay on.
Full Story
The public Catholic hospitals refusing abortion access
Some reproductive healthcare, including abortion and contraception such as the morning-after pill following a sexual assault, is unavailable to patients at a number of publicly funded Catholic hospitals across Australia. How is this affecting patients? Listen to this 22-minute episode.
What they said …
***
“I’m sure that every CEO in the country was disappointed to hear that there’s one company in the country that should be protected, and [their] profit should be protected.” – Virgin Australia chief executive Jayne Hrdlicka
The Virgin boss was responding to comments made by the assistant treasurer, Stephen Jones, who said Qantas’ record $2.5bn profit was “a good news story” and the Albanese government had blocked extra Qatar Airways flights to keep the national carrier profitable.
In numbers
The pay rise, awarded by the independent remuneration tribunal, will take the basic salary of a backbench MP from $217,060 to about $225,742.
Before bed read
Climate activists held up attendees en route to the Burning Man festival for more than an hour, sparking fiery exchanges with eager festivalgoers.
“In recent years, Burning Man has drifted from its hippy roots and become better known for luxury RVs, wild orgies, and Silicon Valley bros.” Read the story.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: OUR. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
Sign up
If you would like to receive this Afternoon Update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here. And start your day with a curated breakdown of the key stories you need to know. Sign up for our Morning Mail newsletter here.
