Good afternoon. Two surprise resignations to start the week. Mark McGowan is stepping down as the premier of Western Australia, ending a nearly three-decade career in politics, including six years as the state’s leader. Watch a two-minute cut of his presser.
And David “Kochie” Koch – Australia’s longest-serving breakfast television host – is also calling it quits after 21 years as co-host of Sunrise.
Top news
Mark McGowan steps down | The WA premier said he was “exhausted”, citing the Covid years as having “drained me a lot”. “I just don’t have the energy or drive that is required to continue in the role as premier. Or to fight that election which would have been my eighth election as a member of parliament,” he said.
David Koch resigns | “After 20 consecutive premierships in the breakfast TV ratings game, I’m frankly finding it harder to get off the ground to take those marks and I think it’s time to bring [in] the next generation,” the Sunrise co-host said.
PwC apologises for tax leak scandal | The embattled consulting firm has directed nine senior partners to go on leave, “ringfenced” its government work and apologised to the public in a bid to stem the damaging fallout from the tax advice scandal. The Greens say the firm’s mea culpa is too little, too late.
Victorian town grieves after fatal high-speed crash | The town of Hamilton is grieving the loss of three teenagers and a woman in her 30s after a horrific crash on Saturday. The car was travelling at an exceptional speed when the driver lost control, police said. Two females and two males died at the scene and a fifth passenger, a 17-year-old girl, remains in a critical condition.
Chris Dawson on trial for alleged sex with student | The 74-year-old former teacher and rugby league player convicted of murdering his wife, Lynette, is now on trial for carnal knowledge – or alleged sexual intercourse – with a girl aged over 10 and under 17 when he was a teacher. Dawson has pleaded not guilty.
Domestic violence charges | Sydney man Danny Zayak, 28, has been charged with 18 separate offences after police found the body of 34-year-old Tatiana Dokhotaru in a western Sydney apartment on Saturday. Zayak has been accused of assault, stalking and choking without consent.
China’s weakness – food and energy imports | Beijing’s achilles heel in the event of a potential conflict with Taiwan could be its great dependence on food and energy imports. It’s a problem China is trying to rectify by reducing its reliance on food imports from the US, and ramping up its coal production.
Japanese town reversing birthrate decline | The town of Nagi is experiencing a baby boom, and may hold the secret to improving the country’s stubbornly low birthrate. The fertility rate in Nagi more than doubled from 1.4 to 2.95 in 2019, dropping slightly to 2.68 in 2021 – still more than twice the national average of 1.3. One factor? Generous daycare.
Turkey election analysis | Western capitals were privately hoping Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s erratic 20-year rule would end, but now that he has been handed a decisive mandate to serve a third term, the west is caught between fear and hope. Read the analysis.
In pictures
Vivid Sydney 2023 – the annual festival of light, music and ideas kicked off in spectacular fashion over the weekend for its 13th year. Check out the photo gallery.
What they said …
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“The growing burden of student debt is making news every day and it’s beyond clear that urgent intervention is necessary.” – an open letter from crossbench MPs
Eight MPs including the Greens spokesperson for education, Mehreen Faruqi, independent MPs Helen Haines, Dai Le, Sophie Scamps, Kylea Tink and Andrew Wilkie, and senators Lidia Thorpe and Tammy Tyrell signed their names to the letter, urging the education minister to halt indexation of student debt.
In numbers
Do earthquakes hit Victoria more than other parts of the country? No, experts say. “Every week, there are roughly 30 to 40 earthquakes in the south-eastern states of South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania.” Read the explainer.
Before bed read
Why are so many AFL coaches burning out and exiting the system?
“These men are paid incredibly well. No one is forcing them to coach,” columnist Jonathan Horn writes. “There are Australians dealing with real stress, with real problems, who are earning a 10th of what an AFL coach takes home. But it’s worth reflecting on what’s happening here.”
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: AKE. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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