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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
National
Martin Farrer

Morning Mail: voters call for social media age limit, Mexico cheers first female president, De Minaur marches on

More than two-thirds of voters back a higher age limit for social media, the Guardian Essential poll shows today.
More than two-thirds of voters back a higher age limit for social media, the Guardian Essential poll shows today. Photograph: Yui Mok/PA

Morning, everyone. Voters want tougher rules on the use of social media, our latest Guardian Essential poll shows today, with more than two-thirds in favour of lifting the age limit from 13 to 16. We’ve got all the details, plus how speechwriting turns out to be very lucrative, the amazing secrets of a museum to a pioneering dentist, and it’s been an outstanding night for Alex de Minaur in the French Open.

Australia

  • Très bien | Alex de Minaur battled back from one set down to record a brilliant win over No 5 seed Daniil Medvedev 4-6, 6-2, 6-1, 6-3 at the French Open and become the first Australian man since Leyton Hewitt 20 years ago to reach the last eight at Roland Garros.

  • Speech bubble | The $600,000 to be paid to Bill Shorten’s speechwriter for her work over a two-year contract is shaping up to be one of the most startling revelations of the Senate budget estimates sessions.

  • Guardian Essential poll | More than two-thirds of voters support raising the age limit for social media from 13 to 16, according to the latest Guardian Essential poll. It also showed that Peter Dutton has slipped back into negative approval territory and Anthony Albanese is holding steady with 47% disapproving and 43% approving.

  • Nuclear blowback | The Coalition’s attempts to leverage the unpopularity of renewable power appears to risk overlooking the problem of persuading a changing population to welcome nuclear reactors on their doorstep, Gabrielle Chan writes.

  • Latham call | Mark Latham has rejected the chance to pay $20,000 to settle a lawsuit brought by the independent MP Alex Greenwich over an explicit tweet, with the former Labor leader instead choosing to defend his actions.

World

  • Russia warning? | French police are investigating whether the placing of five full-sized coffins covered with the French tricolour at the Eiffel Tower was another act of Russian interference, and a swipe at Emmanuel Macron’s suggestion of sending western European troops to Ukraine. Meanwhile, thousands of homeless people have been removed from the city in the lead-up to the Olympic Games.

  • Mexican first | Claudia Sheinbaum has won a landslide victory to become Mexico’s first female president, inheriting the reforming project of her mentor and outgoing leader, Andrés Manuel López Obrador.

  • Trump call | Donald Trump has called on the US supreme court to step in and annul the guilty verdict in his hush-money trial, while Hunter Biden’s trial in Delaware on gun charges could give Republicans a way of distracting attention from Trump’s legal woes. The US president, Joe Biden, made a rare comment on the trial, expressing his “boundless love for my son, confidence in him, and respect for his strength”.

  • Farage runs | Nigel Farage has announced he will run for parliament as a Reform UK in July’s general election in a major U-turn for the architect of Brexit. Check out all the day’s developments with our excellent new election newsletter.

  • Exclusive | A leading scientist in Canada has alleged he was barred from investigating a mystery brain illness and said he fears more than 200 people affected by the condition are experiencing unexplained neurological decline.

Full Story

‘Items of interest’ found in the search for Samantha Murphy

It’s been four months since 51-year-old Samantha Murphy disappeared after leaving for her morning run in Ballarat. Adeshola Ore tells Nour Haydar about the latest in the ongoing police investigation.

In-depth

Brace yourself, folks. Dentistry is hard to discuss, associated as it often is with physical and financial pain. But a museum in Adelaide makes a virtue out of the profession, especially the role of PR “Tick” Begg who is credited with revolutionising the fitting of braces and making the city the “orthodontic centre of the world” in the 1920s. Tory Shepherd extracts the whole, fascinating story.

Not the news

The Museum of Australian Photography holds more than 3,860 photographs and is holding a fundraising auction in Melbourne, with the proceeds of the sales shared equally with the contributing artists. We’ve been given a sneak preview of some of the images up for grabs, from brumbies to Bondi.

The world of sport

  • Matildas | Second-half goals from Clare Wheeler and Hayley Raso made sure the Matildas saw off China in front of 76,798 people at Sydney Olympic Stadium last night, along with an emotional sendoff for Lydia Williams from Evonne Goolagong Cawley. But the real business is this morning when Tony Gustavsson announces his squad for the Olympics.

  • State of Origin | From clashes between club teammates to absent stars, a coaching rookie and a new commentary sound, this year’s series has no shortage of stories, writes Jack Snape.

  • T20 World Cup | South Africa swatted aside Sri Lanka by six wickets in their match in New York overnight.

Media roundup

Anthony Albanese says he is confident Australia’s relationship with the US goes beyond “individuals” as he talked about the potential return of Donald Trump in an interview with the Daily Telegraph. A group of independent MPs have launched a campaign to force shops to take cash which they say is vital to food producers, the Age reports. A council is investigating after a huge tract of bush on North Stradbroke Island was cleared late last month, the Courier-Mail reports, three months after a similar case.

What’s happening today

  • Canberra | Senate estimates sits on economics, trade, community affairs and employment.

  • Brisbane | Australian large-scale solar and storage summit 2024.

  • Economy | ABS release on business indicators.

Sign up

If you would like to receive this Morning Mail update to your email inbox every weekday, sign up here, or finish your day with our Afternoon Update newsletter. And check out the full list of our local and international newsletters, including The Stakes, your guide to the twists and turns of the US presidential election.

Prefer notifications? If you’re reading this in our app, just click here and tap “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. Until tomorrow.

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