Welcome, readers, to Afternoon Update.
Tensions rose in the Senate today as the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, twice refused to rule out a double dissolution after Labor’s housing and environmental bills were met with resistance by both the Greens and the Coalition. “We’ll wait and see,” he said.
A double dissolution is when both chambers of parliament are dissolved to clear the way for a new election. It becomes an option if the Senate rejects a piece of legislation the government puts up twice. In theory, this could result in a new Senate that is more partial to the legislation.
Taking aim at Labor’s help to buy bill, the Greens’ Max Chandler-Mather said the government had given “literally nothing” in negotiations, while the Coalition derided the legislation as “not the right approach to solve home ownership challenges in Australia”.
Albanese accused the Greens and Coalition of blocking “commonsense reforms”, and Chandler-Mather of acting out of “immaturity and spite”.
Chandler-Mather told Guardian Australia it “would be a great tragedy if the prime minister’s personal dislike of the Greens saw him reject good ideas” including rent caps, building public housing and tax changes.
Top news
Deeming defamation trial continues | A court has heard that the ousted Victorian Liberal MP Moira Deeming denied allegations she was a Nazi after speaking at a rally that was gatecrashed by neo-Nazis. Deeming said she had only became aware that group of men were Nazis when police escorted them from the steps of parliament.
Australia announces trade deal with UAE | The agreement provides a gateway for Australian exporters to diversify into the Middle East, a market of about 58 million consumers. It is also Australia’s first trade agreement with a dedicated chapter covering First Nations trade.
Former foreign affairs minister’s Aukus warning | Gareth Evans, Labor’s longest serving foreign affairs minister (1988-1996), has dismissed the Australian government’s argument that it will have full sovereign control of the nuclear-powered submarines as “frankly a joke in bad taste”.
Titan sub crew’s final moments | A two-week hearing into what led to the experimental submersible imploding in June 2023 has begun this week, with the US Coast Guard revealing the last words from the doomed crew were “all good here”.
White House blasts Musk | The White House has condemned Elon Musk for tweeting “no one is even trying to assassinate Biden/Kamala”. The post was deleted, but not before the Secret Service tooknotice.
Russia retakes two villages in Kursk | Moscow claims it pushed Ukrainian forces back from two villages in its western region, continuing what it describes as a significant counteroffensive. Meanwhile, Facebook owner Meta has banned Russian state media outlets from operating on its platforms.
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs arrested in New York, attorney says | Details of the charges were not immediately announced by prosecutors but the federal investigation into Combs was revealed when Homeland Security Investigations agents served simultaneous search warrants and raided Combs’ mansions.
Miami Heat attack ‘hateful’ speech | The NBA team posted a message of support on social media amid false claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, have eaten pets and wildlife, saying “our Haitian employees, fans and friends deserve better”.
Koala’s surprise visit to Victorian supermarket | A teen male marsupial’s appearance in a regional IGA has charmed staff and shoppers – and highlighted the issue of disappearing and fragmented habitats.
In pictures
Seen from above
See a selection of the nominated images from this year’s Drone awards, for which a winner will be announced on 28 September at the Siena world photography awards ceremony.
What they said …
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“Zane Stevens, Jeremiah ‘Jayo’ Rivers, Wylie Oscar, Clinton Lockyer, Wesley Lockyer, Brenton Shar, Jimmy Taylor Greens.”
The Greens senator Dorinda Cox, supported by David Shoebridge, has laid out the need for a federal inquiry into missing Indigenous men and children in Western Australia, naming seven missing people from recent years.
In numbers
The current record stands at 37 days, 20 hours and 45 minutes, set by Queenslander David Alley in 2011. But almost two weeks into his own quest, Lachlan Morton – who rode from Port Macquarie to Uluru with his brother Angus in 2014 – is on track to blitz that time.
Before bed read
‘Tinder’s School of Swipe is a solid first step – but online dating safety has a long way to go’
The challenge remains to create a comprehensive approach that addresses underlying abuse and discrimination, writes Lisa Portolan.
Daily word game
Today’s starter word is: LYSE. You have five goes to get the longest word including the starter word. Play Wordiply.
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