Hi there. It's Monday, November 7, and you're reading The Loop, a quick wrap-up of today's news.
Let's start here
The Robodebt royal commission has heard evidence that warnings about legal and policy problems with the proposed scheme were "watered down" in a brief being prepared for then-social services minister Scott Morrison.
The inquiry has previously heard that government lawyers had internal legal advice as early as 2014 warning of legal issues with the proposal.
Currently conducting hearings in Brisbane, the inquiry before Catherine Holmes SC is examining how the scheme, which used tax office data and income averaging, was developed and implemented before it was scrapped in 2019.
What else is going on
- Medibank chief executive David Koczkar says the value of a ransom demand from cybercriminals was "irrelevant" in the company's decision not to negotiate with the hackers. Medibank says the details of 9.7 million current and former customers have been accessed, and almost half a million customers have had private health data accessed
- Sri Lankan cricketer Danushka Gunathilaka has been denied bail after being charged over an alleged sexual assault in Sydney. The 31-year-old was yesterday arrested at a hotel in the city's CBD, where his squad was staying for the T20 World Cup, and charged with four counts of sexual intercourse without consent
- Water quality testing carried out by the Environment Protection Authority over the past week has returned high levels of E. coli in Victorian floodwaters. Indicative results from the last week showed Rochester, Benalla and Shepparton were the most contaminated areas, matching up with reports of illnesses such as gastro
What Australia has been searching for online
- Tom and Sarah-Jane. If you watched The Block auctions last night, it'll be no surprise that this search has spiked in the past 24 hours. If you didn't, I won't completely spoil it for you by dropping the numbers but the result was a SHOCK. A SHOCK, I TELL YOU. Reporter Jessica Riga has taken a look at how the results represent Australia's current housing market — check it out here
- Thunderstorms. The BOM issued severe thunderstorm warnings for parts of Melbourne this afternoon, with heavy rain and flash flooding possible. Residents in the area have been urged to be careful and avoid hazards such floodwater, debris and damaged roads.
You're up to date
See you tomorrow.
ABC/wires
