Morning everyone. Julian Assange will wake up to his first day of freedom for 14 years today after arriving back in Australia last night. We have news, analysis and a couple of cracking reads on the role of the government in securing his release and the reaction across the country. Plus, a trial date is set for Linda Reynolds’s defamation case against Brittany Higgins, the Blues take the Maroons to an Origin decider, and could taking multivitamins actually increase the risk of death?
Australia
Reynolds-Higgins trial | Linda Reynolds’s defamation case against her former political staffer Brittany Higgins over a series of social media posts will go to trial in August after attempts at a settlement failed.
Assange ‘needs time’ | Julian Assange’s wife, Stella, has pleaded for privacy for the WikiLeaks founder and his family as he adjusts to freedom after his dramatic release culminated in emotional scenes at Canberra airport last night. “Julian needs time to recover. To get used to freedoms,” she told the media. Our political editor says it was also a triumph for Anthony Albanese who can point to how his diplomacy delivered results for an Australian in strife.
Payman praised | Labor Friends of Palestine have praised Fatima Payman’s decision to cross the floor to support Palestinian statehood as “entirely consistent with Labor principles and policy” and rejected federal Labor’s stance as a “weakening” of its commitment on the issue.
Inflation headache | As inflation shows no sign of falling soon, it’s another headache for small businesses in a period marked by lockdowns, reopenings, hybrid office trends and worker shortages. Cafes are among those facing tough choices over how to keep going – they say people are buying less food as they trim their budgets.
Cruel blow | Molly Ticehurst’s family has been dealt another cruel blow after it emerged that thieves stole precious items from her home such as a gold pendant just days after she was allegedly murdered.
World
Multivitamin risk | Taking a daily multivitamin does not help people to live any longer, and may even be harmful, a major study has found.
Trump lashes out | Donald Trump has unleashed a fusillade of baseless accusations against Joe Biden and CNN moderators ahead of the first US presidential debate tomorrow in an apparent “pre-bunking” exercise designed to have his excuses ready-made if he is declared the loser.
Voting boost | Although it is still expected to win a landslide next week, the UK Labour party is planning to introduce automatic registration for voting to boost rolls for future elections.
Paris Hilton ‘abused’ | Paris Hilton, the American socialite and media figure, has told a congressional panel looking into strengthening child welfare protections that she was “force-fed medications and sexually abused by staff” while she was institutionalised as a teenager.
Starliner problems | Two astronauts on Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft will remain in space with no clear plan about when they will return in the latest public relations disaster for the aerospace company.
Full Story
Inside Australia’s first truth-telling commission
Victoria’s Yoorrook justice commission will soon wind up its formal hearings, with other states expected to plan their own truth-telling processes. Yoorrook’s chair, Wamba Wamba and Wergaia elder Prof Eleanor Bourke, speaks to Jane Lee.
In-depth
When Julian Assange stepped onto the tarmac at Canberra airport last night, it was the culmination of a long legal battle by the self-described “consultant, journalist, computer programmer, producer, editor and documentary editor” and his supporters. Daniel Hurst looks at how relentless lobbying by the government and a “garden party ambush” played their part in freeing Assange, while Tory Shepherd considers the reaction in Australia where some welcome him home as a hero of free speech while others see him as a “traitor”. He may seek solitude and ordinariness now, Tory writes, but the clamour over his return home is unlikely to be easily quieted.
Not the news
To keep you warm through the cold winter weather, we’ve put together a mouth-watering menu of the best chicken soup recipes from our roster of star food writers. The recipes on offer include Nigella Lawson’s Sunday night chicken noodle, Yotam Ottolenghi’s chicken and parmesan soup with pappardelle pasta (pictured), and Mandy Yin’s chicken curry laksa.
The world of sport
State of Origin | A record-breaking first half blitz by the Blues set up a commanding 38-18 victory over the Maroons in Melbourne last night to set up a decider in Brisbane in two weeks time. On a night when gambles paid off for New South Wales coach Michael Maguire, it was a never-to-be-forgotten Origin story.
Euro 2024 | Belgium clung on to draw 0-0 with Ukraine and progress to the last 16 as Romania top the group despite a 1-1 draw with Slovakia.
Tour de France | The Grand Départ is in Florence and the finish is in Nice rather than Paris: you can check it out in our stage-by-stage guide to the great race.
Media roundup
The release of Julian Assange is the lead for most outlets with the Canberra Times also highlighting the “key players and careful diplomacy” that led to his release. The Sydney Morning Herald remembers its trailblazing former editor Judith Whelan who has died from cancer. Nurses and midwives in Victoria have voted to accept pay rises totalling 28.4% over four years after a revised state government offer, the Australian reports.
What’s happening today
Politics | Anthony Albanese to speak at the CEDA state of the nation conference in Canberra.
Economy | RBA deputy governor Andrew Hauser gives a speech and Q&A at the A50 Australian Economic Forum.
Sydney | Conciliation hearing as landlord sues Bruce Lehrmann over apartment paid for by Seven.
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.
