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| | | | 17/03/2025 Dutton and Rinehart’s ideological love-in, Trump and Putin to speak on ceasefire, fireworks ignite nightclub blaze |
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| | | Good morning. Today we take a look at the increasingly close friendship between opposition leader Peter Dutton and influential billionaire Gina Rinehart. As Dutton vies for the top job, we ask what influence the mining magnate will have over the next parliament, and launch an exclusive teaser episode for our new narrative podcast series. Plus: could jobseeker recipients struggling to get by be a crucial voting block as the election looms? And the US claims that Vladimir Putin “accepts the philosophy” of Donald Trump’s ceasefire and peace terms for the Ukraine conflict, as the two leaders prepare for talks expected this week. |
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Australia | |
| ‘Your blood runs cold’ | With nearly 2,000 investigations into alleged incidents of abuse at New South Wales childcare centres since 2020, many families have been left grappling with lingering questions. Kate Lyons reports on the anguish felt by parents after a daycare worker commits a sexual offence against a child. | Welfare | In the span of just a few days, two major reports have called for jobseeker payments to be lifted. Experts say it’s set to be an election issue, as people living below the breadline make up a “significant voting block”. | Analysis | SUVs and four-door utes have become Australia’s new family car. Elias Visontay surveys the case for reversing our costly – and maybe fatal – attraction to bigger vehicles. | Trade war | Donald Trump’s trade war could raise the price of Big Macs in the US, Australia’s trade minister has warned, amid fears that tariffs could be extended to beef exports. | Squatting tensions | The NSW premier, Chris Minns, has been accused of “fuelling division” after residents of a Lismore street were allegedly attacked and terrorised in the early hours of Saturday. |
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World | |
| Russia-Ukraine war | Emmanuel Macron says Russia’s permission is not needed to deploy troops in Ukraine for security guarantees; Donald Trump’s envoy says he expects the US president to speak with Vladimir Putin this week – and adds that the Russian president “accepts the philosophy” of Trump’s ceasefire and peace terms. | Nightclub disaster | At least 59 people have been killed and more than 100 injured in a blaze thought to have been caused by special-effect pyrotechnics igniting a nightclub building in North Macedonia. | Middle East crisis | US officials have said airstrikes against Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis will continue indefinitely following the armed group’s continued attacks on Red Sea shipping. | Closer to home | The arrival of astronauts aboard a SpaceX capsule should finally allow Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams to return to Earth after being stranded for months on the International Space Station. | US politics | Democrats train fire on Elon Musk as the unelected billionaire dips in popularity; Donald Trump says the US economy “went to hell” under Joe Biden – but the opposite is true, Steven Greenhouse writes. Plus “the atmosphere is toxic here”: Washington DC is worried with Trump back in town. |
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Full Story | |
| Gina: the billionaire who wants to make Australia great As we approach the Australian federal election, our new podcast series is exploring how much power and influence Gina Rinehart has in this country. She is a success story, worth almost $40bn. She’s also a climate sceptic, a Trumpette, a litigant – even against her own kids – and the woman who saved Australian swimming. Reged Ahmad speaks to Sarah Martin to ask: who is Gina Rinehart, and what does she want? | | |
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In-depth | |
| Gina Rinehart is a Trump supporter and a woman with ambitions for political influence: she has spoken about her desire to “make Australia great”. Today, we dive deep into Rinehart’s close bond with aspiring prime minister Peter Dutton, who has pledged to “be the best friend the resource sector in Australia will ever have” and described the billionaire as “a dear friend”. Rinehart has cultivated a relationship with the opposition leader since he took the job in 2022, and political donations have since flowed from Rinehart’s Hancock Prospecting to the Coalition in unprecedented amounts. |
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Not the news | |
| There’s an image of big cities as soulless places, where everyone is just out for themselves. In the latest of our Kindest of strangers series, we hear from someone who left their precious flute on a Sydney train. The instrument was handed in to lost and found – but a lack of ID meant the station guards wouldn’t hand it back. Would an offer to play a tune unlock the impasse? |
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What’s happening today | VIC | A hearing is scheduled in the case of a pianist suing Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. | NSW | The Lowy Institute is hosting an event exploring the future of the Australia-US alliance. | NSW | A Fair Work hearing is due in the dispute between NSW psychiatrists and the NSW government. |
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Brain teaser | And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow. | |
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Contact us | If you have a story tip or technical issue viewing this newsletter, please reply to this email. If you are a Guardian supporter and need assistance with regards to contributions and/or digital subscriptions, please email customer.help@guardian.co.uk |
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A message from Lenore Taylor editor of Guardian AustraliaI hope you appreciated this newsletter. Before you move on, I wonder if you would consider supporting our work as we prepare for a pivotal, uncertain year ahead.
The course of world history has taken a sharp and disturbing turn in 2024. Liberalism is under threat from populist authoritarianism. Americans have voted to install a president with no respect for democratic norms, nor the facts that once formed the guardrails of public debate.
That decision means an alliance critical to Australia’s national and economic security is now a series of unpredictable transactions, with a partner no longer committed to multilateralism, nor efforts to curb global heating, the greatest threat we face. We just don’t know where this will lead.
In this uncertain time, fair, fact-based journalism is more important than ever – to record and understand events, to scrutinise the powerful, to give context, and to counter rampant misinformation and falsehoods.
As we enter an Australian election year, we are deeply conscious of the responsibility to accurately and impartially report on what is really at stake.
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If you can, please consider supporting us with just $1, or better yet, support us every month with a little more. Thank you. | | |
| Lenore Taylor
Editor, Guardian Australia |
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