UN-backed report urges action to conserve natural wonder; ally of former PM lifts lid on Coalition concerns about his conduct. Follow the day’s news live
The Nine newspapers continue their serialisation today of Niki Savva’s book about Scott Morrison with the revelation that a close Morrison ally – Liberal MP Alex Hawke – thinks the former prime minister became “addicted to executive authority” and should have quit politics immediately after the last election.
In the book Bulldozed, Hawke is quoted as saying of Morrison that he “didn’t really take advice from people” and that he “wasn’t the greatest listener”.
A UN-backed report said the Great Barrier Reef should be placed on the world heritage in danger list and said climate change was presenting a “serious challenge” to the values that saw the reef inscribed as a global wonder in 1981. It came with 10 recommendations that could “drastically improve” its outlook, including urging the Australian government to make “clear commitments to reduce greenhouse emissions”.
Our top politics story is that a Guardian Essential poll shows Anthony Albanese is in a strong position going into the summer break. The poll puts Labor ahead of the Coalition on the two-party -preferred “plus” measure 51.4% to 43.1%, while voter disapproval of Peter Dutton remains 10 points higher than for the prime minister.
It comes as Scott Morrison faces a rare censure motion this week from the House of Representatives over his takeover of five government ministries during the pandemic. Meanwhile, Nine newspapers are continuing their serialisation of a book lifting the lid on Coalition squabbling over the secret ministries scandal, with the revelation that a close ally thought the former PM became “addicted” to power.
The US government must drop its prosecution of the WikiLeaks co-founder Julian Assange because it is undermining press freedom, according to the media organisations that helped him publish leaked diplomatic cables 12 years ago today. Now the Guardian, the New York Times, Le Monde, Der Spiegel and El País have come together to oppose plans to charge Assange under a law designed to prosecute first world war spies. “Publishing is not a crime,” they say, stressing that the prosecution is a direct attack on media freedom.