What we learned, Thursday 21 August
We will wrap up the blog here for the evening. This is what made the news:
The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, wrapped up the three-day economic reform roundtable, outlining ten areas where the government can begin work.
Chalmers and the Coalition frontbencher Ted O’Brien clashed at the roundtable, in a debate about Labor’s spending commitments in the federal budget.
Unions and the leading tech industry lobby group have agreed to work together on a model for payment for the use of creative content in training AI.
Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu lashed Anthony Albanese in a new interview with Sky News, saying the Australian PM’s reputation is “forever tarnished”.
A planned pro-Palestinian protest for Brisbane later this month can not cross the Story Bridge, a court ruled, but protesters have refused to rule out marching across the bridge.
The Australian share market hit a historic high as companies report strong profits and falling interest rates boost confidence in the economy.
Commonwealth Bank reported a surge in hopeful homebuyers looking for loans after interest rate cuts, which have together boosted a $200,000-income household’s borrowing capacity to more than $1m.
The Bruce Lehrmann defamation federal court appeal wrapped up one day early.
Heavy rain has brought dozens of flood warnings to parts of NSW.
Police located two bodies during their search for two men who went missing when a car crashed into a river north of Sydney just before midnight last night.
Thanks for your company, and enjoy your evening.
Updated
Flood impacts may continue into the weekend, says BoM
The Bureau of Meteorology’s Angus Hines has just given an update on the widespread rain that has brought flood risk to much of NSW today.
He said it would be “the last day of significant rain across eastern parts of NSW”.
But even as that rain clears by Friday morning, flood impacts could well linger through Friday and into the weekend, after what has been a pretty prolonged run of wet weather across the east coast.
Hines said the weather system was tracking eastwards towards the coast, clearing over inland areas this evening, and would move out over the sea in early tomorrow morning.
A major flood warning is still in place for the Namoi River, while a moderate warning is in place for the Peel River, and minor warnings are in place for the Nepean and Barwon rivers. Hines said these rivers may not peak until the weekend, with Sydney, the Hunter and the Illawarra at risk of minor to moderate flooding in the next few days.
Sometimes it just takes 12 to 24 to 36 hours for the wet weather to roll downhill and get into the river network.
Updated
