What we learned today, Tuesday 11 April
Thanks for following along on the blog today. Here is a wrap of the day’s biggest stories:
Liberal MP Julian Leeser has resigned as shadow attorney general and shadow minister for Indigenous Australians so he can campaign for a yes vote in the voice referendum.
Opposition leader, Peter Dutton, said that while Leeser “doesn’t leave with rancour [and] does not leave with bitterness”, his stance is “at odds with the overwhelming majority of the Liberal party members in our party room”.
Dutton said he will spend the next week considering who should replace Leeser in the shadow cabinet.
Meanwhile, One Nation leader, Pauline Hanson, called for senator Simon Birmingham to follow in the steps of his Liberal colleague Leeser and resign over his stance on the voice.
The Australian government has announced “a pathway” to resolve the barley dispute with China after hefty tariffs were introduced by Beijing at the height of diplomatic tensions in 2020.
Reports emerged that NSW Labor has asked for a recount in Ryde following last month’s state election.
A storm developing off the Western Australian coast is expected to turn into a cyclone before making landfall, bringing powerful winds and potential flooding.
Nearly 50 Australian federal politicians have today put their name to a letter to the US attorney general urging him to drop the bid to extradite Julian Assange from the UK.
Updated
Some more commentary on Tropical Cyclone Ilsa, courtesy of Weatherzone:
The last cyclone originating in Australian waters to make landfall on the mainland was Cyclone Ellie on December 22, 2022.
While that storm’s winds didn’t cause widespread damage, the system was notable because of its persistence as a tropical low, which delivered flooding rains far inland for weeks.
There are early indications that Ilsa could also bring heavy rains far inland, albeit to different parts of the interior. But before that happens, its immediate impacts on coastal communities and nearby areas could be far more severe.
No, this is not the world's largest jellyfish. It's an infrared sat pic of rapidly intensifying Tropical Cyclone Ilsa, which will cross the WA coastline as a very dangerous Category 4 storm in a couple of days. More: https://t.co/gaN0T6sfnd pic.twitter.com/GlesRVJnyu
— Anthony Sharwood ❄️ (@antsharwood) April 11, 2023
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