Morning, everyone. The treasurer, Jim Chalmers, is being offered a chance today to have his cake and eat it: by curtailing the most generous Coalition-era tax stage-three cuts due to kick in next year and still delivering more take-home pay for 80% of taxpayers. That’s our top story today, and we’re also reporting on calls for closer regulation of e-bike batteries, a cryptocurrency star’s “empire of lies” – and the 2030 World Cup will be played on three continents, to the dismay of climate groups.
Australia
Lottery risk | The government should reverse its decision to exempt lottery companies from a ban on credit card use because they still present a risk to people addicted to gambling, according to activists.
Taxing issue | The Coalition’s stage-three tax cuts could be remodelled to save the budget up to $130bn while still delivering bigger tax cuts to most earners, according to the Australia Institute. The progressive thinktank has come up with four ways to change the controversial tax cuts.
Battery danger | A lack of regulation covering lithium-ion batteries has resulted in lower quality products reaching the market, increasing the fire risk from charging devices such as e-bikes, an expert says, after backpackers were caught in a fireball at a Sydney hostel believed to have been sparked by a faulty e-bike.
Games fail | Jacinta Allan was warned about the rising cost of the 2026 Commonwealth Games three months before it was cancelled by the government in which Victoria’s new premier was then deputy leader.
‘Who works Monday to Friday?’ | Firefighters are warning today that “weekend warrior” volunteers are not enough to cope with the ever-lengthening bushfire season.
World
‘Empire of lies’ | The former cryptocurrency star Sam Bankman-Fried built his empire on “lies” and lived a lavish lifestyle while defrauding his customers, prosecutors have said in the opening arguments of his fraud trial in New York.
House divided | Two Republican hardliners, Steve Scalise of Louisiana and Jim Jordan of Ohio, have emerged as leading contenders to succeed Kevin McCarthy as speaker of the US House of Representatives. But the coup against McCarthy could mean they will struggle to win the support of moderates. A Texas Republican said he would nominate Donald Trump to be the next speaker.
Changing track | The British prime minister, Rishi Sunak, confirmed all the rumours and has cancelled the planned HS2 rail link from Birmingham to Manchester in a huge U-turn by his government. And you can check out our three-minute video on the chaotic Tory party conference here. Helena Horton writes that the Conservatives have chosen culture wars over coherent policies.
Migrant record | A wooden boat crammed with 280 people that reached the Canary Islands is thought to be the most crowded migrant vessel to make it across the perilous Atlantic route from west Africa.
How much? | The certificate needed to buy a car in Singapore has rocketed in cost to US$106,000, as a post-pandemic recovery has driven up the cost of the country’s vehicle quota system to all-time highs.
Full Story
How my missed train turned into a $2,000 taxi ride
Rural and regional editor Gabrielle Chan reprises the story of how a missed train resulted in an epic six-hour, 600km cab journey and discusses what it tells us about the state of Australia’s rail network.
In-depth
In an alarming message for voice campaigners, many voters in western Sydney still don’t understand what the referendum is and others don’t even know it is taking place. “It’s all a bunch of talk. I’m Aboriginal and I don’t even know what they want us to vote for,” Olive Booth told our reporter Mostafa Rachwani as the push for votes goes into the home stretch.
Not the news
The format is simple: a dating show in which the chooser gets to see the choosee without any clothes on. But Naked Attraction is causing a stir in the US where the format for popular programs such as The Bachelor have “the distinct flavour of Instagram Christian modesty” rather than the “let-it-all-hang-out” boasted by the British upstart, writes Adrian Horton.
The world of sport
Football | The 2030 World Cup is to be played on three continents after Morocco, Portugal and Spain won the race to host the 48-team tournament but Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay were gifted three matches.
Cricket | England’s talisman Ben Stokes is an injury doubt before the team’s World Cup opener against New Zealand in Ahmedabad later today.
Premier League | Jürgen Klopp has called for Liverpool’s Premier League defeat at Tottenham to be replayed owing to the unprecedented errors behind Luis Díaz’s disallowed goal.
Media roundup
More than 5,000 hectares of land has been razed by fire in the Bega Valley, destroying three homes and leaving residents traumatised, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. Plastic surgeons are taking legal action over what they describe as “misogynistic, misleading and potentially dangerous” rule changes governing cosmetic surgery, the Herald Sun says. Whale experts have told the Bega District News about the “epic” experience of freeing a humpback caught up in ropes and chains off the coast of Eden.
What’s happening today
Health | The national study of mental health and wellbeing findings will be published by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.
Queensland | A high-profile man accused of rape is expected to seek a suppression order at Toowoomba magistrates court.
Protest | Refugee activists are staging a sit-down strike outside Anthony Albanese’s Sydney office.
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Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day – with plenty more on the Guardian’s Puzzles app for iOS and Android. Until tomorrow.
