Good morning. Fears mount for the defenders of Mariupol as Russian troops enter the besieged city’s Azovstal steel plant. On the Australian election trail, Scott Morrison and Anthony Albanese will be out in Sydney, with jobs and childcare on the agenda.
Contestants in the north Queensland seat of Herbert have condemned One Nation for running a candidate who lives in outer Melbourne, with independent Angela Egan saying she was “flabbergasted and disgusted” and Katter’s Australian party’s Clynton Hawks reviling a “ring-in from three states away”. Analysts suggest declining party memberships plus additional competition among the libertarian right could explain One Nation’s scramble to field candidates in a state it still hopes to yield a Senate seat. With the election seemingly tightening, both Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg have warned of the “chaos” of a potential hung parliament, but a Guardian Australia analysis suggests minority governments have enjoyed relative success passing legislation. And, as Paul Daley writes, stark differences remain between Labor and the Liberals, not least their ability to wrangle a potentially rowdy 47th parliament.
