Morning everyone. The growing influence of a secretive firm on the political debate in Australia is revealed today by documents showing it claimed almost $135,000 in taxpayer funding from Coalition politicians to help shape their messaging on issues such as the Indigenous voice to parliament. We have the full exclusive story, plus calls to toughen the country’s investigation of serious international crimes and the New Zealand company sticking two fingers up at Australia’s vaping crackdown.
Australia
Logging on | The Tasmanian Liberal party has promised to open 40,000 hectares of protected native forests to logging if re-elected next month, prompting accusations it will accelerate damage to the environment.
Exclusive | Coalition senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, the face of the voice’s no campaign, was billed almost $70,000 by Whitestone Strategic, a political consultancy group that helps conservative politicians campaign on social media, an investigation using freedom of information laws has revealed.
Spy’s defence | The Asio boss, Mike Burgess, last night defended his decision not to name the former politician who he said had “sold out” their country to a foreign spy network. Peter Dutton had called for the politician to be “outed and shamed” .
The wanted | Australia’s approach to investigating and prosecuting allegations of serious international crimes “is not working”, the Greens have said after the Guardian/Four Corners investigation into genocide in Rwanda.
Exclusive | The Queensland government is planning to introduce new “police efficiency” laws that would empower officers to issue on-the-spot year-long domestic violence protection orders, amid ongoing political pressure to devote more frontline resources to youth crime.
World
Exclusive | A conservative economist with radical ideas on privatising social security has been recruited by Project 2025, a vast rightwing effort to advance policy proposals for Donald Trump’s possible White House return.
‘Historic step’ | G20 ministers meeting in Brazil – including the treasurer, Jim Chalmers – are exploring plans for a global minimum tax on the world’s 3,000 billionaires. It comes as some of the US’s most profitable corporations have slashed their tax bills in the years since the passage of the Trump tax cuts.
Putin warning | Vladimir Putin has told Nato countries that they risk provoking a nuclear war if they send troops to fight in Ukraine, in an annual state of the nation speech ramping up his threats against Europe and the US.
Gaza deaths | More than 100 Palestinians have died when desperate crowds gathered around aid trucks near Gaza City and Israeli troops opened fire, though early reports differ as to the cause of the majority of the deaths. Joe Biden says it will complicated ceasefire talks – follow our live blog for the latest.
Titan reborn | A colossal statue of Atlas that lay buried for centuries among ancient ruins has been reconstructed to take its rightful place among the Greek temples of Agrigento in Sicily, after a 20-year research and restoration project.
Full Story
Newsroom edition: can Peter Dutton win the next election?
With the Coalition ahead in the polls, Gabrielle Jackson talks with editor in chief Lenore Taylor and head of newsroom Mike Ticher about why Australians can’t rule out Peter Dutton as the next prime minister.
In-depth
A New Zealand online vape seller is taunting the Albanese government over its vaping reforms, telling customers “we have no intention of stopping” vape shipments because of “one twat in Canberra”, presumably a rude reference to the federal health minister, Mark Butler. Importing vapes to Australia is banned from today and doctors say they expect a rush of patients seeking prescriptions for vapes as the government crackdown makes them harder to buy.
Not the news
It’s Mardi Gras weekend in Sydney and it’s also the 25th anniversary of the groundbreaking show Queer As Folk. Scott Bryan looks at the best LGBT shows of all time, from RuPaul’s Drag Race, pictured, to Will and Grace.
The world of sport
Football | France’s World Cup-winning midfielder Paul Pogba, once the world’s most expensive player, has been banned from football for four years for taking drugs.
Cricket | A defiant century from Cameron Green helped Australia recover to a respectable total on the opening day of the first Test against New Zealand.
Women’s football | This weekend only women’s voices will be heard on broadcasts for an entire A-League Women round and Kate Allman explains why she’s proud to be part of it.
Formula One | Christian Horner has said Red Bull have “never been stronger” after he was given the green light to remain as team principal after accusations of inappropriate controlling behaviour towards a female colleague.
Media roundup
The Sydney Morning Herald laments that New South Wales’s new trains are uncomfortable, over budget and running late, while the political editor of the Age thinks winning the Dunkley byelection could be a poisoned chalice for Anthony Albanese. Another well-established Queensland property developer has gone bust, the Courier Mail reports, while the Adelaide Advertiser says a popular CBD LGBTQI bar is about to close because of the cost of living crisis.
What’s happening today
Sydney | Mardi Gras parade preparations, and there’s a vigil for Jesse Baird and Luke Davies and a Pride in Protest rally against policing.
Economy | The CoreLogic housing market figures for February to be released.
Sport | NRL team captains hold a media conference to launch the new season.
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Brain teaser
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.
