☕️ An interview with Sussan Ley

If you’ve been reading The Daily Aus for a while, you’ll know we’ve been waiting quite some time to get the leader of the Liberal Party to do an interview with us.

We didn’t have any luck with Peter Dutton. But his replacement, Sussan Ley, immediately agreed to talk with us upon becoming leader. That interview has gone live this morning.

I talked to Ley about her assessment of why the Coalition lost, the Coalition’s subsequent breakup, their stance on nuclear, and the Liberal Party’s supposed ‘women’s problem’.

You can listen to the interview here, or watch it here.

And thank you to everyone who sent through question suggestions!

"Teachers are reporting increased tension and distress among students. Our members are supporting students from Palestinian, Jewish, and other backgrounds, including refugees, who are grieving, angry, confused or afraid. Right now, teachers are having to help students make sense of complex, confronting global events, often without the resources or professional guidance needed."
Australian Education Union Correna Haythorpe, in a statement calling on state and territory education ministers to provide clear guidance for teachers on how to discuss ongoing global conflicts with their students.

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The increase in reports of sexual assault to NSW Police's digital portal in the year to March 2025, compared to 2024. Full Stop Australia said the surge in submissions to the Sexual Assault Reporting Option (SARO) shows traditional reporting pathways "do not provide safe, accessible and trauma-informed approaches."

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Soviet astronaut Valentina V. Tereshkova became the first woman to travel in space. She was launched into orbit onboard the spacecraft Vostok 6, where she took photos and observations during her 48 orbits of Earth.

The Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) will protect the rankings of high-level players who take time off to freeze eggs or embryos.

The WTA is the governing body for professional women’s tennis.

Earlier this year, it introduced a similar policy for parental leave.

The WTA announced on Wednesday that players’ rankings will be protected if they choose to take time off to undergo fertility protection procedures, such as egg or embryo freezing.

The top 750 players in singles or doubles will be eligible for the protected ranking.

Under the policy, players will be able to enter up to three tournaments with a ‘Special Entry Ranking’ after they return from undergoing these procedures. This special ranking will be based on the average of their last 12 weeks of competition.

For example, Aryna Sabalenka has been world #1 since 2024. If she were to take time off for these procedures, she would enter her next three tournaments as the #1 seed.

Earlier this year, the governing body also introduced paid parental leave.

The program, funded by the Saudi Arabian Government’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), is the first of its kind for self-employed athletes.

Former world number three Sloane Stephens said: “The WTA has now created a safe space for players to explore options and to make the best decisions for themselves.”

Reporting by George Finlayson.

Last Friday, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) fired missiles at nuclear and military facilities, as well as residential complexes, in Iran’s capital of Tehran.

Hours later, Iran retaliated with an attack on Israel, with multiple missiles hitting central Tel Aviv.

It comes amid international discussion about Iran’s nuclear capabilities, including negotiations with the U.S. to limit its activities.

Here’s some background on what’s happening.

The relationship between Israel and Iran has been hostile since Iran’s revolution in 1979, which led to it becoming the first Islamic Republic.

Iran financially and militarily supports Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen, among others. All three groups are designated as terrorist organisations by Australia.

Iran and Israel directly attacked each other for the first time last year.

Iranian leadership have said their goal is to destroy Israel.

On Friday local time, Israel launched widespread strikes across Iran, including a nuclear site in Natanz.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), the UN nuclear watchdog, has since confirmed there has been no increase in radiation detected in Natanz.

Earlier this week, the IAEA issued a warning that Iran appeared to be using “nuclear material” for military purposes, not energy. This is in breach of a previous international agreement.

Israel also struck numerous military bases.

Iranian state media reported the leader of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a military force alongside its army, had been killed, alongside the military’s chief of staff.

Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people were killed and 320 injured in the strikes, including civilians.

Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei vowed “harsh punishment” for the Israeli strikes.

Since then, hundreds of drones have been fired from Iran towards Israel.

A state of emergency has been declared in Israel, giving extra powers to the Government to respond to the strikes.

Israeli media reports that 13 people have been killed, with at least 200 more injured.

Shortly after Israel attacked Iran, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. was “not involved” in the strikes.

However, since then, President Donald Trump has said the U.S. “knew everything” in the lead-up to Israel’s strikes. Over the weekend, Trump said: “If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before.”

U.S. outlet Axios reports the country is “helping [Israel] to intercept” Iranian missiles.

Since returning to power, Trump has been committed to signing a new deal with Iran to limit its nuclear capabilities.

He said on the weekend that he had attempted to broker a deal that would have “saved Iran humiliation and death”. He said it was “not too late” for a deal to still be made. On Sunday, he added: “We can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!”

Trump’s Middle East adviser Steve Witkoff had planned to hold talks with Iranian officials in Oman. Iran said it wouldn’t attend.

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More than 80% of sunscreens contain chemicals that can be harmful to coral and marine life. However, The University of Derby in England has developed a new certification system to help consumers buy ocean-safe products. During testing for the Reef Protection Factor (RPF) system, researchers verified one product, called Coral Care, contained ingredients that help coral grow. The university said the sunscreen, “not only avoids harming coral reefs, but actively nourishes them,” making it the first sunscreen of its kind.

Want more good news? Sign up to our weekly Good Newsletter here - we promise it’ll make your week better!

Reporting by Anju Dhanushkodi.

In case you missed it, Sabrina Carpenter has a new album coming out called ‘Man’s Best Friend’.

And the album cover is causing some… thoughts.

The cover depicts Carpenter kneeling while having her hair pulled by someone. A post promoting it on Instagram has garnered thousands of comments, many of which say she is catering to the male gaze. This is a feminist theory developed by academic Laura Mulvey, used to describe how women are shown as passive while men are active in the media.

However, other users have argued the cover is satire, given the lead single of the album, is called ‘Manchild’.

Carpenter is currently touring her previous album, ‘Short n’ Sweet’, which was released last year. The new album will be released in August.

Reporting by Anju Dhanushkodi.

If you’ve been listening to The Daily Aus for a while, you’ll know we’ve been waiting quite some time to get the leader of the Liberal Party to do an interview with us.

We didn’t have any luck with Peter Dutton. But his replacement, Sussan Ley, immediately agreed to talk with us upon becoming leader.

In today’s episode, TDA's Editor-in-Chief Billi FitzSimons interviews the new Opposition Leader about her assessment of why the Coalition lost, the Coalition’s subsequent breakup, their stance on nuclear, and this idea that the Liberal Party has a ‘women’s problem’.