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Good morning!
The news you missed over the weekend? Milano-Cortina is now officially Australia’s most successful Winter Olympics ever.
Our athletes have now won three gold medals at a single Winter Games for the first time.
Before Milano-Cortina, Australia had won six Winter Olympic gold medals. Now we have nine. And we still have one more week to go!
I’ve got 10 seconds
The quote: “They've changed the leader, but they're still on a dead horse.”
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson on Angus Taylor's election as Liberal leader.
The stat: 8.8%. Australia Post’s proposed increase in the cost of stamps for standard letters. It asked the ACCC to approve the increase, which it said “balances affordability with the need to maintain a reliable, nationally accessible postal network.”
The big question:
How long have you subscribed to this newsletter?
Yesterday’s results: 35% of you don’t listen to any podcasts. The same percentage of people listen to more than four episodes each week! [1,500 votes].
I’ve got 30 seconds
Some headlines from this morning:
NSW Premier Chris Minns has announced the state will have an extra public holiday in 2026 and 2027, when Anzac Day falls on Saturday and Sunday. Remembrance services are held nationwide on April 25 but only people in Western Australia and ACT had been granted an additional public holiday on the following Monday. The decision was supported by RSL NSW, but Minns has acknowledged “it's somewhat of an additional burden for small businesses in particular.” NSW has fewer public holidays than all other mainland states and territories. The Victorian government has said it is unlikely to follow NSW in offering residents a make-up public holiday for Anzac Day in 2026 and 2027. "We've got 13 public holidays a year - that's more than any other state," Victorian minister Harriet Shing said.
Five European allies have accused Russia of killing Opposition Leader Alexei Navalny using toxin from poison dart frogs. In a joint statement, Britain, France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands said analyses of samples from Navalny's body "conclusively" confirmed the presence of epibatidine, which is a toxin found in poison dart frogs in South America and not found naturally in Russia. The Russian government, which has repeatedly denied any responsibility for Navalny's death, dismissed the latest allegations as "a Western propaganda hoax," according to the Russian state's TASS news agency.
Together with AAP.
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I’ve got 1 minute
The Federal Government will push for all food products to have a mandatory Health Star Rating (HSR).
The system rates similar food products based on nutrition indicators.
Currently, manufacturers choose to opt in to rating their products.
Assistant Health Minister Rebecca White is advocating for all food products to be rated “to enhance consumer choice.”
A meeting of food ministers from Australia and New Zealand supported the proposal on Friday.
HSR
The HSR system was introduced in 2014 through a collaboration between the Australian, state and territory, and NZ governments, along with industry, public health and consumer groups.
It rates food in half-star increments from zero to five stars, based on the amount of fibre, sugar, sodium, saturated fat, energy (kilojoules) and protein it has.
HSRs are currently voluntary, meaning companies can opt in to labelling their products with a rating.
Products fall into six categories:
Non-dairy beverages, jellies and water-based ice blocks;
Dairy beverages (and alternatives);
Dairy foods (and alternatives);
Oils and oil-based spreads;
Cheese; and
Other foods.
To determine the rating, products are compared to like products and should be treated as such.
For example: a loaf of bread could be rated 2/5 stars in comparison to other breads on the market, while a bottle of soft drink could be rated 3/5 stars compared to other carbonated drinks.
This does not mean the soft drink is healthier than the bread.
Mandate
This week, White announced a push for the HSR to be displayed on all food products to “ensure all shoppers can quickly and easily compare the different options on supermarket shelves.”
She said: “Many Australians want to make healthier choices... but don’t have time to read through complex nutritional tables or ingredients lists.”
On Friday, state, territory, and NZ food ministers supported the idea of making it mandatory, and committed to consulting the public.
Reporting by Emily Donohoe.
Quick hits
🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, Sam and Zara unpack the ski-jumping scandal that’s got everyone talking about a certain body part.
⛷️ For more Milano news, you can sign up to TDA Sport.
I’ve got 2 minutes
In case you missed it, Angus Taylor was elected leader of the Liberal Party on Friday. Taylor beat previous leader Sussan Ley in a vote.
The leadership spill came after a two-week Liberal-National Coalition split.
Here’s what you need to know.
Spill
On Friday morning, a Liberal Party meeting was held.
In the vote, 17 people voted for Ley to remain leader, and 33 people voted for Taylor. One person abstained from voting.
This means Taylor became leader, effective immediately.
Background
In January, the Nationals broke from the Liberals when voting on a bill to reform hate speech laws following the Bondi terror attack.
Unlike the Labor Party, the Coalition does not require its MPs to always vote with the party, unless they are in the Shadow Cabinet. This is known as ‘Shadow Cabinet solidarity’.
After breaking solidarity, three Nationals tendered their resignations from the Shadow Cabinet to Opposition leader Sussan Ley on 21 January.
On 22 January, National Party leader David Littleproud announced the Coalition had split, as “under the leadership of Sussan Ley [it] is untenable and cannot continue.”
Two weeks later, on 8 February, Ley and Littleproud announced the Coalition had reformed.
On Wednesday evening, Taylor resigned from the Liberal frontbench, freeing him to launch a challenge.
On Thursday morning, multiple Liberals resigned from their positions, and a request for a spill was delivered to Ley.
Taylor then said he would challenge Ley.
Taylor
Since 2013, Taylor has been the Member for Hume, covering the outskirts of Sydney’s southwestern suburbs, including Camden, Picton and Bargo.
Taylor grew up on a farm in the NSW Snowy Mountains. He attended boarding school in Sydney, before studying at the University of Sydney, graduating with honours in Economics and Law.
Taylor was a Rhodes Scholar, achieving a Masters of Philosophy in Economics at Oxford University.
Before entering politics, Taylor worked in management consulting and agribusiness.
During his parliamentary career, Taylor has served in ministerial positions including energy and industry. Until this week, he was the Shadow Defence Minister.
After former Liberal leader Peter Dutton lost his seat at the 2025 election, Ley won the position over Taylor, 29 votes to 25.
Reporting by Emily Donohoe.
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Give me some good news
Pop star Kylie Minogue has become the first Australian artist to be honoured with a Barbie Signature Collector Doll, dressed in her red Padam Padam music video costume.
Minogue, who began her music career in the late 1980s, has sold more than 80 million records worldwide, had 11 UK number one albums, and has won multiple awards. Minogue said of the new Barbie: "Seeing this doll come to life has been really special.”
TDA asks
