☕ Syrian rebels take capital

Today marks the end of the era (corny, but I’ll shake it off) for Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour today. A reminder of its impact: It is the highest-grossing concert tour of all time. Last year, just halfway through the tour, it became the first tour to surpass $US 1 billion in revenue.

With about 150 shows across five continents, Swift’s final show will be in Vancouver, Canada.

“The problem with radicalisation online is it often can’t be seen. By definition, it can happen in privacy, with someone on a computer screen.”
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese speaking to media about a report from Australian, Canadian, UK, U.S. and NZ authorities that young people are increasingly being radicalised online.

16 million
The number of filled jobs in Australia in September, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. There was an increase of 257,100 jobs in the September quarter.

1979
Smallpox was confirmed to have been eradicated. It’s the only human disease that has ever been successfully eliminated.

One of Australia’s richest men has been charged over his alleged role in running illegal online lotteries.

Billionaire Adrian Portelli, aka ‘Lambo Guy’, is  a property mogul known for spending millions on houses on the reality TV show The Block.

He’s also known for a recent supermarket gift card giveaway.

Last week, South Australian authorities officially launched legal proceedings against his company, Xclusive Tech, which offers members paid subscriptions to a “rewards club” for entries to win cars and properties.

Under South Australian law, lotteries with prizes over $5,000 require a licence, and entries must be free of charge.

The charges relate to giveaways between January last year and May this year.

In an Instagram post, Portelli said the case won’t stop him from offering “major life-changing prizes” and announced daily $1,000 cash giveaways instead.

He’s due in court in January.

Reporting by Achol Arok.

The NSW corruption watchdog has been asked to consider a report that questioned if the state’s Premier Chris Minns disclosed a possible conflict of interest around the redevelopment of a racecourse.

A NSW parliamentary committee referred a report about the deal to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) on Friday, saying there are “unanswered questions” about the relationship between Minns and a senior executive involved with the racecourse.

Minns has denied wrongdoing.

ICAC investigates corrupt activities in the public sector in NSW.

It has three key functions:

The body has significant powers, including gaining access to confidential conversations.

Last December, the NSW Government announced it had received a proposal to turn Rosehill Racecourse in Western Sydney into a housing complex.

The redevelopment would involve building 25,000 homes, green spaces, a school, and two train stations.

The racecourse, the Australian Turf Club (ATC), proposed the idea to the Government.

In May, a committee was established in the NSW Upper House to review the plan, and how it was proposed to the Government.

The committee questioned the relationship between ATC Head of Corporate Affairs Steve McMahon, who proposed the redevelopment, and NSW Premier Chris Minns.

At a committee hearing in August, McMahon said he had known “Chris Minns and his family for 25 years”.

McMahon said he met with Minns in October 2023 to propose the redevelopment.

At a separate hearing later that month, Minns agreed the pair have been friends for “probably more than 20 years”.

He admitted the pair had met to discuss the proposal ahead of the December announcement, describing the conversation as a “meet and greet”.

TDA is not making any suggestions of wrongdoing by Minns and McMahon.

The committee handed down its final report on Friday.

It said: “Given the significant conflicting evidence regarding the proposal... including unanswered questions surrounding the involvement of the Premier and concerns regarding direct dealings and conflicts of interest, this report should be referred to [ICAC].”

The Premier had previously called the allegations of corruption “unsubstantiated rumours”.

The committee’s report includes notes of their deliberations about what they want ICAC to investigate.

Committee member, independent Mark Latham, recommended they refer both their report and Premier Minns to ICAC. None of the other committee members, who include other independents, Greens, Labor and Coalition MPs, agreed.

Instead, all but the Labor Government members agreed to refer only the report to ICAC.

This means ICAC will consider the evidence assembled by the committee and decide whether it will investigate.

Opposition Leader Mark Speakman said he will look closely at the report.

“Rosehill could be a great opportunity for housing, but as to delivery it seems that it’s just another thought bubble from the Minns Labor Government,” Speakman said.

Reporting by Harry Sekulich.

Betty’s will be shouting burgers for their new app users this December!

With Betty’s Burgers new Beach Club Rewards App, you’ll earn $1 for every $10 spent, plus birthday treats and app-only perks. Just scan your membership card in the app and watch the rewards stack up!

The best part? Spend $30 before December 24th, and Betty’s will shout you a Classic Burger.

Download the app today and start making every Betty’s visit even better!

Currently, seawater evaporates more slowly than freshwater (such as in rivers and lakes), meaning desalination plants use a lot of energy to turn salt water into drinkable water. With the addition of some common minerals to a pre-existing water evaporator, the scientists found they could make seawater evaporate faster than freshwater, increasing efficiency.

Lead scientist Professor Haolan Xu said: “This new strategy… will provide additional access to massive amounts of clean water, benefitting billions of people worldwide.” 

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

Reporting by Lucy Tassell.

The Pantone Color Institute has announced its colour of the year for 2025: Mocha Mousse. 

The warm brown shade is meant to suggest “the delectable qualities of chocolate and coffee, answering our desire for comfort.” 

Each year, Pantone picks a colour “that captures the global zeitgeist… reflecting collective desire in the form of a single, distinct hue.”

Comforting as it may be, the image Pantone chose to show off its colour is perhaps more reminiscent of caca than cocoa.

Reporting by Lucy Tassell.

Tomorrow is the end of a UN Women campaign called the 16 Days of Activism which is calling for an end to gender-based violence. In today's deep dive we hear from the CEO of UN Women Australia, Simone Clarke, about how gender-based violence is progressing in Australia, the role of education in prevention, and what's being done by the state and federal governments.

This deep dive talks about gender-based violence, which can include sexual, family, and domestic violence.