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Good morning!
Here is today’s trivia question: At the 2021 Census, what was the most common response to the question about religion?
Answer is in the titbit!
I’ve got 10 seconds
The quote: “The assertion is incorrect. Australia and Japan are very good friends.” Prime Minister Albanese’s spokesperson in a statement to TDA, rejecting claims he made a sexual innuendo while discussing melons he received from Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi on a podcast last month. On Monday, Japan’s former ambassador to Australia Shingo Yamagami urged Albanese to “enjoy Japan’s melons without thinking about a woman’s anatomy”.
The stat: 500. The number of naked cyclists who rode through the streets of Berlin on Sunday (local time) for the World Naked Bike Ride. Organisers said the event is about expressing and celebrating self-acceptance, connection to nature, diversity and inclusion. Participants rode more than 30km in 30°C temperatures.
The big question:
Yesterday’s results: 69% of you said you do not regularly listen to country music. Thanks for voting - your responses inform TDA's journalism and research. [2,498 votes].
I’ve got 30 seconds
Some headlines from this morning:
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has kept the cash rate on hold. In a unanimous decision, the central bank's nine-member monetary policy board left the cash rate untouched at 4.35% on Tuesday. The cash rate is the interest rate that banks charge each other for short-term loans. It’s the second meeting in a row that it has left rates unchanged. The decision comes after a dip in inflation in June from 4% to 3.8%. This was the lowest inflation rate since the start of the Iran war in February. Despite this, the RBA said “inflation is still too high”. Its target range for inflation is 2-3%. For more on this, sign up to TDA’s weekly finance newsletter, dropping later this morning.
Victorian Premier Ben Carroll has announced the start date for the country’s first work-from-home laws will be delayed until after the November Victorian election. The legislation would give full-time, part-time and casual workers the right to work from home two days a week on a pro-rata basis where reasonable. Debate on the bill, which has already passed the lower house and was expected to pass the upper house this week, has also been delayed. Speaking to reporters, Carroll said: "I want to be very clear, I support work from home…I support flexible work. It is good for working families. [However] I want to reset our relationship with the business community.”
Together with AAP.
Recommendation of the day
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It's the biggest pre-order haul EA's ever built for FC - but it’s only sticking around until the end of August.
Transparency: This is a sponsored part of the newsletter - the best way to keep the newsletter free for you.
I’ve got 1 minute
A 7.4-magnitude earthquake in Colombia has killed at least 181 people and injured thousands of others.
The quake struck the country’s Chocó region on Monday (local time). Many of the deaths have been reported in Colombia’s coffee-growing region, in the country’s central-west.
Newly elected Colombian President Abelardo De La Espriella has declared a national disaster. “Colombia is united and we will move forward together,” he said.
The death toll is expected to rise, with many feared trapped beneath collapsed buildings as the search for survivors continues.
Background
The 7.4 magnitude quake struck at a depth of 107 km and was felt across most major Colombian cities, and as far as Ecuador and Panama.
It’s Colombia’s deadliest quake since 1999, when 1,171 people died in the same region.
Colombia sits at the intersection of three tectonic plates: the Caribbean, Nazca and South American. On average, there are 151 earthquakes per year.
It comes after twin quakes hit neighbouring Venezuela in June, killing more than 6,300 people.
Government response
The Colombian Government has declared a national disaster, with President Abelardo De La Espriella announcing humanitarian aid and rental subsidies.
De La Espriella, who was sworn in as leader on 7 August, said “the first priority is rescuing the people trapped under the rubble”.
He promised his government would deploy all of its capabilities “to protect lives, assist affected communities and deliver aid wherever it is needed”.
Reporting by Emily Donohoe.
Quick hits
🎧 On today’s TDA podcast, co-founder Zara and features editor Emma explain why the NSW Government is wanting to ban take-home assessments for year 12 students. Listen or watch on Apple here, Spotify here, or YouTube here.
🎾 Want to know the biggest storylines across men’s and women’s sport? Sign up to TDA Sport here for a full run-down in your inbox at 4.30pm.
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I’ve got 2 minutes
Newly appointed Victorian Premier Ben Carroll has proposed a suite of reforms to strengthen protections for victim-survivors of family and sexual violence.
It follows recent criticism over the widespread use of suppression orders in Victoria’s court system, including cases where convicted offenders’ identities have been kept secret.
The announcement comes ahead of the state election in November, with the Labor Government saying they will implement the changes only if re-elected.
Here’s what you need to know.
Suppression orders
Australia’s judicial system is based on the principle of “open justice”.
Court proceedings are normally available for the public to see and media to report on.
However, suppression orders (also known as ‘gag orders’) can be enforced to restrict what is made public. Under these orders, it becomes an offence to publish details the judge has asked be kept secret.
Anyone found in breach of a suppression order risks penalties including prison and heavy fines.
Why?
There are several reasons why a judge could decide to keep details like the names of alleged victims and perpetrators sealed from the public.
For example, alleged victims of crimes can request a suppression order to stop their name being revealed, due to the stress of being in the public eye. Suppression orders can also protect children who are accused of, or victims of, crimes.
A judge might also allow an order if an alleged offender’s safety is at risk. In Victoria, this has increasingly been taken to include mental health reasons.
Victoria
Victoria issues more suppression orders than most other states. A Monash University analysis found Victorian courts issued 521 suppression orders in 2023, well above South Australia (308) and NSW (133).
Earlier this year, outlets including the Herald Sun, The Age and the ABC wrote to the state’s Attorney-General warning suppression orders were increasingly being granted on mental health grounds.
Attorney-General Sonya Kilkenny committed to review the laws, saying suppression orders “should only be used in exceptional circumstances.”
Proposed reforms
On Tuesday, the Victorian Government announced that, if re-elected, it will introduce a bill to limit when suppression orders can be used.
The announcement said the change means convicted rapists “can’t hide behind a mechanism intended to protect victim-survivors.”
As part of its proposal, the Government will review the use of interim suppression orders, and examine the grounds on which suppression orders are issued in criminal trials.
The Victorian Government’s proposal also included:
Making coercive control a standalone criminal offence
Removing “good character” references as a factor courts can weigh in sentencing
Strengthening Family Violence Intervention Orders, so victim-survivors have to return to court less often
Expanding fine relief for victim-survivors whose fines have been “weaponised” by perpetrators
Other changes
Separately, the Government wants to make it unlawful to discriminate against someone because they are experiencing, or have experienced, family violence, including denying them a promotion or a rental property.
Kilkenny said: “Victim-survivors should never have to fight their way through the justice system – these reforms put their safety and their voice first.”
What’s next?
Carroll took over as leader from Jacinta Allan just weeks ago. Tuesday’s announcement is a campaign promise, meaning the reforms could hinge on Labor’s re-election on 28 November.
However, Shadow Attorney-General, James Newbury told a press conference that the state’s Opposition Coalition is “committed to fixing suppression orders because there is clearly a problem.”
Opposition Leader Jess Wilson told TDA: “Protecting women and victim-survivors from abuse should never be political. We will always stand on the side of victim-survivors.”
Reporting by Elliot Lawry.
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Give me some good news
Photo: AIMS
The Great Barrier Reef is showing signs of recovery from a mass-bleaching event, according to a new report on the reef’s condition.
The Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) released the findings from its 40th annual summary, showing coral cover in 2026 remained unchanged across more than half the reef, and increased in one out of every four reefs surveyed, compared to 2025. A late summer monsoon that lowered water temperatures helped to keep coral cover in most areas above historic norms, according to AIMS. The institute’s long-term monitoring program leader Mike Emslie said the reef is still under “intense pressure… particularly climatic driven heat stress”. Noting the concerning frequency of disturbance events, he added: “It's shown time and time again it can recover if we give it a chance”.
Reporting by Emma Gillespie.
TDA titbit
Photo: BBC
Harry Potter fans, rejoice!
It has been revealed that a £430 million (about A$820 million) undersea power cable was rerouted to avoid disturbing the “grave” of Dobby the house-elf.
The Greenlink interconnector, which carries electricity between Wales and Ireland, was set to run straight through a pebble memorial on Freshwater West – the beach in Wales where Dobby's death scene was filmed.
Project manager Simon Ludlam told The Energy Revolution podcast that fans made "hundreds of calls" after a BBC segment revealed the route (he also admitted he'd never heard of Dobby…).
Planners diverted the cable. They "went quite close to some real Bronze Age remains", Ludlam said, but "avoided Dobby's grave". Good to know his priorities are in order.
Reporting by Pavitra Ravi.
Trivia question: No religion. (Nearly 40% of Australians said they had no religion, according to the ABS.)
TDA asks
