Morning Mail: NSW election Mike Baird profile, Coalition poll boost, Bishop's epic eye roll
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Version 0 of 1. Good morning folks, and welcome to the Morning Mail – sign up here to get it straight to your inbox every weekday morning. NSW election David Marr profiles NSW premier Mike Baird. How a Liberal princeling became Australia’s most popular politician. His political survival depends on the public’s affection for him, and he is liked: “mobbed in the foyers by delighted grandmothers. They light up as he basses by. They paw him. It’s erotic”. He may be a nice guy, but a nice guy with hardline views? “I think that’s fair,” Baird says. A report about the privatisation of NSW assets that was released with the title “Bad for the budget, good for the state”, was recalled, rewritten and re-released on the same day with the title “Good for the state”. NSW Labor has referred Baird’s office to the corporate watchdog over the changing of the negative report, but the NSW premier has dismissed the referral as a “stunt”, asking if they’ll refer him to the United Nations next. The latest NSW election polls give Baird a clear victory, but the result is likely to be challenged after a major security flaw was identified that could potentially compromised 66,000 electronic iVotes. NSW Labor leader Luke Foley said the Baird government would be throwing away $1.7bn in revenue by leasing electricity assets, but they overestimated the dividends by $1.3bn. After Labor’s 2011 wipeout in their western Sydney heartland, if the west stays won for the Coalition in this election, it could signal a permanent shift in the political landscape. Follow our full NSW election coverage this week. Australian news and politics Tony Abbott’s government has secured its best Newspoll result since September, but still trails Labor on a two-party preferred basis. Abbott also saw a boost to his personal approval rating. The Abbott government has been accused of politicising the release of official greenhouse gas projections after environment minister Greg Hunt said they were “exaggerated” under Labor, a statement former Liberal leader John Hewson said was “damaging to the national interest”. The plan to freeze Medicare rebates could have a greater impact on rural and socioeconomically disadvantaged areas than the now-abandoned $5 co-payment, new research shows. As parliament paid tribute to Malcolm Fraser yesterday, senator David Leyonhjelm wasn’t interested, saying he had “no fond words” about the former prime minister. Foreign minister Julie Bishop is to investigate the source of a leak saying that Australia will make further cuts to foreign aid in the upcoming budget, saying the first she knew about it was when it was reported in The Australian. The standard of living index says Australia’s has improved in the past year as a rise in the cost of living was outpaced by average income growth. Does your standard of living feel like it has been better recently? Around the world Singapore’s founding father, Lee Kuan Yew, who led the city-state for more than three decades, has died aged 91. The US president, Barack Obama, called Lee a “true giant of history” while the UN secretary general, Ban Ki-moon, called him a “legendary figure in Asia”. Read his obituary and his best quotes, see his life in pictures, and watch him speak about his own legacy. Leftwing Greek leader Alexis Tsipras has raised the issue of Nazi war reparations in a press conference with Angela Merkel, making the call for damages as a deadlock remains over Greece bailout funds. Hundreds of people have marched in Kabul, demanding justice for a woman beaten to death last week in the Afghan capital by a mob over false allegations she had burned a Qur’an. One last thing Julie Bishop’s epic eyeroll in response to a budget cut reference from Joe Hockey during condolence motions for Malcolm Fraser is worth watching again. Watch the foreign minister’s full reaction. Have an excellent day – and if you spot something I’ve missed, let me know in the comments here or on Twitter @earleyedition. Sign up Get the Morning Mail direct to your inbox first thing every weekday by signing up here. |