Tuesday, 16 September - Under the southern skies

Good morning, it’s Tuesday, 16 September. In your Squiz Today…

• Australia gets a climate warning

• A deal is close between the US and China over TikTok

• And a wrap up of the Emmys…

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

Said commentator Bruce McAvaney after Tanzania’s Alphonce Felix Simbu and Germany’s Amanal Petros went to a photo finish at the Tokyo World Athletics Championships. After 42km and over 2 hours, Simbu took the gold by 0.003 seconds. It’s what they call blinking close…

The climate’s in the spotlight

The Squiz

A new climate assessment has warned that more than 1.5 million Aussies could be at risk from rising sea levels by 2050 unless more effort is put into limiting climate change. The National Climate Risk Assessment has been called the most comprehensive report of its kind ever released by our federal government, and announcing it yesterday, Climate Change Minister Chris Bowen said he thinks “​​many Australians will find this report confronting”. But he doesn’t believe many will “be particularly surprised that climate change is and will have an impact on Australia”.

Take me through the details…

Here it is in full, but we’ll cover some key points… Firstly, the Australian Climate Service - a federal government body - is behind the assessment, and it's referred to data/experts from the Bureau of Meteorology, the CSIRO, Geoscience Australia and the Bureau of Stats. As for the content, it modelled 3 scenarios of sea warming: 1.5°C, 2°C, and 3°C. It found that by the year 2050, in a case of 1.5°C of warming - the best-case figure - sea levels would rise 0.14 metres. If there is 3°C of warming, they'd rise 0.54 metres. Because of that, it's mentioned there are particular risks to Oz's coastal communities, but also that public health risks - like heatwave-related deaths - are likely to rise across the country if no action is taken. That’s not even touching on the potential economic impacts, like the future of home insurance…

So what now?

The Albanese Government will share its 2035 emissions reduction target this week, so Bowen set the scene for that, saying “even if emissions fell immediately tomorrow, there would still be impacts of climate change on our country ... So the world needs to keep working on emissions reduction”. The Coalition is still working on its net zero policy, but leader Sussan Ley warned about “alarmist” language yesterday and said “climate change is a global problem, and it demands global action”. On that note, there’s a meeting at the United Nations later this month, where countries will update their commitments. And the Grattan Institute’s Tony Wood says that while “projections are really only trying to paint a possible future”, with Oz only responsible for just over 1% of global emissions, “all countries have to move [on reducing emissions] at some point”.

Wrapped in comfort from day one

Love To Dream’s newborn swaddle collection has become a go-to for parents wanting safer, better sleep for their babies. Now, it’s got the tick of approval from The Royal Hospital for Women Foundation, which supports 20,000 women and babies across NSW. If you’re expecting - or know someone who is - it's a good one. Explore the collection here.

Squiz the Rest

Australia and Papua New Guinea make a deal

It’s 50 years today since the Pacific nation declared its independence, and PM Anthony Albanese is there for the celebrations. But that's not all he's there for - tomorrow he's expected to sign off on a new defence treaty that will integrate the Oz and PNG militaries. Reports say the security agreement means the 2 countries have to help each other out if they're attacked, and it'll also pave the way for Papua New Guineans to serve in Australia's military. It'll be known as the Pukpuk treaty, which means 'crocodile', and it's set to be signed off tomorrow by Albanese and PNG's PM James Marape, but not everyone's on board… The country's opposition leader Douglas Tomuriesa said he was worried about its effect on the country's independence, but Albanese says the deal "respects the sovereignty of PNG".  

In the nick of time…

…the US and China have reached a deal to keep social media app TikTok available to its 170 million American users. The US-backed buyer is being kept under wraps for the moment, but the hot tip is that the bid is led by Oracle chairman Larry Ellison - aka the man who briefly took Elon Musk’s title of world’s richest person last week. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says a "framework" agreement has been reached for parent company ByteDance to sell its US business which suits both sides, adding "we want to ensure that the Chinese have a fair, invested environment in the United States, but always that US national security comes first". Reports say US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to speak on Friday to lock in the terms - which might be be a good content opp… 

ANZ can’t stay out of the headlines

After announcing plans to sack 3,500 full-time staff next week, the bank has now agreed to pay the biggest penalty ever imposed by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission, our corporate cop. ANZ will shell out $240 million for a bunch of transgressions, including mishandling a government bond sale (that’s a complex one, so here’s a link to the full story), and underpaying savings interest to 27,000 of its customers. ASIC Chair Joe Longo said the bank "has fallen short" of expectations, and new ANZ CEO Nuno Matos noted the bank's behaviour was "simply not good enough". But that's not all - the Finance Sector Union also announced yesterday it's taking the bank to the Fair Work Commission over those job cuts. When it rains, it pours… 

*For a bit more background on Nuno Matos, check out our Squiz Who Insta post… 

The return of a rivalry

For the first time in 27 years, the AFL will have its own State of Origin game next year when Western Oz takes on Victoria in Perth. If you’re not familiar, Origin is where players represent their home states in a state-versus-state contest - it’s one of the highlights of the sporting calendar in rugby league, but Aussie Rules has always had a bit more trouble with it. That’s largely because there’s no clear-cut 2-state rivalry like NSW vs. Queensland, with South Oz, Western Oz and Victoria all big players. Reports say the Western Oz government lobbied hard to land this exhibition match - that’s left South Oz out in the cold, but it might get its chance in 2027. Origin’s return is set for 14 February, but there’s no love lost between the 2 sides - WA footy legend Glen Jakovich is promising the Vics a “torrid time” of it in the West… 

It’s a wrap…

Medical drama The Pitt and Hollywood satire The Studio were the big winners at yesterday’s Emmy Awards, taking out Best Drama and Best Comedy Series respectively. If you haven’t checked out The Pitt on HBO Max, it’s a real time medical drama starring ER’s Noah Wyle, who also won Best Lead Actor in a Drama Series. The Studio is a Hollywood satire starring Seth Rogen on Apple TV+ (which also has an episode set in real time) - Rogen won Best Lead Actor in a Comedy as well. And keeping the theme going, Netflix teen crime drama Adolescence - taking place in, you guessed it, real time - dominated the limited series category, including a win for 15yo star Owen Cooper, who also met his acting idol Jake Gyllenhaal ahead of the ceremony. And if that doesn’t put a smile on your dial, this red carpet gallery surely will…

Apropos of Nothing - Oz anniversaries edition

Yesterday marked 25 years since the opening ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Olympics, and here’s a great look at the long-term impact of the event that then-International Olympic Committee President Juan Antonio Samaranch called the “best Olympic Games ever”...

Speaking of great competitions, it's also the 10th anniversary of the premiere of The Chase Australia, the Channel 7 quiz show - and one of the show’s original Chasers, The Shark Brydon Coverdale, has written this look back at all the quizzing highs and lows… 

And here’s one for Farnsie fans - Whispering Jack: The John Farnham Musical will premiere in Sydney in November next year, coinciding with the legendary album’s 40th anniversary. Sorry if that number just caused you to shudder…

Squiz the Day

PM Anthony Albanese is in Port Moresby to mark 50 years of Papua New Guinea’s independence 🇵🇬

8.00am (AEST) - Minister for Industry and Innovation Tim Ayres will outline the need for further regulation of AI to ensure its use is "responsible" in a speech to the National Tech Summit... It comes as the final rules for Australia’s world-first social media ban are set to be revealed by the federal government - Sydney

8.20am (AEST) - Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke and Director-General of the Australian Signals Directorate Abigail Bradshaw will speak at the 2025 Cyber Summit, hosted by Financial Review Live - Sydney

9.00am (AEST) - This year’s Australian Public Health Conference begins (until 18 September) - Wollongong

9.00am (AEST) - A Senate committee hearing on the federal government’s latest Climate Risk Assessment will begin at Parliament House - Canberra

9.30am (AEST) - Cricket: The 2025 One Day Cup begins with NSW v Tasmania at Sydney Olympic Park - Sydney, watch on Kayo

9.50am (AEST) - Chief Economist and Assistant Governor of the Reserve Bank, Sarah Hunter, will speak at the 2025 Australian Finance Industry Association Conference - Sydney

11.30am (AEST) - Dr Kurt M Campbell, Chairman and Co-Founder of the Asia Group, will address the National Press Club - Canberra 

5.45pm (AEST) - Soccer: AFC Champions League elite match - Melbourne City v Sanfrecce Hiroshima - Melbourne, watch on Paramount+

11.05pm (AEST) - Jess Hull is in the women's 1,500m final at the World Athletics Championships - Tokyo, stream it live on SBS On Demand

An expected 7.2 million people will head to the polls for Malawi’s general elections

Independence Day for Mexico

International Day for the Preservation of the Ozone Layer 

Birthdays for actor Amy Poehler (1971) and singer Nick Jonas (1992)

Anniversary of: 

• the Mayflower departing Plymouth, England, with 102 Pilgrims and around 30 crew onboard to establish a European colony in what is now the US (1620)

• the birthdays of actor Lauren Bacall (1924) and blues musician BB King (1925)

• the death of Kurdish-Iranian woman Mahsa Amini in Tehran, sparking widespread protests across Iran (2022)