Tuesday, 22 October 2024 - Call me on my cell phone

October 22, 2024

Taking sustainable steps with Westfield

Good morning, it’s Tuesday, 22 October. In your Squiz Today…

  • Commonwealth leaders gather in Samoa

  • Qantas is facing huge payouts to workers sacked during the pandemic

  • And brick phones make a comeback…☎️

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Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

“I love salt!”

Said former/hopeful US President Donald Trump as he served up some Maccas fries during a campaign event in Pennsylvania. Meanwhile, Vice President/Democratic candidate Kamala Harris was busy celebrating her 60th birthday, so Trump put their sometimes salty exchanges aside to wish her a happy birthday…

The Commonwealth comes together

The Squiz

Samoa - the small island nation about 4,000km northwest of Australia - is a big player on the world stage this week as host of the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. The meeting affectionately known as CHOGM (pronounced chog-hmm) began in Samoa’s capital Apia yesterday and will see 3 monarchs (led by King Charles), dozens of world leaders (including PM Anthony Albanese), more than 4,000 officials and hundreds of journalists attend this week. There are even rumours the world’s richest man Elon Musk will attend… It’s a bit of a squeeze on the island of 220,000 people - that’s seen a cruise ship brought in to house some attendees…

Sounds like a big deal…

Yep - this year’s CHOGM has been described as “historic” because it’s the first time it’s been hosted by a Pacific Island state in the forum’s 53-year history. As for what it is - CHOGM is held every 2 years, bringing together the leaders from the Commonwealth’s 56 nations. It's a chance for them to discuss their shared economic, environmental and security challenges - for example, this year’s theme is ‘One Resilient Common Future: Transforming our Common Wealth’. See what they did there? And with many Commonwealth countries being developing nations - including some of the most disproportionately affected by climate change - that will also be in focus. PM Albanese got in early to speak about the Pacific’s climate change issues with UK PM Keir Starmer back in July - so they'll likely pick up that conversation again this week.

And what about the King?

As the head of the Commonwealth, King Charles is the special guest at this year’s CHOGM - so he’ll preside over the meeting. He’s due to touch down in Samoa tomorrow, but he’s still got a bit to wrap up here in Australia today… Yesterday, he and Queen Camilla were in Canberra for the afternoon, where he planted trees, laid a wreath at the Australian War Memorial, visited Parliament House, was gifted Tim Tams and met a suit/crown-wearing alpaca. It wasn’t all fun and games, though… A 62yo protester was arrested at the War Memorial, and Indigenous Senator Lidia Thorpe was removed from a parliamentary reception after heckling the King as he finished a speech. As for today, the King and Queen will be out and about for their final public engagements in Sydney this afternoon. It’s all happening…

Time to save every drop

Fixing your leaky taps can save up to 20,000 litres of water a year*—an opportunity to save money and reduce water waste. It’s time to get that job done... Westfield is doing its bit by using smart water metering. It sounds fancy, but it’s just a way to check more regularly what their taps are up to so they can make any necessary adjustments to save water. To find out more, head to westfield.com.au.

*According to the NSW Government

Squiz the Rest

Foreign interference (Mold)ova

Speaking of big international meetings… all eyes will be on the upcoming BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia. That’s because there are reports of North Korea becoming involved in Russia’s war with Ukraine, and there’s that small matter of the US presidential election on the horizon, so the attendees will have plenty to discuss. On their radar will likely be comments from Maia Sandu, the President of Moldova, who is ropable about what she says is “unprecedented” foreign interference in a recently held referendum on joining the European Union. It’s a theme that has also raised its ugly head in this US election, although Russia denies any involvement in that sort of caper. And now that you’re invested in the Moldova vote, the yes vote got up by the slimmest of margins…

Home is where the voter heartland is

There might be a shortage in housing, but not housing policies. The Business Council of Australia is the latest cab off the rank with a $10 billion list of 29 recommendations, such as faster approvals, smoother tradie accreditation and more infrastructure… The Federal Coalition supports some of those, but they disagree on a call for more foreign workers, for example… On the weekend, they announced their own $5 billion plan, which they say will create 500,000 new homes, but Team Albanese says that’s identical to a policy they already have in place. Not to be outdone, the Victorian Government released plans yesterday to heavily reduce stamp duty for 12 months to stimulate the property market in the state. There’s a catch, though - the homes have to be ‘off-the-plan’. Looks like the policy market is as competitive as buying a home…

Flying Kangaroo caught out

Qantas is facing a huge payout to 1,700 workers it illegally sacked when COVID pretty much grounded Australia’s aviation industry after the Federal Court yesterday ruled in favour of 3 of those ground staff. The airline used the pandemic as cover for outsourcing all of its baggage handling, a previous case found. Justice Michael Lee awarded the ‘test case’ workers a total of $170,000 and said his ruling would guide how much the national carrier is forced to pay others. Note: the Transport Workers Union estimates it will total more than $100 million… Qantas boss Vanessa Hudson has apologised for the whole saga, saying she "recognises the emotional and financial impact" on many. The company has been fighting the union but will now go into mediation to agree on the final payout. 

Fresh water forever 

Our drinking water standards are set to get a big shakeup with medical experts recommending we should have less exposure to PFAS - those so-called ‘forever chemicals’ - in our supplies of H2O. The National Health and Medical Research Council reckons 4 of those chemicals are especially worrying, and they’ve dramatically revised acceptable limits based on studies on animals. Under the draft guidelines, the lifetime limit for PFOA (aka a compound used to make Teflon) would be lowered from 560 nanogram/L to 200 ng/L while PFOS (which was the key ingredient in Scotchguard) would be reduced from 70 ng/L to 4 ng/L. The debate around these chemicals in our water supply has got a lot of attention since a large dam serving the Blue Mountains west of Sydney was temporarily closed after testing revealed high levels of PFAS. 

Want to know more about forever chemicals? We’ve got a Shortcut for you.

Call me - 90s style

They’ve become the symbol of a modern-day parenting wrestle between parents and kids, but one UK town has banded together to keep smartphones out of the hands of its pre-teen kids… Parents across St Albans in southeast England have signed a pledge to only give their child a ‘brick’ phone - think your old Nokia - but not a device that connects to the internet. The campaign has been going on for about 6 months, with families sick of swapping stories about sleep disturbance, screen addiction and the general effects on mental health linked to smartphones. Parent Jessica Pyne reckons "nobody wants their child to be the odd one out …  so if everybody is holding off until 14yo, then the expectation has shifted”. Local teachers are all in on the plan, blaming smartphones for the rise of ‘TikTok brain’. Apparently, a dancing brain isn’t as fun as it sounds…

It’s Media Literacy Week…

And what better way to celebrate than Squiz Kids’ releasing Newshounds 2.0 - their new and improved free media literacy resource for primary school kids, teaching kids how to spot misinformation when they come across it online. Since its launch 18 months ago - more than 3,500 teachers around Australia have signed up to do it with their classrooms, which is why Squiz Kids have spent the last 6 months giving the program an overhaul. You can try the free program for yourself or send it to a primary school teacher you know - ‘cause did we mention it’s curriculum aligned?

Apropos of Nothing

After saying he feared his career might be over in the wake of the shooting on the set of Rust, Alec Baldwin has made a tentative step back into the limelight with a Saturday Night Live cameo. And no, he didn’t dust off his Donald Trump - he played Fox News host Bret Baier. 

It’s not you, it’s your ancestors… Carb lovers have someone to blame as scientists look to prove that our love affair with starchy diets could predate our existence as a species. They reckon carbs provide the energy needed for human brains to grow. Consider it your cue to eat more potatoes… 

With their Test cricket series against England in the balance, Pakistan have called on their secret weapon - 6 patio heaters - to ensure conditions for Thursday’s final match in the series are as friendly towards their spin bowlers as possible. Talk about coming in hot…

Squiz the Day

10.15am (AEDT) - Closing submissions are set to begin in Moira Deeming’s defamation case against Victorian Liberal leader John Pesutto - Melbourne

12.30pm (AEDT) - Professor Matt Dun, the Australian Society for Medical Research medal winner and cancer researcher, will address the National Press Club about his work improving the survival of patients with an aggressive form of paediatric cancer - Canberra

From 4.20pm (AEDT) - King Charles and Queen Camilla will greet the public at the Opera House forecourt followed by a fleet review of our navy ships at the Man O’ War steps - Sydney 

6.30pm (AEST) - The Queensland leaders’ third and final debate before the election at a Sky News-Courier Mail People’s Forum - Brisbane

The BRICS summit begins (on until 24 October) - Kazan, Russia

ABS Data Release - Labour force, status of families (exploring how families engage with the labour market), June

AGM - Suncorp

Vinnies biggest ever clothing donation box pop-up (until 24 October) - Sydney

Wombat Day 

CAPS LOCK DAY 

Birthdays for Jeff Goldblum (1952) and Spike Jonze (1969)

Anniversary of:

  • Thomas Edison perfecting the carbonised cotton filament light bulb (1879)

  • US President John F Kennedy imposing a naval blockade on Cuba, beginning the missile crisis (1962)

  • PM Scott Morrison making a public apology to victims of child sexual abuse in institutions (2018)