Wednesday, 24 June - The heat is on

June 24, 2026

Good morning, it’s Wednesday, 24 June. In your Squiz Today…

  • Labor makes a deal with the Greens on its tax reforms

  • Europe’s heatwave turns deadly

  • And an interstellar discovery… ☄️

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🙋🏻‍♀️ This newsletter was written by Anna Pykett, Larissa Huntington, Alice Dempster and Sophie Felice

Squiz the Weather

Squiz Sayings

“It feels special.”

Said Argentinian soccer legend/man of few words Lionel Messi after becoming the FIFA World Cup’s highest goal scorer of all time. At 39yo, he’s one of the oldest players in the tournament, but his tally of 18 goals puts him at the top. At least he didn’t bleat like the GOAT he is…

Labor’s tax reforms get a Green light

The Squiz

After copping heat for its planned changes to capital gains tax and negative gearing, the Albanese Government notched a win yesterday, cutting a deal with the Greens to pass the legislation in the Senate. To get it done, it’s made some concessions, but PM Anthony Albanese painted the deal as a win for first home buyers, saying: “Most Australians have nothing to sell but their time and nothing to give but their hard work … we want those people to have the opportunity to own their own home”. Coalition leader Angus Taylor had a different take, calling it a “dangerous deal” and “an assault on aspiration, ambition and everything I believe in.”

Talk me through it…

In exchange for the Greens’ support, the government has agreed to tweak the bill by stopping people from borrowing against self-managed super funds (SMSF) to buy investment properties. It’s in the title, but an SMSF is essentially a mini-company you run yourself to manage retirement savings, and there’s a provision allowing for loans within them for residential property investments. That loophole will now be closed, which some in the sector have called a “broken promise”, but the Greens say it’s money that won’t see investors pitted against first home buyers. And like the other tax reforms in the bill, it won’t apply to existing loans, only new ones…

Remind me what else is in the bill…

You might remember this is the government’s ‘wedge’ bill, which combines 4 pieces of legislation in one, meaning if parties vote against it, they vote against all of it. Besides the tax reforms, which were nipped and tucked last week in favour of small businesses and start-ups, the bill also includes a $250 tax offset for workers and a $1,000 instant deduction for work expenses. Another facet is Team Albanese’s planned cost-cutting overhaul of the NDIS - and that brings us to the other part of the deal with the Greens the government made yesterday… That’s to extend a Senate inquiry into the planned changes by 8 weeks to allow more time for public hearings and to go through the thousands of submissions received. The findings are now due on 14 August…

Before you hit send…

Cash bonuses for employees can look generous on paper, until tax gets involved - so you might find gift cards a better option... Under the Tax Office's minor benefits exemption, gift cards under $300 per person are free of Fringe Benefits Tax. Which may or may not be why a GroupTogether survey of 1,066 Australian workers found 73% wanted either a gift card - or a day off - as their end-of-year reward... You can check out GroupTogether's gift cards here.

Squiz the Rest

Heatwave tragedy in Europe

40 people have drowned in France in the last week, as the country experiences temperatures of up to 43C. 2 children, aged 2 and 4yo, have been found dead in a hot car, while several elderly people died in Bordeaux from heat-related health problems. The Eiffel Tower had to close early yesterday because of the heat - and in some places, it’s been 30C at midnight, making sleep sticky and difficult. And it’s not just France that’s struggling…temperatures in Spain are set to peak above 40C this week, and in Italy a red heatwave alert is in place for 15 cities. Experts say Germany could see forest fires in the days ahead, and UK forecasters think June temperature records could be smashed this week. Spare a thought for them, a cool-down isn’t expected until the weekend.

Five Eyes issues artificial intelligence warning

Oz is part of an intelligence-sharing alliance with the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand - and this week, it’s released a statement calling for leaders to “act now”to protect against AI cybersecurity attacks. It said that while AI “would help improve cyber defence over time,” it wants organisations that use the tech as part of their security systems to respond to breaches faster and upgrade their software to reduce the cost and impact of incidents. It doesn’t mention specific models or companies by name, but reports say it’s more evidence of concerns over models such as Anthropic's "Mythos" or OpenAI's "GPT-5.5-Cyber," which are said to allow users to outperform humans at some hacking and cybersecurity tasks.
*If you want to hear more about Aussie attitudes to AI - check out our Squiz Series with the Minderoo Foundation.

A prickly issue

After a review lasting 29 years (yes, you read that right…) the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority (APVMA) has decided to allow the chemical herbicide Paraquat to be used in Oz on a restricted basis. Paraquat is a poisonous weed killer that’s been under review since 1997 because of claims it’s linked to Parkinson’s Disease. More than 70 countries have banned it, including the EU and the UK, but the APVMA says new restrictions on application amounts and phasing out backpack sprayers will make it safer to use. Farmers' groups view the product as essential for fighting weeds, but Parkinson’s Australia’s Olivia Nassaris says the restrictions “don’t go far enough” (paywall), adding that the APVMA “has failed not only farmers who use Paraquat but all the other Australians exposed to it”.

The day the music died

There have been tributes for Clive Davis, the music producer who launched some of the past century’s biggest stars, after he died aged 94yo on Monday. He worked with everyone from Whitney Houston, Janis Joplin, Alicia Keys, Christina Aguilera, Billy Joel, Santana, and Bruce Springsteen. The word “legendary” is being thrown around - but “the man with the golden ears” wasn't always in music... He began working for Columbia Records as a lawyer in 1960, rising up the ranks to become President. He said he was “thrust into it, never knowing [he] had a natural ear and gift for music”. You only have to look through the photos to understand how well that ear served him. The Boss paid his respects, mourning “the death of the great record man and close friend... a great man”.

An elderly fly by

About a year ago, an interstellar comet with the catchy name of 3I/ATLAS zoomed past our Sun. It’s only the third interstellar object ever detected, and it’s pretty old… So old, in fact, that scientists published a paper this week showing it could be older than anything else seen in our solar system. The theory goes that all the carbon in the Milky Way comes from stars dying, and as time goes on, it dates... The carbon from our friend 3I/ATLAS predates all the carbon in our solar system - specifically, it's around 12 billion years old, formed during the earliest stages of our galaxy’s history. Where it’s from is still a mystery, but if a Gen Zer in your office is making you feel old by telling you they weren’t alive when Toy Story came out, take heart, you’re still far from the oldest thing in the solar system…

Apropos of Nothing

Olivia Rodrigo has launched a music festival with an all-women lineup. Daisy Chain Fields features Chappell Roan, Doechii, Sarah McLachlan and Stevie Nicks, to name a few, and we’re more than a little jelly of those in Irvine, California where it’s being held…

The painting that won 2025 The Doyles Landscape Art Award (which has a $20,000 cash prize) has been revealed to be a copy of a painting by Australian artist Nicholas Harding. One dealer said that while inspiration happens, this was “pretty blatant”...

And while objectification is rare in political settings, it seems plenty of people are making an exception for the sound engineer at 10 Downing Street who’s become known as ‘hot podium guy’. At least someone’s approval rating is up…

Squiz the Day

12.30pm (AEST) - Coalition spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Ted O’Brien is set to address the National Press Club on ‘Foreign Policy Starts at Home’ - Canberra 

6.15pm (AEST) - South Oz Premier Peter Malinauskas and Senator David Pocock will speak at the opening dinner of the CEDA 2026 State of the Nation Conference (on until 26 June) - Canberra

7.00pm (AEST) - Boxing: World Title Fight between Liam Paro and Lewis Crocker - Brisbane, watch on Kayo

ABS data release: Engineering construction activity, March 2026; Consumer price index, May 2026; Barriers and incentives to labour force participation, March 2026

📚 The shortlist for the Miles Franklin Literary Award will be announced

International Day of Women in Diplomacy

🏳️‍🌈 Sydney Gay and Lesbian Mardi Gras anniversary 

Birthdays for musician Mick Fleetwood (1947), Australian champion sprinter Raelene Boyle (1951), comedian and actor Mindy Kaling (1979), singer Solange Knowles (1986) and football star Lionel Messi (1987)

Anniversary of:

  • Julia Gillard becoming Australia’s 27th Prime Minister (2010)

  • the longest match in tennis history, where American John Isner defeated France’s Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon after 11 hours, 5 minutes of play over 3 days (2010)

  • the resignation of UK PM David Cameron after the Brexit referendum supported leaving the EU (2016)

  • women being allowed to drive for the first time in Saudi Arabia after the ban was lifted (2018) 🚗