Squiz Today / 03 August 2018
Squiz Today – Friday, 3 August
SQUIZ SAYINGS
"The ultimate power dresser.”
UK society mag Tatler has released its highly anticipated best-dressed list for 2018, and the Queen is a headliner for her strategic use of bright colours. Prince George was also commended for his “Christopher Robin chic”. Who knew that was a thing?
HUSAR CLAIMS HIT PEAK YUCK
THE SQUIZ
Labor MP Emma Husar was last night fervently denying the latest in a long list of accusations levelled against her. BuzzFeed News yesterday reported lurid details of an alleged incident involving the Western Sydney MP. Husar responded; "This smear is completely and utterly untrue, unfair and hurtful beyond belief… it’s clear these people will stop at nothing to destroy me."
BACK IT UP A BIT…
NSW Labor is investigating allegations that Husar misused entitlements, behaved inappropriately and is a perpetrator of workplace bullying. Reports say in the last two years she has churned through 20 staff members to fill four roles in her office. Some former staff members have complained to the ALP, and in recent days there has been a drip feed of accusations in the media outlining the allegations against her including: treating her staff like personal “slaves”, misusing taxpayer-funded limousines, and loving Bruno Mars. And then yesterday's accusation dialled it up a notch on the explosiveness scale.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Three things to note:
• Labor's investigation is due to be wrapped up in the coming weeks. A spokesman said yesterday that there had been delays with the accusations becoming public.
• Regardless of what the investigation finds, reports say Husar is losing support inside the party and is unlikely to recontest the next election. She holds her seat of Lindsay with a margin of just 1.1%. It will be hard to hold, particularly given this saga.
• Husar remains on personal leave, and reports say she is unlikely to return to Canberra when parliament resumes the week after next.
And while we have you – Labor Party administrators have a lot on their plate at the moment. Seventeen state Labor staffers were arrested in Victoria yesterday over the alleged misuse of $388,000 of parliamentary funds.
SQUIZ THE REST
HIGH TIMES AT SEA AND ABROAD
Two men have been accused of throwing 600kg (that’s not a typo…) of cocaine from their boat while running from authorities off the coast of Byron Bay on Wednesday. The men have been charged with possessing a commercial quantity of drugs and drug importation. If convicted they face life in prison. Meanwhile, accused drug trafficker Rohan Arnold has been extradited to Sydney from Serbia – with a nice stop-off in Paris… He’s accused of attempting to import more than 1.2 tonnes of cocaine, which became the second largest cocaine seizure in Australian history.
JAPAN SEEKS A WHALE OF A TIME
Australia is at the forefront (again) of efforts to fight Japan’s desire to see the commercial whaling ban relaxed. Reports say Japan wants a meeting of the International Whaling Commission in September to allow it to move beyond the limits of its so-called scientific whaling program that slaughtered 660 whales in the last couple of years. "The science is clear, you do not need to kill whales in order to study them," said Foreign Minister Julie Bishop.
HOUSEKEEPING!
Here are some updates on stories we’ve recently covered.
COLES PUTS A DATE ON PLASTIC BAG GIVEAWAY – It’s 29 August. That’s how long the supermarket’s customers have to get used to bringing or buying bags when they shop. A backflip on a bagflip? Pauline Hanson could help with the wording…
GREENS SENATOR TO SUE - Sarah Hanson-Young will sue Liberal Democrat Senator David Leyonhjelm for defamation. She says his accusations of hypocrisy and misandry held her up to “public shame and disgrace”. Leyonhjelm said he will defend the claim.
CHECK YOUR CAR - The consumer regulator has been banging on about faulty Takata airbags for months, but there are still 1.6 million cars needing to be fixed. Some of those have bags that are considered very dangerous. Check for your vehicle here.
ON YA BIKE, FOODORA
It’s a brutal game, this disruption caper. Food delivery service Foodora said it would cease operating in Australia on 20 August in response to a “shift in focus” to operations in other countries. Parent company Delivery Hero will live to fight another day – it has 14,000 staff, not including the delivery riders it employs as independent contractors. Foodora is currently before the Fair Work Commission in a test case looking at workers’ rights and entitlements. That sound you can hear is Deliveroo and UberEats celebrating.
LITTLE FISH, BIG DREAMS
"Dream big and always focus on your dreams and have fun." Big words from a 10yo boy who is, as Bruce McAvaney would say, special. The American kid has broken a childhood swimming record held by American superfish Michael Phelps. He’s also into STEM programs and computers. His name? Clark Kent Apuada. We won't insult you by spelling out his nickname… Speaking of sporting superheroes, check this guy out for some Friday inspiration.
FRIDAY LITES – THREE THINGS WE LIKED THIS WEEK
The art of the OOO (the out of office email notification for the uninitiated). Heartfelt, funny or brutal (“your email will not be read and will be deleted”), there’s a lot to consider.
We really enjoyed Bus Stop Films’ latest short film, Shakespeare in Tokyo. Actor Gerard O’Dwyer (who has Down syndrome) and director Genevieve Clay-Smith (who recently featured in the Three Minute Squiz) are an unbeatable combo. It's 20 minutes well spent this Friday/weekend.
Blue cheese madeleines. We made these last weekend for a Saturday night nibble, and they were delish (and the recipe made more than the recipe advised = bonus). We had ours with some Mexican salsa for some extra zing.
SQUIZ THE DAY
Friday
10.30am (AEST) - Celebration of Harry M Miller - Capitol Theatre, Sydney
ABS Data Release - Retail Trade, June
Anniversary of the Nautilus, nuclear-powered submarine, becoming the first vessel to cross the North Pole underwater (1958)
Saturday
11.00pm (AEST) - Hockeyroos play in the semi-final of the Women's World Cup - London
National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children's Day
Barack Obama's birthday (1961)
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