Squiz Today – Monday, 29 April

SQUIZ SAYINGS

“We have to make a necessary effort to understand that an Australian does not think like a French person.”

Said Jean-Michel Billig from France's Naval Group - the mob building us $50 billion worth of submarines. With Aussie officials also working on the project, there have been some problématique cultural issues. Aussies don't much like their need for a lunch break or appreciate their tardiness. The French aren't that thrilled about bonding over a barbie or being criticised for having a month off in summer. "Decoding” courses have been planned to make things more agréable...

---

STOP. ELECTION HAMMERTIME

THE SQUIZ
That cranking sound you could hear in the background yesterday was the election campaign going up a notch. With the Easter and Anzac break behind us, and early voting opening today (fingers crossed Electoral Commission fare better than those working on Indonesia’s poll…), it’s game on with both PM Scott Morrison and Labor leader Bill Shorten busting some moves yesterday.

WHAT’S THE LATEST?
• Morrison announced a cap on the number of refugees that would be allowed into Australia of 18,750 with 60% of visas allocated to women. His pitch in Sydney’s south-west also highlighted recent key messages on economic management and border protection.

• Shorten had $4 billion in additional child care subsidies up his sleeve that would see 300,000 eligible families earning less than $69,000 paying nothing for care. He also announced $2.4 billion for a new dental plan for pensioners that will cover $1,000 worth of dental care every two years.

• And the Coalition is poised to unveil a preference deal with Clive Palmer's United Australia Party when its how-to-vote cards are distributed to early voting centres across the country today. Labor frontbencher Anthony Albanese channelled Shania Twain and called the Queensland billionaire a “tosser”. 

WHERE IS THIS GOING?
Well, The Australian’s Newspoll today says the Coalition’s position is improving. On a two-party preferred standing, Team Morrison went up a point to finish the weekend at 49:51 with Labor still in front. It’s the best result Scott Morrison has had as PM, although his lead as preferred prime minister slipped a little with Shorten picking up a couple of points. Morrison still leads that race 45:39. And election devotees will be able to watch them go through their paces with 7TWO hosting a leaders’ debate tonight from 7pm (AEST). If that’s too much for a Monday night, there’s another one on Sky on Friday, and possibly a third debate on the ABC during primetime next week if PM Scott Morrison gets his way…

---

SQUIZ THE REST

---

SHOWDOWN IN CENTRAL QUEENSLAND

A convoy of 400 anti-Adani protestors and a small coal mining town in central Queensland - yeah no. It didn't go as well as you might think… After travelling from Tassie to Clermont, locals met former Greens leader Bob Brown and his merry caravan of environmentalists as they arrived in the town on Saturday, and it wasn’t traditional country-style hospitality that was on offer. Brown said many of his crew felt unsafe after being subjected to obscene threats. And a woman suffered spinal injuries when she was hit by a gate after a man on a horse entered the area where the protestors were listening to music. If that wasn't enough, One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, United Australia Party founder/funder Clive Palmer and Coalition party figures came to town to support the anti-anti-Adani protestors. If you follow our gist… The convoy will make its way to Canberra for a rally on Sunday.

---

SYNAGOGUE SHOOTING IN CALIFORNIA

One person was killed and three others were wounded in a shooting at Congregation Chabad synagogue in Poway, north of San Diego. Worshippers were marking the end of Passover, one of the most important dates on the Jewish calendar. It was also six months to the day that 11 people died in the attack on the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. Reports say John Earnest, a 19yo uni student who tried to live stream the attack, was arrested after fleeing the scene. He'd also posted an open letter in an online discussion group referencing Pittsburgh as well as the Christchurch mosque attacks. US President Donald Trump said he was concerned about the rise of antisemitism. "All Americans must unequivocally condemn it and confront it in wherever it appears," he said.

---

SYDNEY DRIVER RACKS UP 33 DEMERIT POINTS

Given we referenced a NSW Central Coast mum who’d lost 28 demerit points last week for allegedly driving with a mobile phone in hand with three kids not properly strapped in, it's consistent to highlight a father from south-west Sydney who lost 33 points on Saturday after police found five unrestrained children in his van. After being pulled over for a random breath test, police found two girls without seatbelts on. And then they found three more unrestrained kids hiding under a blanket on the floor of the van. The driver racked up enough points to have his licence suspended nearly three times over… Police across the country weren’t thrilled about the number of traffic infringements handed out over the Easter/Anzac period.

---

UBER PUTS A PRICE ON ITS WORTH

It's long been acknowledged that ride-sharing company Uber is a platinum-plated unicorn. And it's soon to be qualified as a diamond encrusted one… After a big lead up to a New York Stock exchange float, some initial numbers were released on the weekend putting the company’s valuation at between US$80.5 billion and $91.5 billion (A$114 billion and $130 billion). Even though that sounds like a lot of cashola, it’s below the US$120 billion (A$170 billion) bankers told Uber it was worth last year. Weighing on investors' minds is last month's public offering of rival Lyft which went on the market with a valuation of US$24.3 billion (A$34.5 billion) and instantly took a 20% share price haircut. Uber will ring the Wall Street bell on 9 May.

---

BOTSWANA DIAMOND A BRUISER

Speaking of bling, the big 28.84-carat Argyle diamond unveiled last week was lovely. But this one from Botswana looks like it survived a nuclear blast and mutated into a hulk-like beast… The 1,758-carat diamond is larger than a tennis ball and weighs more than 350 grams. It's the second biggest stone ever found after the 3,106-carat Cullinan Diamond that was found in South Africa in 1905. However, experts aren’t that impressed with its quality, and a whopping price tag to match its size isn't anticipated.

---

AVENGERS OPENING THE BIGGEST EVER

If you were one of those people busting to get along to see the mega-blockbuster, we don’t need to tell you what a big deal Avengers: Endgameis for Marvel fans. So, it was anticipated to go well on its opening weekend, and it really did. The movie took an estimated US$1.2 billion at the worldwide box office (yes, that's billion…), making it the first movie to take more than $1 billion on debut. Unable to find a good explainer about the Avengers phenomenon, we thought these body-double stories were fun…

SQUIZ THE DAY

7.00pm (AEST) - Election Campaign's Leaders' Debate - Perth (broadcast on 7TWO)

Start of early voting - check out the options here

ABS Data Releases - National Health Survey: Health Literacy, 2018; Taxation Revenue, 2017-18

Heart Week run by the Heart Foundation