Squiz Today – Thursday, 23 August

SQUIZ SAYINGS

WITH THE GROWTH FACULTY

"My great hope is that this will be the last time we must fight for the education of our children. Let us solve this once and for all."

When she was 15yo, Pakistani student Malala Yousafzai was shot in the head by the Taliban due to her activism for female education. Six years on, she is the youngest ever Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Her story is one of family, politics, passion and perseverance.

Malala is speaking Sydney and Melbourne for the first time in December - these are tickets you don't want to miss.

---

TURNBULL & DUTTON – WILL THEY OR WON’T THEY?

THE SQUIZ
Before you get excited, this isn't some tension-infused rom-com... With our federal parliament about to have a fortnight off and PM Malcolm Turnbull scheduled to head to South-East Asia next week to represent our country in security and trade talks, today could provide another leadership challenge. Newly installed backbencher Peter Dutton is ready to strike again. And making his own contingencies, Turnbull yesterday scraped some barnacles off the unsteady ship that is our government.

WHAT’S THE LATEST?
• A second leadership spill being forced on the PM as early as this morning was the buzz on Capital Hill last night with Dutton supporters lobbying to hold another meeting of party members ASAP.

• Dutton-supporting ministers were forced into a painful parade to pledge their loyalty to Turnbull. Except for Queensland senator James McGrath who has insisted his resignation be accepted.

• Team Turnbull announced tax cuts for big companies are off the agenda. Instead, small and medium-sized businesses will get their love and attention.

• Dutton has some policy ideas of his own. On energy prices, he said household electricity bills should be GST-free. Treasurer Scott Morrison says that would be an "absolute budget blower".

• Dutton’s also under pressure to prove he’s eligible to have his spot in parliament. The government’s lawyer is running a check to ensure his childcare centre holdings don't disqualify him from being an MP.

IS THIS EVER GOING TO END?
Yeah, nah. Rolling prime ministers is our most watched sport, according to Wikipedia. Turnbull also has an additional incentive to get through today intact – he’s currently tied with Gough Whitlam’s two years, 341 days in office. But let’s take it one day at a time and see how today pans out, hey?

---

SQUIZ THE REST

FOLBIGG CONVICTIONS TO BE INVESTIGATED
Australia’s worst female serial killer or a woman wrongly convicted for the deaths of her four children? The NSW government has announced there will be an inquiry into Kathleen Folbigg’s convictions after her lawyer and friends collected new opinions about the forensic evidence in her case. Folbigg was found guilty in 2003 of the murder of three of her young children (Patrick, Laura and Sarah) and manslaughter of a fourth (Caleb) over a 10-year period. She is serving a minimum sentence of 25 years in jail. Folbigg’s former husband Craig does not support the inquiry and the government acknowledged the pain the inquiry would cause him.

CHARITY GETS BIG BOOST
Richard Cousins, the British businessman who died with his two sons, fiancé, her daughter and the pilot when their plane crashed into the Hawkesbury River north of Sydney on New Year’s Eve, has left a lot of money to the charity Oxfam in his will. More than A$71 million, in fact. His two brothers will receive A$1.7 million each. Oxfam said it was "extremely grateful".

TRUMP DISASTER TWINS TRIGGER TURMOIL
PM Turnbull isn't the only political leader having a lousy week. US President Donald Trump had one of his worst days in office yesterday with two former insiders separately declared guilty in cases that have made his political life difficult.

• Lawyer/fixer Michael Cohen’s guilty plea implicates Trump in paying off two women (including adult actress Stormy Daniels) who threatened to go public about alleged affairs they had with the now president.

• And former Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort was found guilty of tax and bank fraud charges (and journos sprinted to get the news out…).

Trump and his supporters say the charges do not directly relate to things that happened when the men were working for or acting for him. But critics say it goes to his conduct and the company he keeps. (PS for the political junkies, this gives you another interesting layer of background.)

AMP BOSS WITH A DIFFERENCE
Set to win the prize for the best name in the Aussie finance industry on arrival from Singapore, Credit Suisse banker Francesco De Ferrari was yesterday announced as the new CEO of wealth manager AMP. De Ferrari says he likes a challenge - which is handy given the year AMP has had. Reports say after uni, De Ferrari went to India, built housing for lepers and worked alongside Mother Teresa. Now he’s a multi-million-dollar finance exec. Since getting banged up by the banking Royal Commission, AMP has lost $6 billion in value and is the subject of a number of class actions brought by unhappy investors.

COUSINS IN CUSTODY
Former AFL superstar Ben Cousins is in trouble again. He was arrested outside his ex’s home on Tuesday night after allegedly threatening her. And he was rushed to hospital after his arrest to have drugs removed from “his person”. He broke down in court yesterday but was refused bail. Cousins was released from prison in January – he served time for stalking his former partner.

IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE ANNOUNCEMENT
You can stay at baking-icon Mary Berry’s former holiday home in Devon, England. That is all.

SQUIZ THE DAY

Company Earnings Announcements - Bega Cheese; Flight Centre; Nine Entertainment; Qantas; Santos; Tatts Group

International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition

Anniversary of the World Wide Web being opened to the public (1991)

Anniversary of the birthday of actor and dancer Gene Kelly (1912)