Squiz Today – Wednesday, 17 October

THREE MINUTE SQUIZ

“What sets overseas Australians apart is that their international experience means they bring valuable new and diverse ideas and perspectives to the table.”

Serafina Maiorano is the CEO of Advance, a platform to harness Australia’s expat talent. And while we’re not keen on comparing passport stamps, we’re pleased the globetrotting Squizer took a New York minute to take on this week’s Three Minute Squiz.

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REFUGEE RESETTLEMENT IN NZ A POSSIBILITY

THE SQUIZ
PM Scott Morrison – the man who ‘stopped the boats’ - is considering New Zealand’s offer to settle refugees currently on Nauru, but only if they are prevented from ever coming to Australia.

UNPACK THAT A BIT…
• There are currently 120 asylum seekers at the Nauru Regional Processing Centre and about 570 others in community detention.

• Kiwi PM Jacinda Ardern has said several times that NZ will resettle 150 of the refugees. Our government hasn’t accepted the offer to date.

• Recently there have been increasing calls for a solution to be found. Last week, Médecins Sans Frontières called for the evacuation of all asylum seekers and refugees from the island. And yesterday a group of Coalition MPs broke ranks to raise concerns about the kids’ wellbeing.

• With both the Coalition and Labor agreeing that these asylum seekers will never be settled in Australia, and the US so far not taking anywhere near as many refugees as was hoped (remember that phone call?), there hasn’t been much movement of late.

• So the government's consideration of allowing some refugees to resettle in New Zealand if Labor supports legislation to prevent them from ever coming to Australia is the most significant development for a while.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?
Oh, just the government accidentally supporting a right-wing race campaign, a backdown on the GST guarantee and a looming brouhaha with Indonesia over Morrison’s openness to moving our Israeli embassy to Jerusalem. So, you know, not much at all…

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SQUIZ THE REST

AFRICAN BILLIONAIRE KIDNAPPED
The family of kidnapped Tanzanian Mohammed Dewji, Africa’s youngest billionaire, has offered a reward of US$440,000 for information leading to his rescue. He was bundled into a car while leaving the gym in Dar es Salaam, the nation’s largest city, late last week. Dewji is 43yo, was a politician who now runs his family’s textile and food businesses, and has a net worth of US$1.5 billion. Police say a ransom has not been requested by the kidnappers, who they believe to be foreign.

CANADA GOES TO POT
Today Canada becomes the second nation in the world (Uruguay was the first) where it is legal to use cannabis recreationally. Fans of the wacky tobaccy will be able to purchase it from licenced producers to consume in the comfort of their own share flat/kombi-van/college dorm.

A GOOD DAY FOR…
THE THAI CAVE BOYS – They gave their first TV interview on US talk show Ellen yesterday. They also got to meet their soccer hero Zlatan Ibrahimovic and got a bunch of free stuff. A good day indeed.

NATHAN LYON – The Aussie offspin bowler took four wickets in six deliveries in the first day of the second cricket test match against Pakistan.

DAPHNE DUNNE - That old flirt… The 98yo war widow got her Harry time.

A BAD DAY FOR…
TELSTRA – Its shareholders are unhappy about the telco’s executives getting paid their bonuses despite a struggling share price. A company receives a ‘strike’ against it if more than 25% of shareholder votes go against its remuneration report. Yesterday 62% said nope. If the company repeats that next year, its board could be spilt. The company also said it’d lost $500 million on a Silicon Valley video streaming business that went bust.

THE KOREAN AIR CHAIRMAN – Cho Yang-ho will stand trial for embezzlement charges. He’s the bloke with the ‘spirited’ daughters…

COSMO – Bauer Media will no longer publish the Aussie edition of the teen/young adult mag. It’s the latest casualty in the challenged magazine sector.

VALE PAUL ALLEN
He was the Microsoft co-founder who wasn’t as much of a household name as his partner Bill Gates. The two were childhood friends who started their business in 1975. Allen abruptly left Microsoft in the early 80s, and some said his (quiet) and Gates' (aggressive) styles didn't make for a harmonious long-term working relationship. But their endeavours made them seriously wealthy - and generous. Allen gave more than $2 billion to various philanthropic causes during his life. Gates said he was heartbroken over the loss of one of his oldest and dearest friends. Allen died from lymphatic cancer and was 65yo.

SQUIZ THE DAY

7.30am (AEDT) - Announcement of the 2018 Man Booker Prize winner

Harry and Meghan take Dubbo

ABS Data Release - Overseas Arrivals and Departures, August

Start of the European Council meeting that will focus on Brexit and migration

International Day for the Eradication of Poverty