Morning everyone. Large parts of New South Wales have endured a wet and windy night as the “vigorous coastal low” has continued to batter the east of the state. We have reports and a podcast about the Liberals’ attempt reform themselves, plus how JD Vance broke the deadlock on Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” and how to make the perfect dal bhat.
NSW storm |Thousands of peoplewere left without powerlast night and some Central Coast residents were told to evacuate their homes as a “vigorous coastal low” continued to batter the state. You can follow where the rain has been falling and where it might go next at ourinteractive here. You can follow live weather updatesat our liveblog.
Quota battle |Liberals pushing for changes to party rules to boost female representation in parliamentwill propose gender quotaswith enforceable expiry dates in a bid to win the broadest possible support for the plan.
‘Genocide’ truth-telling |Australia’s first truth-telling inquiry has labelled the injustices experienced by First Nations people in Victoriaa “genocide”and urged the state government to provide redress for injustices from “colonial invasion”.
Melting away |Scientists analysing the cascading impacts of record low levels of Antarctic sea ice fear a loss of critical US government satellite datawill make it harderto track the rapid changes taking place at both poles.
Inquiry calls |There are growing calls for a national inquiry into Australia’s childcare sector after a Victorian workerwas chargedwith dozens of child sexual abuse offences.
Hotting up |Thirteen Italian regionshave banned outdoor workingduring the hottest parts of the day. June temperature records have been smashed in Spain and Portugal, and schools in parts of France have been closed as an extreme heatwave continues to grip large swathes of Europe. The UKhas swelteredthrough the hottest day of the year so far with a temperature of at 33.6C in Kent.
Close call |The US Senatenarrowly passedDonald Trump’s giant tax and spending bill with vice-president JD Vance casting a deciding vote after the initial ballot was tied at 50-50 when three Republicans – Thom Tillis, Rand Paul and Susan Collins – voted no along with all Democrats. Here’swhat the bill is all about.
Hospital arrests |Three bosses at the UK hospital where Lucy Letby worked before she was convicted of murdering seven babies have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter,police have said.
USAID warning |Two former US presidents, Barack Obama and George W Bush, have criticised the closure of the US Agency for International Development as a study warned it would result in“a staggering number”of avoidable deaths.
Border block |Poland will introduce temporary border controls with Germany and Lithuania from Mondayamid growing tensionsover irregular migration, the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, has said.
Does the Liberal party need to change its values to survive?
Chief political correspondentTom McIlroy discusseswhether Liberal leader Sussan Ley needs to consider reforming her party to return to power – and recruit women.
Sorry your browser does not support audio - but you can download here and listen $https://audio.guim.co.uk/2025/07/01-34704-FS_QUOTA.mp3
The Trump administration has revealed its plans to target the denaturalisation of US citizens around the country and enable Donald Trump mass deportation agenda which he touted with a visit to Florida’s “Alligator Alcatraz” overnight.José Olivares looks athow the strategy appears to hinge on officials trying to test a person’s “moral character” in civil cases, strip them of citizenship and then have them deported in a “huge departure” from previous policies.
When Justin Narayan won MasterChef Australia in 2021, one of the things that helped him to victory was the dal bhat dish that he produced after experimenting with recipes learned from his mother and grandmother.He reveals the mouthwatering secret behind his success.
Sign up toMorning Mail
Our Australian morning briefing breaks down the key stories of the day, telling you what’s happening and why it matters
after newsletter promotion
Tennis |Australia’s Wimbledon challengehas been reinvigoratedwith the national No 1s Alex de Minaur and Daria Kasatkina claiming wins on day two. Security at Wimbledon is“absolutely critical”, the tournament’s operations director has said, after a player raised concerns about a spectator during the championship’s first day.
Rugby union |British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrellhas five key selection decisionsto make before the first Test in Brisbane on 19 July, starting with this week’s games against Queensland Reds tonight and the Waratahs on Saturday.
Basketball |Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Oklahoma City Thunder have reportedly agreed arecord four-year, $285m extensionthat would give him the highest single-season average salary in NBA history.
TheABChas revealed changes coming toVictoria’s Working With Children Check system, starting from August. NSW Liberals are pushing party bosses tofund a legal challengeto Gisele Kapterian’s 26-vote defeat in Bradfield, theSydney Morning Heraldclaims. Residents on the NSW south coast are urged by theBay Post/Moruya Examinerto“stay informed”as the coastal low threatens to bring heavy rain and flash flooding. A breast cancer drug is going tobe made more widely availableto Australian women, theAgereports. And according to theAustralian, offshore wind developer BlueFloat Energy isweighing a potential saleof its Victorian project.
Foreign affairs |Penny Wong is in Washington to meet US officials.
Perth |Sentencing for climate activists who forced the evacuation of Woodside’s Perth headquarters.
Canberra |Fiji’s prime minister Sitiveni Rabuka will address the National Press Club at 11.30am.
If you would like to receive this Morning Mail update to your email inbox every weekday,sign up here, or finish your day withour Afternoon Update newsletter. You can follow the latest in US politics by signing up forThis Week in Trumpland.
And finally, here are the Guardian’s crosswords to keep you entertained throughout the day. Until tomorrow.
Quick crossword
Cryptic crossword