Good morning, this is Richard Parkin bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Thursday 30 August.

Top stories

Household energy prices will almost halve over the next four years, thanks to 7,200 megawatts of new renewable energy supply coming online, a new analysis of the sector has found. The closure of the Hazelwood and Northern power plants had seen a recent rise in prices, which in turn triggered significant investment in large-scale renewable energy. Tristan Edis from Green Energy Markets says the political debate in Canberra is lagging behind practical developments: “It seems we’ve dumped a prime minister based on completely false pretences”, concluding, “we’ve actually turned the corner on wholesale electricity prices and they’re now headed downward.” Meanwhile, one of the largest self-contained economies in the world, California, has voted to move to 100% renewable energy by 2045.

Donald Trump has confirmed the resignation of White House counsel Don McGahn, tweeting that he “truly appreciates his service”. The US president was reported to have been troubled by the recent disclosure that McGahn had cooperated extensively with Robert Mueller’s investigation into Russian election interference. McGahn voluntarily met with the special counsel’s team at least three times over nine months for a total of 30 hours of interviews, the New York Times reported, and Trump’s personal legal team never asked for a detailed account of what he said.

The government is considering banning the US whistleblower Chelsea Manning from entering Australia for a speaking tour. Manning, a former intelligence analyst in the US army who served in the Iraq war, spent seven years in a military prison after being convicted of leaking nearly 750,000 classified military and diplomatic documents to WikiLeaks. The Australian organiser of her speaking tour, Think Inc, has written to supporters asking them to lobby the newly installed immigration minister, David Coleman: “We have just received a notice of intention to consider refusal under s501 of the Migration Act from the Australian government in regards to Chelsea’s visa,” the company’s director, Suzi Jamil, wrote to supporters.

An Indigenous family that lost two brothers in separate incidents of death in custody has called for action amid concern over the use of prone restraints. Bradley Coolwell, a man with an extensive history of psychiatric illness, was found to have died from respiratory failure and cardiac arrest after being restrained at Logan hospital in Queensland. Four years later his brother Shaun also died of respiratory failure while restrained. The brothers are just two examples of the 147 cases of Indigenous death in custody over the last decade, documented by Guardian Australia’s Deaths Inside special investigation – more than half of whom had not been found guilty of a crime.

Scientists say they have made a major step towards developing a non-addictive alternative to prescription painkillers. The newly developed compound, called AT121, appears to deliver more powerful pain relief than morphine, but without being accompanied by the feelings of euphoria that drive addiction. So far, the drug has been tested successfully in rats and monkeys, and the team are carrying out final safety tests before human trials can begin.

Protesters have begun vandalising the new open-air street urinals in Paris, labelling them sexist and discriminatory. Several of the urinals have been placed in public spots in recent months as an experiment to counter the city’s problem of urine-soaked pavements. But protesters in recent days targeted two on the Île Saint-Louis and near Gare de Lyon station – plastering them with stained sanitary towels and tampons, then blocking them with concrete. Notes left behind attacked authorities for encouraging men to unzip and relieve themselves without cover in open public spaces even though public breastfeeding still elicits scorn.

Sport

Australia’s Daria Gavrilova has been knocked out at the second round of the US Open, going down to former world No1 Victoria Azarenka, 6-1, 6-2. Defending champion Sloane Stephens and veteran Venus Williams have both navigated tricky second round matches, against Anhelina Kalinina and Camila Giorgi, setting up a potential blockbuster third round meeting between Venus and her sister Serena.



Brighton and Hove Albion have become the first Premier League club to commit to providing female fans free sanitary products, after a campaign launched in Scotland, aimed at raising the visibility of female supporters within football. Campaigners admitted the topic was initially “awkward” with predominantly all-male boards, but are delighted female fans are being listened to. The Guardian understands that both Liverpool and Everton are also discussing whether they are in a position to offer free feminine hygiene products in the women’s toilets at their stadiums.

Thinking time

The 1970s etched rock indelibly into our collective conscience – but in a digital age, is this iconic “canon” of music limiting? “In 1974, like a university English department sending out a reading list to undergraduates, NME polled its writers and published its list of the top 100 albums of all time,” writes Michael Hann. But with its emphasis on rock music, its skewed gender bias and its insistence on albums as a measure of worthiness, how relevant is it today? “Music has changed irrevocably ... online distribution of music has created a generation gap in music again, by creating an audience of teenagers ... who listen to music that has bypassed the traditional gatekeepers of press, radio and labels.”

Twenty years after his sister was killed in a car accident, Sean Gorman got in touch with the man responsible. After two decades of anger, guilt and unprocessed hostility, he decided something had to give: “Stasis is also death, so I decided to package up my feelings and send them in an email to the guy driving the ute that night.” To his surprise the man rang him the next day, and after a tentative conversation the two decided to meet up. “I explained to him what the consequences of his actions had caused,” writes Gorman. “The pain. The snapping of my old life into the one I, and those closest to me, had lived for the last 20 years.”

It’s quite obvious that the new prime minister, Scott Morrison, wants us all to know he cares about drought-affected farmers, writes Greg Jericho. While agriculture accounts for just 2.3% of GDP, it is vitally important in Tasmania, Queensland and South Australia as well some regions in other states. But if you’re serious about drought, surely you have to also be serious about climate change, asks Jericho. “If he is heading out to the bush and not mentioning climate change he is failing to actually listen – not just to those who know from their own experience that the climate is changing but from those advising on how governments should respond.”

Media roundup

New research into water resources could unlock billions of dollars and thousands of job, writes the NT News, as deputy prime minister Michael McCormack today unveils new CSIRO research that suggests presently untapped water sources could irrigate up to 387,000 hectares of crops.

The decision by a key female Liberal MP to quit the party at the next election is a fresh sign of a party still riven by last week’s bruising leadership change, claims the Sydney Morning Herald, with Julia Banks calling Dutton’s challenge the “last straw” amid accusations of bullying and “hounding” internally.

And millions of Australians face a home loan hike, reports the Herald Sun, after Westpac announced it will raise its variable rate by 0.14 percentage points, with the other big four banks expected to follow suit.

Coming up

The new archbishop of Melbourne, Peter Comensoli, will give an address to the Melbourne Press Club about restoring trust in the church and rebuilding a culture of “safety and care” in the wake of the royal commission.

Scott Morrison and Josh Frydenberg are scheduled to speak at the National Small Business summit in Sydney.

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