Morning Mail: Albanese embraces Zelenskyy at UN; grocery prices climb; and ‘getting weird’ with spring fashion

Morning everyone. Anthony Albanese has crowned a busy day of international diplomacy by pledging another $60m in support for Ukraine at an emotional meeting in New York with the man he described fondly as “my friend” – Volodymyr ⁠Zelenskyy.

It was no less busy elsewhere in New York as Tehran’s president ripped into Donald Trump with a defiant speech to the UN, and Argentina’s president said he would be “taking matters into his own hands” over the Falklands.

None of which will help the cost of living, which a survey of typical Australian supermarket items shows is rising fast. We also report on how more young people are living with their parents, Victoria is planning more access to medical abortion, and how to dress for spring.

Australia

• Exclusive | The Victorian government is announcing new measures to improve access to medical abortion and claims One Nation could use abortion as a negotiating chip with the Coalition in the event of a hung parliament.

• ‘My friend’ | Anthony Albanese has announced Australia will provide $60m more in support for Ukraine’s fight against Russia’s invasion during an emotional meeting with Volodymyr ⁠Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the UN meeting in New York. Albanese will also use a speech to say that the world order is no longer fit for purpose.

• Grocery pain | Groceries have become more expensive at four of Australia’s major supermarket chains, with the average price of a basket of essentials increasing by 7% between March and June, analysis has found.

• Tax gain | Most property investors may end up paying less capital gains tax after Labor’s budget reforms, research suggests.

• Exclusive | The gas industry has been accused of unleashing a “scare campaign” before the Victorian election as it pressures the state government to reverse a ban on gas in new homes.

• Coogee rank | Coogee has once again ranked as the Sydney ocean beach most polluted with faecal matter in a survey of 245 sites across New South Wales.

World

• Iran’s defiance | Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, turned the tables on Donald Trump, describing America as the true bully and terrorist in the Middle East while also insisting that Iran had always shown a commitment to the negotiating table. The US delegation responded by walking out. The price of oil went back over $100. Donald Trump is due to welcome China’s president, Xi Jinping, and his wife for an official visit later this morning. Here’s what’s at stake when the two superpowers get down to talking. Javier Milei has condemned the UN as the Argentinian president warned that his country would take “matters into our own hands” in its dispute with Britain over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands. You can follow it live here. Follow the UN meeting live.

• Chicken nuggets | McDonald’s is planning a global assault on KFC’s hold on the fried chicken market as more health-conscious gen Z customers shift away from beef. The burger chain is targeting an extra 1.5 percentage point share of the market.

• Midterm threat | Republican leaders are getting nervous as they fear Trump’s unpopularity will result in disaster at the midterms in November.

• Dolly fight | The estate of the late Dolly Parton is involved in a dispute with the country star’s nephew and former head of security, and has filed for a restraining order against him amid allegations of threats.

Full Story

What Albanese has to lose from his US trip

Tom McIlroy speaks to Matilda Boseley about the prime minister’s UN ambitions and what Australia has to gain if his bid for a seat on the security council succeeds.

In-depth

We had the intergenerational report offering a forecast of what life might be like in 40 years’ time, and now we have the Hilda report – more properly the household, income and labour dynamics survey – giving a granular update on how we live now. Patrick Commins digests the key takeaways, such as that half of Australians under 30 are living with their parents, poorly educated men aged 25-44 are being left behind, and household incomes are up but people feel less well-off. Greg Jericho digs deeper into this last point in his column.

Not the news

Spring has sprung and Lucianne Tonti talks to stylists and fashionistas to get some tips on sprucing up your wardrobe, including the power of tucking, a new take on knee-length skirts, and “getting weird with scarves”.

Sport

• AFL | Immortality awaits a Fremantle side who have banished the ghosts of the club’s past, writes Brendan Foster, while Jonathan Horn profiles their “awkward outlier” of a coach, Justin Longmuir.

• Formula One | Lewis Hamilton said he hopes the Formula One season can still end at the two scheduled rounds in Qatar and Abu Dhabi, with the finale still in doubt because of the war in the Middle East.

• Football | Cristiano Ronaldo said he considered quitting international football after the World Cup, but confirmed he plans to play on for Portugal and hopes to reach 1,000 goals for club and country.

The collapse of an “award-winning” wedding venue is concerning the Adelaide Advertiser, along with the demise of a famed country pub. A preselection challenge has ended without a single vote being cast against Moncrieff MP Angie Bell, the Bulletin reports. A newly elected mayor in FNQ wants to ban acronyms from council proceedings to improve transparency, the Cairns Post reports. The Canberra Times claims a federal agency – the National Indigenous Australians Agency – had more managers than workers until a recent round of layoffs.

What’s happening today

• Travel woes | Qantas ground workers on a national strike for 24 hours and also a Sydney-only strike of airport security staff.

• Economy | ABS releases national accounts, finance and wealth, along with unemployment stats at 11.30am.

• Housing | National housing summit from 9am chaired by Rose Jackson.

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