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For Eurovision fans, Liverpool in the United Kingdom has been chosen to host the contest in 2023 on behalf of Ukraine.
It should be an emotional event.
Katharine Murphy
Perhaps you’ve got to be old, like me, to understand just how weird it is for the former federal finance minister Nick Minchin to be booed at a conference of self-styled conservatives for not being rightwing enough.
Minchin is a Howard-era small government rightwinger who made an appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) Australia conference last weekend. His mistake was to tell attendees the Liberal party didn’t need much changing. Sustained booing ensued.
Minchin suggested everyone calm down. People ignored him. Minchin noted he’d “fought every conservative fight in the Liberal party for 30 years”. Pain persisted. Minchin then told the audience he was not “going to take any rubbish from you” having been in the “trenches” for decades.
There are 62 flood warnings active across much of New South Wales following record rainfall in Sydney.
Introducing Ben Roberts-Smith v the media
Over at Full Story, our daily podcast, an excerpt of an upcoming series has been released this morning in a rare Saturday episode.
Australia’s most decorated living soldier, Ben Roberts-Smith, is suing three of the country’s most trusted newspapers for defamation over articles he says falsely accuse him of war crimes.
Whatever the outcome, the ramifications will be immense for public interest journalism, Australia’s military and the man venerated as a modern-day war hero.
The first episode will be released in full on 17 October.
Possible landslides forecast for NSW amid widespread flooding
A significant band of rain is bringing heavy showers, thunderstorms and strong gusts across NSW as widespread flooding continues and forecasters warn of possible landslides, AAP reports.
A trough tracking over NSW towards the coast was developing on Saturday and was likely to bring intense rainfall and the risk of flash flooding, the Bureau of Meteorology’s Helen Kirkup said on Friday.
Six hourly rainfall totals of 30-50mm are predicted in the Central Tablelands, the Hunter region and metropolitan Sydney, with isolated areas expected to receive up to 70mm.
After a soggy week in NSW, heavy falls on already saturated grounds would heighten the risk of landslides and debris falling across roads, Kirkup said.
While the worst of the weather is forecast for Sydney, the Hunter region and the Central Tablelands, other areas can also expect rain. The system is expected to blanket the state, with widespread showers forecast from the mid-north coast to the southern end of the state.
Damaging winds are forecast through the Sydney metropolitan and Illawarra coast on Saturday through to Sunday morning, with winds of 60-70km/h and peak gusts of more than 90km/h.
Campers at the Bathurst 1000 have been warned of muddy, stormy and potentially dangerous conditions, with heavy falls predicted across Mount Panorama on Saturday and Sunday.
Up to 100mm could fall on the tens of thousands of fans expected to attend, potentially leading to flooding along the Macquarie River in Bathurst.
As rain continues to soak much of NSW, and flood peaks flow down already swollen rivers, the bureau has warned of a widespread risk of significant riverine flooding for multiple inland catchments. Major flooding is occurring along the Macquarie, Darling, Culgoa and Lachlan rivers.
Renewed flooding is a risk at inland and coastal catchments including the Gwydir, Namoi, Macquarie and Belubula rivers, Mandagery Creek, the Lachlan and Bogan rivers, Colo River, Wollombi Brook and Lower Hunter rivers.
Good morning
New South Wales is bracing for another day of heavy rainfall and flooding with widespread falls expected to hit much of the state, Victoria and Tasmania over the weekend.
The Bureau of Meteorology warned “extensive and significant riverine flooding” was likely for many inland catchments due to saturated soils and dams at capacity, leading to landslides and renewed river rises.
Major flooding is already occurring across the Macquarie, Darling, Culgoa and Lachlan rivers, while numerous flood watches have been issued across inland and central coastal parts of NSW.
In Sydney’s inner west, the State Emergency Operations Centre (SEOC) at Homebush has been activated ahead of the severe weather event.
Based at Rural Fire Service Headquarters, the hub of experts supports the State Emergency Services (SES) emergency response.
It’s Caitlin Cassidy here on the blog today, to guide you through today’s news. If you want to get in touch, you can Tweet me at @caitecassidy.
Let’s dive in.