Australia news LIVE: Yes and No cases draw battle lines on Voice; PM approval rating drops

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  • Albanese approval rating lowest since election, but ahead of Dutton
  • Why allowing Ukraine to ship grain during the war matters to the world
  • This morning’s headlines at a glance
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Albanese approval rating lowest since election, but ahead of Dutton

Returning to Australia, Anthony Albanese’s approval rating has fallen to its lowest level since Labor took power last year, but he still holds a substantial lead over Peter Dutton as preferred prime minister.

Support for the government has also softened over the past month, from 40 to 39 per cent, amid growing voter pessimism about the state of the economy and a fractious debate on the Indigenous Voice in the lead-up to the Coalition’s weekend byelection victory in the Queensland seat of Fadden.

Anthony Albanese holds a 30 percentage point lead over Peter Dutton as preferred prime minister, though this has eased from a peak of 38 percentage points when Labor first won power.Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

But while its primary vote was down from a high of 42 per cent as recently as May, Labor still enjoys an election-winning lead, with the Coalition stuck at 30 per cent.

An exclusive survey shows voters’ assessment of Albanese and Dutton has tightened, with 51 per cent of respondents ranking the prime minister’s performance as good – down from 53 per cent last month and his lowest approval rating since the election.

Continue reading about the poll here.

Why allowing Ukraine to ship grain during the war matters to the world

Overseas, a deal allowing Ukraine to export grain via the Black Sea expired at the end of Monday after Russia said it will suspend its participation.

The deal, brokered by the United Nations and Turkey last July, aimed to alleviate a global food crisis by allowing Ukrainian grain blocked by the Russia-Ukraine conflict to be exported safely.

The Black Sea Grain Initiative had allowed 32.8 million metric tons of food to be exported from Ukraine since August, more than half to developing countries, including those getting relief from the World Food Program, according to the Joint Co-ordination Centre in Istanbul.

Ukraine has been labelled ‘the breadbasket of the world’.Credit: Bloomberg

Speaking before the deal was scuppered, Maximo Torero, UN Food and Agriculture Organisation chief economist said, “you will have a new spike for sure” in food prices.

“The duration of that spike will depend a lot on how markets will respond.”

The good news is some analysts don’t foresee a lasting rise in the cost of global food commodities like wheat because there’s enough grain in the world to go around.

But many countries are already struggling with high local food prices, which are helping to fuel hunger.

Find out more from Reuters and the AP about how the deal impacts the rest of the world.

This morning’s headlines at a glance

Good morning, and thanks for your company.

It’s Tuesday, July 18. I’m Caroline Schelle, and I’ll be anchoring our live coverage for the first half of the day.

Here’s what you need to know before we get started:

  • Climate Change and Energy Minister Chris Bowen will denounce Peter Dutton as the “alternative prime minister from the alt-right” in a major speech today.
  • Half of Australians say they would battle to pay an unexpected bill, with warnings voters are now struggling because of soaring interest rates, power bills and grocery prices.
  • Anthony Albanese’s approval rating has fallen to its lowest level since Labor took power last year, but he still holds a substantial lead over Peter Dutton.
  • An original architect of the NDIS says the lack of help for Australians outside the scheme – particularly those with mental illness – is “simply unconscionable”.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese’s approval rating has slipped, according to polls. Credit: Flavio Brancaleone

  • The written cases for the Voice have been submitted, the Yes case will urge Australians to vote for “unity, hope and to make a positive difference” while the No case twice says, “if you don’t know, vote No”.
  • High-earning PwC partners were “almost bulletproof” against misconduct claims, a former director of the major consulting firm told a Senate inquiry.
  • A new scheme being developed by the federal government aims to trace the full life cycles of plastic, glass and other materials that can be recycled.
  • Overseas, Russia said it halted a wartime deal that allows grain from Ukraine to flow to countries in Africa, the Middle East and Asia where hunger is a growing threat.
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