Morning Headlines

PwC global’s secret path to control                     

PwC International used secretive network rules to put PwC Australia under its control after ruling the tax leaks scandal was causing ‘‘ongoing reputational and global brand damage’’ to the big four professional services firm. The Fin

Hawks warn rate cuts unlikely this year

Persistently high inflation, bubbling wage pressures, weak productivity growth and stimulus from income tax cuts mean borrowers may have to wait another year for the Reserve Bank of Australia to cut the cash rate. The Fin

Cost of aged care at home likely to rise

Federal Aged Care Minister Anika Wells looks set to make retirees pay more for in-home aged care packages, saying the government wants to get the balance right between how much taxpayers and the elderly pay to fund aged care. The Fin

AFP chief in Beijing to seal deal on key crime, security pacts

The nation’s most senior police chief has landed in Beijing to seal a raft of significant deals with Chinese security officials for tackling drugs and transnational crime. The Aus

Schools fear Labor show of bad faith

Faith-based schools have urged Labor to safeguard the right to hire teachers who share their spiritual beliefs ahead of a report this week that will recommend the removal of key protections from the Sex Discrimination Act, reigniting a fraught national debate over religious freedoms. The Aus

Cash for toddlers ‘too hard’ to police

Premier Roger Cook has defended not extending the $103 million cash payments for school-aged children to younger kids. The West

Tough new measures are firmly on agenda

Attorney-General John Quigley has been tasked with examining the introduction of potent new search powers for police officers in a bid to clamp down on the growing prevalence of knife attacks. The West

The Australian Financial Review

Page 10: More than 80 per cent of the new cars sold around the world last year were petrol guzzlers, with Formula 1’s chief technical officer Pat Symonds claiming it a reminder for anyone who thinks electric vehicles can single-handedly get the world to net zero by 2050.

Page 12: Big six law firm Clayton Utz dropped a company associated with Craig Wright as a client because it was concerned about ‘‘the integrity of documents’’ the self-claimed creator of bitcoin gave it and the Australian Taxation Office.

Page 13: Cybercrime and cyberattacks are being underreported and the problem will get worse as technologies such as artificial intelligence become more sophisticated, says the new national cyber tsar.

Page 16: BHP has stood down around a quarter of the workforce building its $1.7 billion West Musgrave nickel and copper project in Western Australia, but says it remains committed to the development, which it acquired when it purchased OZ Minerals last year.

Page 17: Former PwC executive Bill Dongbiao Zheng and his Investors Direct Financial business allegedly owe a secretive British Virgin Islands lender almost $30 million after the collapse of a project to develop a major city on disused farms near Melbourne.

Page 23: Copper prices have become a bigger influence on the Australian dollar than iron ore because the base metal is increasingly viewed as an indicator of economic growth, particularly in China.

Page 29: The competition watchdog has asked major media groups to rate their dealings with Meta and reveal how much money they make from Facebook and Instagram, as it prepares to decide whether the tech giant should be forced to the negotiating table.

Page 32: The value of farmland is expected to return to growth this year, thanks to better-than-expected rainfall, rising prices for sheep and cattle, and higher predicted incomes for farmers.

Page 33: The shortfall in purpose-built student accommodation could hit 7000 beds annually over the next five years, as high costs hold back the construction of new facilities just as demand surges, research shows.

The Australian

Page 3: Aviation firefighters are threatening industrial action which could have crippling effects on travel over Easter, as a dispute over pay and work conditions intensifies.

Page 3: Labor has ordered the National Disability Insurance Agency to consider changing protocols to ban participants with a history of violent crimes from self-managing their plans.

Page 5: The Liberal party’s efforts to reclaim the crucial Western Australian seat of Tangney have hit a road bump after revelations about a soon-to-be-released book by the party’s leading contender sparked concerns among the seat’s substantial ethnic community.

Page 5: Public hospitals need an immediate $4.67 billion ‘recovery plan’ to stop people dying while waiting for care in overloaded emergency departments and on elective surgery waiting lists, according to top doctors who say the public system is in such an acute crisis.

Page 5: A political showdown over the government’s push to increase taxes on gas companies is set to go before parliament this week, as Anthony Albanese spruiks Australia’s critical minerals future, including its ability to unlock jobs and economic opportunities.

Page 15: A former PwC senior associate alleges she was bullied at work by another senior staff member in the diversity and inclusion team and lodged formal complaints about it before being dismissed.

Page 15: The recently departed Myer chairman Ari Mervis was in advanced negotiations with former Premier Investments and David Jones boss Mark McInnes to take over as the new chief executive of Myer, The Australian can reveal.

Page 18: The Albanese government faces new calls to urgently develop a low-carbon liquid fuel policy to help transition hard-to-abate sectors such as construction, and is being warned a failure to act will result in the nation failing to meet its net zero target.

Page 18: Revenue for this year’s Australian Grand Prix will surge past $100 million for the first time, with tickets sold out and a surge in corporate hospitality driven by a resurgence in popularity for the global motor racing series.

The West Australian

Page 7: Families are waiting almost two years for a paediatrician appointment in WA as almost 10,000 sick children are left in limbo and parents look east for help.

Page 8: A move to ask self-funded retirees in aged care to cover more of their accommodation and living costs could lead to some 320,000 people paying extra by 2042.

Page 11: More than 5000 firearms have been surrendered so far under the state government’s voluntary buyback scheme.

Page 19: WA’s powerhouse resources sector pumped a record $77 billion into the state economy last year and accounted for one-fifth of company tax paid across the entire country, according to data commissioned by the Chamber of Minerals and Energy WA.

Page 20: The chief executive of Cauldron Energy, a uranium explorer fighting to overturn a state ban on the contentious commodity, has lambasted Premier Roger Cook for saying mines would not be profitable at current prices.