Good morning and welcome to the Morning Buzz for Friday, July 21. It will be mostly sunny again today, with expected highs of about 17 degrees. Enjoy your day!
- Get up to date with traffic in your area via our live blog.
Early burst of spring for Sydney on the way as temperature heats up
After shivering through a chilly few days, Sydney residents can expect an early burst of spring for the weekend and into next week when the temperature will reach 23 degrees.
The cold wind that brought icy conditions earlier in the week will be replaced by a high-pressure system delivering balmier conditions.
Weatherzone meteorologist Graeme Brittain said the warmer weather would be in stark contrast to the brisk conditions that hit Sydney on Wednesday. Read more.
Man charged by police after Leura shooting
A man has been charged after shots were fired into a business in Leura on Thursday morning.
Police from Blue Mountains Local Area Command were patrolling Leura about 1.40am on Thursday when they were told shots had been fired into a shop.
A 32-year-old man was arrested near the scene and taken to Katoomba Police Station. Read more.
Police search for group of men linked to Quakers Hill armed robberies
Police are searching for a group of men who they believe committed two armed robberies in Quakers Hill overnight.
The first incident saw a man, 59, threatened and attacked by a group of up to six men as he got out of his car at his Hillcrest Road home at 9.30pm on Wednesday.
A second attack occurred a short time later at an adjacent property on the same street. Read more
Measles alert issued after infected tourist visits Sydney CBD and Leichhardt
NSW Health is urging anyone who visited the Sydney CBD and Leichhardt in the past few days to be aware of the symptoms of measles after an infected tourist visited the areas.
The young adult international traveller is believed to have caught the infection in their home country and first developed symptoms in Melbourne on July 15.
The person then travelled to Sydney and visited tourist hot spots before being diagnosed with measles and put into isolation. Read more.
Shifting storms under climate change to worsen coastal perils
Shifting storm directions under climate change are likely to worsen threats to coastlines already at risk from rising sea levels and more intense tempests, according to researchers at the University of NSW.
Scientists took advantage of the predicted huge east coast low in June last year to document the before and after shape along 177 kilometres of coastline from Sydney to Coffs Harbour.
The scale of the survey was "unprecedented" for a cyclone outside the tropics, they said. Read more.
Parramatta Road tram plans developed – then scrapped
Detailed plans for a light rail line along Parramatta Road linking Sydney's central business district to Burwood were developed by the state's transport agency, but were abandoned several months ago.
Fairfax Media has obtained extensive planning documents for a Parramatta Road light rail line, developed last year and early this year for Transport for NSW.
The project, estimated to cost up to $2.7 billion, would aim to take advantage of the WestConnex motorway to be completed in 2023. Read more.
Watchdog cracks down on 'misleading' NBN speed claims
Telecommunications companies are misleading customers over broadband internet speeds and the worst offenders will likely face prosecution over dodgy advertising by the end of the year, the consumer watchdog says.
Chairman Rod Sims said the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) would conduct "compliance sweeps" of broadband marketing and telco websites later this year in a bid to keep telcos honest about speeds available on the national broadband network. Read more.
Blacktown driver caught doing 160km/h in Eastern Creek
It’s the kind of speed you’d normally see at the raceway, but one driver pushed his car and his luck to the limit on a public road at Eastern Creek on Thursday.
At 9.55am on Thursday, Highway Patrol spotted a white Subaru WRX allegedly overtaking other cars at 160km/h in a 100km/h zone heading west on the M4 near Wallgrove Road.
They pulled over the driver, a 28-year-old Blacktown man, who allegedly told police he was running late for work. Read more.
Australia's multibillion-dollar legal tax avoidance loophole
Billions of dollars of tax revenue is being lost due to wealthy Australians using family trusts, according to a new research paper by the Australia Institute.
The report's author, David Richardson, has "very conservatively" estimated that the use of discretionary trusts by people to minimise the tax they pay could be costing the Commonwealth as much as $3.5 billion a year; University of New South Wales tax professor Dale Bocabella has previously estimated the figure could be around $2 billion per year.
Put another way, family trusts cost each taxpayer between $202 and $354 every year. Read more.
Boyfriend of missing Aussie hiker found dead in waterfall
The boyfriend of missing Melbourne woman Sophie Dowsley has been found dead in the Canadian wilderness, sparking fears for the fate of the missing hiker.
Ms Dowsley, 34, and her Canadian boyfriend Greg Tiffin, 44, have been missing since a hiking trip around Statlu Lake on July 8.
Search crews told CTV Vancouver News that Mr Tiffin's body had been retrieved from the waters of Statlu Falls by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police dive team. Read more
Breach of JK Rowling book embargo led to unfair sacking
The depot manager at an Australian courier company was unfairly sacked after he was accused of being responsible for the breach of a worldwide embargo on the J.K. Rowling book Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the Fair Work Commission has found.
The commission heard that XL Express Pty Ltd sacked the depot manager for serious misconduct last November when he was told that the delivery of embargoed J.K. Rowling books a day early had damaged the company's reputation.
XL Express blamed the Brisbane depot manager for the embargo breach, a claim he denied. Read more
What the Health: The 'alternative facts' about veganism
The arguments for and against veganism are often so emotive that truth becomes collateral damage. The makers cherry-pick science, use biased sources, distort study findings and use "weak-to-non-existent data" to make claims such as eating one egg a day is the equivalent of smoking five cigarettes. Read more
St George-Illawarra Dragons release trio
St George Illawarra have granted releases to forwards Tyrone McCarthy and Mose Masoe as the pair look to take up opportunities in England.
The Dragons have also given winger Kalifa Faifai Loa permission to speak to other clubs.
McCarthy played two NRL games during his two seasons at the Dragons and captained the Illawarra side to Intrust Super Premiership and NRL State Championship success last season. The 29-year-old was also a member of the club's leadership group.
Masoe will also take up an opportunity overseas if he receives the necessary clearance and registration to make the move to the United Kingdom. Read more.
Phil Gould bars Penrith Panthers players from State of Origin
In a stinging criticism of the NSWRL, Penrith supremo Phil Gould said yesterday he would not want any of his Panthers players involved with the Blues until they overhauled their culture as the fallout from the state's latest failed campaign continues.
Speaking on the Six Tackles with Gus segment on wwos.nine.com.au, Gould, NSW's most successful Origin coach, described the leadership of the Blues as a "dog's breakfast". Read more.
Bulldogs savaged by rampant Brisbane Broncos
The end of Canterbury's season may be the start of a spirited premiership run for Brisbane. As one of the game's premier clubs all but bowed out of the finals race, another put the writing on the board in emphatic terms.
So much for the Broncos and five-day turnarounds.
With the Bulldogs fresh from the bye and staring down the barrel of a game Des Hasler conceded they must win to stay alive, Brisbane belted them to the tune of 42-12 at Suncorp Stadium Read more.
Knights player Trent Hodkinson takes Hannah Rye to her school formal
He might have grown up in Minto but Trent Hodkinson just went to a school formal in Kurri Kurri.
The Newcastle Knights player escorted Mount Vincent teenager Hannah Rye, who has terminal cancer, to her Kurri Kurri High School formal.
The two met in 2016 when Hodkinson dedicated his kicks to Hannah as part of the 'Tren7's Kick for Kids' initiative. Read more.
Three Wimbledon matches under investigation over match-fixing
Three Wimbledon matches from this year's grand slam, including one from the main draw, are under investigation for potential match-fixing violations, according to the Tennis Integrity Unit.
Alerts were triggered on two matches at the qualifying event at Roehampton and one from the main draw at SW19 after some unusual betting patterns. Read more.