Your morning Briefing

Welcome to your morning roundup of what’s making news and the must-reads for today.

Hello readers. Here is your two-minute digest of what’s making news today.

Federal opposition leader Bill Shorten visited Cairns to announce Labor's proposal for a Northern Australia Tourism Infrastructure fund and board, should the party win the next election. Picture: BRENDAN RADKE

Bill’s excellent adventure

Bill Shorten accepted a $17,000 private green-funded tour of the Great Barrier Reef and charter flight over the Adani coalmine, during which he pledged to environmentalists that a Labor government would seek to use federal laws to revoke the licence of the Indian mining giant. The Australian Conservation Foundation bankrolled a reef tour off Port Douglas after the Opposition Leader approached millionaire environmentalist Geoff Cousins before last Christmas. Environment editor Graham Lloyd, meantime, writes that claims Adani is a threat to Great Barrier Reef have already been tested in court ... and dismissed. Stay abreast of all the latest from parliament in our live blog, PoliticsNow.

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Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop meeting with Frances Adamson the New Secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade at Parliament House in Canberra. Picture Kym Smith

Cold war

China is putting Australia into a diplomatic deep freeze, stalling on ministerial visits, deferring a trip by our top diplomat and putting off a broad range of lower-level ­exchanges to pressure Malcolm Turnbull over the new foreign ­interference laws and naval challenges to disputed Chinese claims in the South China Sea. Critical reports about Australia and the Prime Minister have spiked in China following his visit last week to Washington, where he agreed to help enforce tough sanctions on North Korea and discussed “freedom of navigation” exercises in the South China Sea. China is at it again as relations turn toxic, writes Dennis Shanahan, as Greg Sheridan argues that ASEAN is more than just China.

“The Middle Kingdom is trying every avenue of interference it can to defend its avenues of interference.”

Dennis Shanahan

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Greens leader Richard Di Natale and Greens candidate for Batman Alex Bhathal speak to the media outside Psarakos market in Thornbury on Monday, February 19, 2018. Di Natale says the Prime Minister should be demanding that George Christiansen apologise for his gun-toting Facebook post. (AAP Image/Alex Murray) NO ARCHIVING

Greens revolting

The Greens candidate attempting to win the seat of Batman and end a century of Labor representation in Melbourne’s north is accused by members of her party of intimidation, bullying, branch stacking, spreading “reckless false statements’’ and cultivating ALP-style factionalism within the party’s largest branch. A complaint lodged by 18 Greens campaign volunteers, office-holders and elected representatives calls on the party’s state executive to disendorse Alex Bhathal as the Batman candidate and expel her from the party, warning that her election to federal parliament would pose a serious risk to the party’s future growth and unity.

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AVALON, AUSTRALIA - MARCH 03: A Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) F-35 flies during the Avalon Airshow on March 3, 2017 in Avalon, Australia. Australia's first F-35s made their public debut at the Avalon Air Show. The two Joint Strike Fighters are currently based at Luke Air Force Base in the United States, but were flown to Australia for the first time by Royal Australian Air Force. (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)

Need for speed

New Liberal senator Jim Molan, a former high ranking army officer, has queried the ability of Australia’s new strike fighter the F-35 to fight Russian built fighters at supersonic speed, and high altitudes north of Australia. Senator Molan, who was also a military pilot, posed a hypothetical case of Russian built Su-57 and Su-35S fighter jets confronting Australia’s likely fleet of aircraft including the F-35 aircraft about 800 nautical miles north of the mainland. He suggested the Russian-built jets were ­superior to the F-35s in altitude performance and in having the ability to undertake “super cruise” or sustained supersonic flight without using afterburners.

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Rod Clement Margin Call cartoon for 01-03-2018Version: Business Cartoon (Original)COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.

Domino’s theory

It’s the $3.5 billion question, says Margin Call: who is shorting Domino’s, the crusty, ASX-listed jewel in billionaire Jack Cowin’s investment portfolio? The much discussed fast-food stock fell below $40 yesterday — a number to which some have ascribed significance — to close at $39.39. That hasn’t yet triggered any further disclosure from Domino’s evangelical CEO Don Meij.

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MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - JANUARY 13: Steve Smith throws during the Australian nets session at the on January 13, 2018 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)

Green mamba

Pitches are hard to read but all indications are the South Africans will avoid the fire and spice of the decks prepared for the recent series against India for fear of the Australian pace attack. Australia will go into today’s first Test in Durban with an unchanged side from Sydney, and the thought of Mitchell Starc, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins running rampant on green tops worries the locals. The Kingsmead wicket is nicknamed the Green Mamba after the venomous tree snake common to the area and legend has it the pitch at the seaside venue comes to life at high tide.

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Kudelka’s view

Jon Kudelka Letters Page Cartoon for 01-03-2018Version: Letters Cartoon (1280x720 - Aspect ratio preserved, Canvas added)COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.