Your morning Briefing

Welcome to your morning digest of the top stories of the day.

Hello readers and welcome to your two-minute digest of what’s making news today.

Greg Craven

‘Gutless act’

The Australian National University’s reluctance to host a ­pro­posed Western civilisation course is “the greatest act of gutlessness since Trevor Chappell bowled under­arm to New Zealand”, says Australian Catholic University vice-chancellor Greg Craven. ANU’s history department head, meantime, has pointed the finger at Tony Abbott over the collapse of the planned course.

“This whole exercise is not a protection of academic freedom. It’s one of the greatest failures of academic freedom in Australian university history.”

Greg Craven

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23/06/2016: Michael Ormaechea, CEO ANZ and Head of Global Markets APAC. Photographed at Deutsche Bank headquarters in Sydney on Thursday. Hollie Adams/The Australian

Cartel case nets bankers

Six of Australia’s highest-powered investment bankers have been charged over alleged cartel conduct, in an explosive criminal case that has rocked the already scandal-ridden finance sector.

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This May 13, 2004 photo shows designer Kate Spade during an interview in New York. Spade was found dead in an apparent suicide in her New York City apartment on Tuesday, June 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)

Spade suicide

The fashion designer Kate Spade—whose sophisticated handbags with a touch of whimsy represented a rite of passage for a generation of young, urban women—was found dead from an apparent suicide at her Manhattan apartment Tuesday morning. The 55-year-old, who sold a stake in her namesake brand 19 years ago and cut ties with it in 2007, had returned to the fashion business in 2016, designing shoes and handbags under the brand name Frances Valentine.

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Rod Clement Margin Call cartoon for 06-06-2018Version: Business 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.

Agile Elliott

ANZ boss Shayne Elliott has survived an extraordinary array of scandals, writes Margin Call. But will the $6.2 million man be able to dodge ACCC boss Rod Sims? Like Tom Cruise ’s Ethan Hunt in Mission Impossible, danger has never been far from Elliott during his 2½ years in charge of the $77 billion, Melbourne-headquartered bank. But somehow the 54-year-old Kiwi-accented vegan dodges whatever laser alarm system, Indian billionaire couple or Twitter-triggered defamation case presents itself.

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TOPSHOT - Italy's Marco Cecchinato (L) embraces as he celebrates after victory over Serbia's Novak Djokovic in their men's singles quarter-final match on day ten of The Roland Garros 2018 French Open tennis tournament in Paris on June 5, 2018. World number 72 Marco Cecchinato became the first Italian man in 40 years to reach a Grand Slam semi-final with a breathtaking 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 1-6, 7-6 (13/11) epic victory over 12-time major winner Novak Djokovic. / AFP PHOTO / Eric FEFERBERG

Djokovic shocker

World number 72 Marco Cecchinato said he had “amazed” himself by becoming the first Italian man in 40 years to reach a Grand Slam semi-final with a breathtaking 6-3, 7-6 (7/4), 1-6, 7-6 (13/11) French Open victory over 12-time champion Novak Djokovic. Cecchinato, who had never won a Grand Slam match before Roland Garros, faces Austrian seventh seed Dominic Thiem for a place in Sunday’s final.

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Jon Kudelka letters page cartoon for 06-06-2018Version: 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.