Your noon Briefing: Morrison to stand against Dutton

Welcome to your noon digest of what’s been making news and what to watch for.

Hello readers. Here is your noon roundup of today’s top stories and a long read for lunchtime.

Scott Morrison is challenging Peter Dutton for the leadership.

ScoMo v Dutton

Christopher Pyne has moved that the House of Representatives be adjourned amid the leadership crisis engulfing the Liberal Party. Six secure shredding bins have just been delivered into the ministerial wing, and the ministers’ resignation tally now comprises Peter Dutton, Mathias Cormann, Mitch Fifield, Greg Hunt, Steven Ciobo, Alan Tudge, Michael Keenan, Angus Taylor, James McGrath, Michaelia Cash, Concetta Fierravanti-Wells, Michael Sukkar and Zed Seselja. Keep up with all the latest developments from parliament as the leadership crisis plays out in our live blog, PoliticsNow.

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‘Disgusting and outrageous’

Nine political editor Chris Uhlmann today “called out” some journalists and commentators at The Australian, The Daily Telegraph, 2GB and Sky News for wanting to be “players” in the leadership battle between Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull and Peter Dutton. Uhlmann’s comments were strongly rejected by the The Daily Telegraph’s national political editor Sharri Markson, who labelled the suggestion of a News Corp Australia campaign against Malcolm Turnbull as “disgusting and outrageous”.

“I broke the story in Friday’s newspaper … a straight news story … that conservative MPs were urging [Peter] Dutton to seize the leadership and in that story I also had that he was considering it and was torn about what to do.

“That was a straight news report and your political editor should be able to tell the difference between a straight news story in a newspaper and advocacy.”

Sharri Markson

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Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews speaks to media during a press conference on rental reforms at the rented property of tenant Elizabeth Watt in Melbourne, Sunday, August 5, 2018. The Victorian Labor government will introduce rental reforms into parliament this week, 10 months after first flagging them ahead of the Northcote by-election. (AAP Image/Ellen Smith) NO ARCHIVING

Red shirt rorts findings

A Victorian parliamentary inquiry has excoriated former Victorian Treasurer John Lenders in a report into Labor’s “Red Shirts’’ rorts, which has found the senior Labor figure acted with deliberate disregard for parliamentary rules and has dented the reputation of parliament. As Victoria Police continues a criminal investigation into Labor’s misuse of parliamentary allowances in the lead up to the 2014 state election, the state’s upper house Privileges Committee has denied MPs involved in the scheme acted in contempt of parliament.

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U.S. President Donald Trump reacts to a question during an interview with Reuters in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, U.S. August 20, 2018. REUTERS/Leah Millis TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC187D452530

The long read: Trump gets tough with Xi

Escalating tensions between the US and China extend well beyond tit-for-tat tariffs, writes Cameron Stewart.

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Comment of the day

“The fact that Mr Turnbull has refused to hold a party meeting, to resolve this issue, pretty much tells us that Mr Turnbulls only priority is himself. This comes as no surprise to those of us in this country who have watched the man and his mischief over the years. The country needs this dealt with as soon as possible.”

Karen, in response to ‘Mathias Cormann has left Malcolm Turnbull without any choice but to call spill or resign’.