Your noon Briefing

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

Hello readers. Here is your noon round-up of today’s top stories so far and a long read for lunchtime.

EMBARGO FOR THE DEAL MAGAZINE JULY 17 2015 Catherine Brenner, AMP and Audette Exel, Adara photographed for The deal magazine. Pic - Britta Campion

Brenner resigns

AMP has announced Catherine Brenner has resigned as chairman and will step down from the board in the wake of damaging revelations in the banking royal commission. Mike Wilkins has been appointed as executive chairman, effective immediately, while a new chairman, an additional new non-executive director, and a new chief executive, are found. John Durie writes that AMP’s carefully worded announcement is a joke, while Robert Gottliebsen warns Mr Wilkins has a number of urgent tasks, from finding a new CEO to stopping a major exodus of super fund members.

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One Nation leader Senator Pauline Hanson in the Senate chamber at Parliament House in Canberra, Tuesday, March 27, 2018. Minister for Finance Senator Mathias Cormann announced the government cannot pass the company tax cut bill. (AAP Image/Mick Tsikas) NO ARCHIVING

Newspoll rethink

A reassessment of One Nation preference flows prompted a change by Newspoll late last year to the way it calculates the two-party-preferred vote in its regular poll of Australian voting intentions, published exclusively by The Australian. YouGov Galaxy, which conducts Newspoll, said the company had altered the way it allocated One Nation preferences following last year’s Queensland and West Australian elections, which showed One Nation voters were more likely to preference the Coalition than Labor.

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Immigration minister Scott Morrision speaks to the media during the Liberal Party of Australia 57th Federal Council held at the Sofitel Hotel on Saturday, June 28, 2014, in Melbourne, Australia. Picture: Hamish Blair

‘Be prudent’

A leading economic forecaster has warned the Coalition to be prudent amid growing speculation Treasurer Scott Morrison will announce income tax cuts in next week’s Budget. The government’s bottom line has received a $14 billion boost by the strongest tax revenue growth in almost two decades but weak wage growth will constrict tax ambitions if the government is serious about returning to surplus by 2020-21, says Deloitte Access Economics latest forecast.

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TWAM-20180217 EMBARGO FOR TWAM 17 FEB 2018NO REUSE WITHOUT PERMISSION FEE APPLIESImran Khan Pic : Finlay Mackay / trunkarchive.com/ Snapper media

Khan do

He married his faith healer after she advised him that was the only way he could become Pakistan’s prime minister. He took his main rival to court on corruption charges and got him barred from office. Then he publicly met the army chief, widely regarded as the real power in the land. Last night, with his spiritual, judicial and military support apparently all onside, the cricketer-turned-politician Imran Khan started wooing the people with the official launch of his election campaign at a rally in Lahore.

“We expect around one million people to attend in what could be the biggest political rally in Pakistan’s modern history.”

Imran Khan

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Fires outside Benloch. Picture: Mark Stewart

The long read: State of burning intrigue

The Labor government in Victoria is dogged by a political bushfire that appears to defy all effort to extinguish it, writes John Ferguson.

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Comment of the day

“Max Verstappen’s driving behaviour is completely unacceptable and Red Bull have been making excuses for this spoilt brat for too long.”

Jason S, in response to ‘Daniel Ricciardo slams into Max Verstappen in Azerbaijan Grand Prix’.