NSW battered by storm, Liberals push for quotas, Trump bill passes

NSW storm | Thousands of people were left without power last night and some Central Coast residents were told to evacuate their homes as a “vigorous coastal low” continued to batter the state. You can follow where the rain has been falling and where it might go next at our interactive here. You can follow live weather updates at our liveblog.

Quota battle | Liberals pushing for changes to party rules to boost female representation in parliament will propose gender quotas with enforceable expiry dates in a bid to win the broadest possible support for the plan.

‘Genocide’ truth-telling | Australia’s first truth-telling inquiry has labelled the injustices experienced by First Nations people in Victoria a “genocide” and urged the state government to provide redress for injustices from “colonial invasion”.

Melting away | Scientists analysing the cascading impacts of record low levels of Antarctic sea ice fear a loss of critical US government satellite data will make it harder to track the rapid changes taking place at both poles.

Inquiry calls | There are growing calls for a national inquiry into Australia’s childcare sector after a Victorian worker was charged with dozens of child sexual abuse offences.

Hotting up | Thirteen Italian regions have banned outdoor working during the hottest parts of the day. June temperature records have been smashed in Spain and Portugal, and schools in parts of France have been closed as an extreme heatwave continues to grip large swathes of Europe. The UK has sweltered through the hottest day of the year so far with a temperature of at 33.6C in Kent.

Close call | The US Senate narrowly passed Donald Trump’s giant tax and spending bill with vice-president JD Vance casting a deciding vote after the initial ballot was tied at 50-50 when three Republicans – Thom Tillis, Rand Paul and Susan Collins – voted no along with all Democrats. Here’s what the bill is all about.

Hospital arrests | Three bosses at the UK hospital where Lucy Letby worked before she was convicted of murdering seven babies have been arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter, police have said.

USAID warning | Two former US presidents, Barack Obama and George W Bush, have criticised the closure of the US Agency for International Development as a study warned it would result in “a staggering number” of avoidable deaths.

Border block | Poland will introduce temporary border controls with Germany and Lithuania from Monday amid growing tensions over irregular migration, the Polish prime minister, Donald Tusk, has said.

Tennis | Australia’s Wimbledon challenge has been reinvigorated with the national No 1s Alex de Minaur and Daria Kasatkina claiming wins on day two. Security at Wimbledon is “absolutely critical”, the tournament’s operations director has said, after a player raised concerns about a spectator during the championship’s first day.

Rugby union | British & Irish Lions coach Andy Farrell has five key selection decisions to make before the first Test in Brisbane on 19 July, starting with this week’s games against Queensland Reds tonight and the Waratahs on Saturday.

Basketball | Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Oklahoma City Thunder have reportedly agreed a record four-year, $285m extension that would give him the highest single-season average salary in NBA history.