Teals under pressure, the mastermind behind Labor’s win, Carney meets Trump

Border fear | Queer Australians are axing travel plans to the World Pride festival in the US as Donald Trump targets LGBTQ+ rights and fears grow about entering America. Mik Bartels from Canberra (pictured), says “given my appearance as identifiably queer”, they would not be confident of being able to gain entry.

Wilson wins | Tim Wilson looks likely to reclaim his inner-Melbourne seat from the teal independent Zoe Daniel in a nail-biting race that swung the Liberals’ way on postal votes. Another class-of-2022 independent, Monique Ryan, is under threat in nearby Kooyong from Liberal challenger Amelia Hamer, while Greens leader Adam Bandt might be ousted in Melbourne. The next Liberal leader faces period of “instability” and must be prepared to be regularly criticised and challenged, MPs have said, as the party wrestles with its future following its disastrous election defeat.

Trading up | Labor insiders say assistant trade minister Tim Ayres’ move to pass up promotion last year in favour of female colleagues will all but guarantee him a spot in Anthony Albanese’s looming reshuffle. Meanwhile economists hope that the treasurer, Jim Chalmers, will work to boost productivity after the fall of inflation.

Windy gap | Successive cyclones have opened up a gap a few dozen metres wide in an uninhabited strip of Bribie Island, leaving the Sunshine Coast vulnerable to storm surges, residents fear.

Pain relief | Helping people with chronic pain manage their emotions can lessen their experience of pain, according to an Australian-led study, with participants joining online therapy reporting up to a 10-point decrease on a 100-point scale for pain intensity.

‘Just friends’ | Donald Trump has said he “just wants to be friends with Canada” after his first post-election meeting with Mark Carney, who shot down any prospect of his country becoming the 51st state. Here are five takeaways from this fascinating encounter. Meanwhile the US supreme court has allowed Donald Trump’s ban on transgender members of the military to take effect.

Gaza ‘destroyed’ | A far-right Israeli government minister has vowed that “Gaza will be entirely destroyed” as a result of a victory by his country’s forces and that its Palestinian population will “leave in great numbers to third countries”, raising fears of ethnic cleansing.

Bundestag bungle | The German parliament has formally elected Friedrich Merz as the country’s 10th postwar chancellor after a humiliating loss in the first round of voting that raised doubts about the stability of the next coalition government.

Moscow grounded | Moscow’s airports have closed as Ukrainian drones targeted the city for second night ahead of a major military parade.

Bear attack | A black bear has killed a man and his dog in Florida in what is believed to be the first fatal mauling of a human by a bear in the state.

Cycling | Caleb Ewan, at his peak as one of Australian cycling’s greatest talents, has stunned the sport by announcing his immediate retirement. Ewan won five Tour de France stages but never fully recovered from a heavy crash in 2021.

Rugby union | The Wallabies coach, Joe Schmidt, tells us how he is preparing his team for the Lions tour and what he can learn from AFL.

Football | Inter host Barcelona in the second leg of their Champions League semi-final with the tie level at 3-3.