Morning Mail: Welfare jail threats 'appalling', Frydenberg's gutless capitulation, political donations by industry, Arctic and antarctic sea ice at record lows

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Guardian Australia's Morning Mail Wednesday 7 December 2016 g Sea ice extent in Arctic and Antarctic reaches record lows Good morning, and welcome to the Morning Mail. Sign up here for our Guardian Today email, sent every day at noon, and you can sign up to our new Guardian Australia sport email here. Among the stories leading our website this morning, both the Arctic and Antarctic experienced record lows in sea ice extent in November, with scientists astonished to see Arctic ice actually retreating at a time when the region enters the cold darkness of winter. The 'almost unprecedented' event has been attributed to warm temperatures and winds, with some areas more than 20C warmer than usual. Keep reading for the rest of the top stories this morning, with more news from around Australia and the world.

Headlines Acoss criticises government's 'appalling' jail threats to welfare recipients The police and Centrelink took part in a mass mail campaign threatening welfare recipients if they provided inaccurate information Political donations and party funding: which industries give the most? New figures that categorise the source of federal political donations and funding have been released. See the breakdown with this interactive graphic What an extraordinary, gutless capitulation by Josh Frydenberg Forget climate policy intricacies – through this pathetic retreat the government has again revealed its true nature Trump: Boeing should lose Air Force One contract over 'out of control' cost Boeing share price briefly plummets after president-elect claims project is costing $4bn: 'I think Boeing is doing a little bit of a number' Adani Carmichael mine: Australia Institute demands answers from Turnbull in full-page ad Progressive thinktank wants to know whether company will pay full coal royalties, full company tax rate and create jobs it claims Australian news and politics Pisa results don't look good, but let's look at what we can learn before we panic Another set of global rankings for Australian school students shows a steady decline in results – to address the problem, we need to look at inequality in education Data retention black hole: no one knows how many ISPs Australia has, say experts Experts say counter-terrorism laws hastily passed nearly two years ago are still not in force and face serious problems Josh Frydenberg backtracks on emissions trading comments Energy and environment minister downplays Monday's comments about a possible scheme for the electricity sector after internal pressure Pisa results: Australian students' science, maths and reading in long-term decline Programme for International Student Assessment scores lower than three years ago with results worst in Tasmania Coalition backs down on bank victims' tribunal in favour of financial ombudsmen Kelly O'Dwyer denies opting for an ombudsman inconsistent with Malcolm Turnbull's original undertaking Royal commission told new detention centres no solution to incarceration crisis Former head of Queensland corrections calls for an overhaul led by Indigenous communities and introduction of statutory body for corrections Hamid Kehazaei inquest hears immigration bureaucracy left asylum seeker stranded extra day Coroner heard urgent medical transfers to move seriously ill asylum seekers needed to be 'escalated' through five immigration department bureaucrats Around the world Thousands pay tribute to Jayalalithaa Jayaram in Chennai State funeral held for popular actor turned chief minister for Tamil Nadu who died in hospital on Monday Net earnings: top YouTubers' income rises 23% in past year Ranking of 12 highest-earning YouTube stars by Forbes shows they are increasingly monetising their popularity on platform Angela Merkel endorses party's call for partial ban on burqa and niqab German chancellor tells CDU conference 'full facial veil is inappropriate and should be banned wherever it is legally possible' Paris to sell off bridges' love locks and give the proceeds to refugees The 65 tonnes of love locks removed from Paris's bridges in the last 18 months are to be sold – and could raise €100,000 for refugee groups Milo Yiannopoulos's university speaking events cancelled over security concerns Two colleges in North Dakota and Iowa withdrew invitations to the Breitbart editor, known for his controversial politics and association with the US far right

One last thing No country with a McDonald's can remain a democracy  The best way to combat the likes of Trump, Le Pen and Farage and the politics they represent is to rescue power from the grip of transnational corporations, writes George Monbiot Have an excellent day and if you spot something I've missed, let me know on Twitter at @earleyedition.

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