Good morning, this is Eleanor Ainge Roy bringing you the main stories and must-reads on Wednesday 23 August. Top stories At least six arms manufacturers are being allowed to discriminate against workers in New South Wales in order to comply with US export restrictions, leading to claims the state government has "trashed" its anti-discrimination laws. Some of the world's biggest defence companies – including Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and BAE Systems – have been given lengthy exemptions that in effect let them reject job applicants, or sack or transfer employees simply because they are foreigners. Similar forms of discrimination are being allowed across the country. The exemptions are given so the companies can comply with US export restrictions, designed to protect American weapons technology and knowledge. Simon Rice, a law and discrimination expert at the University of Sydney, has been campaigning against the exemptions for years. Rice described them as the "worst kind of cultural imperialism", which in effect make Australian law subservient to US regulations. The terror cell that brought carnage to north-eastern Spain, killing 15 people and injuring more than 130, was planning attacks on a much larger scale, including the bombing of Barcelona's Sagrada Família church, a suspect has said. Mohamed Houli Chemlal, 21, told a Madrid court that the group had been planning large-scale bomb attacks, before an explosion ripped through a house in Alcanar where a number of them had been staying, killing two of the plotters. A Spanish national from Melilla, one of the country's north African enclaves, Houli was arrested in hospital after police realised that the house in Alcanar, in southern Catalonia, had been turned into a bomb factory. Houli arrived at court in hospital-issue pyjamas, his right arm bandaged and his face bearing some of the injuries he is said to have sustained in the explosion last week. Marriage equality campaigners are concerned that fewer young people than expected have enrolled to vote in the postal survey. There have been 36,769 new enrolments and 434,026 updates of details since the survey was announced. The yes campaign is concerned that eligible young people, who would be most likely to vote yes, will miss out on a chance to have their say if they miss the deadline. Enrolment details must be submitted by tomorrow evening, and there is a useful explainer on how to vote here.
South Australia is getting commonwealth finance for another new battery. The Australian Renewable Energy Agency has announced it will provide up to $12m for a new battery to be built on the Yorke peninsula. The federal environment and energy minister, Josh Frydenberg, is expected to confirm the funding for the 30MW battery today during a visit to South Australia. Federal Coalition MPs have frequently criticised South Australia's energy policy for being too reliant on wind after a series of blackouts during the spring and summer. George and Amal Clooney have donated $1m to fight right-wing extremism in the US. The couple have announced a partnership with the Southern Poverty Law Center to combat "bigotry and hate" in the wake of the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia. "Amal and I wanted to add our voice (and financial assistance) to the ongoing fight for equality," George Clooney said. "There are no two sides to bigotry and hate." SPLC president Richard Cohen said the Clooneys contribution came at a critical time when the radical right is "energised" in America, and federal funding to organisations to combat it has been frozen by Donald Trump's administration.
Sport Barcelona have announced that they intend to sue Neymar for breach of contract after his world-record €222m transfer to Paris Saint-Germain. The Catalan club are demanding €8.5m (£7.8m) in damages, plus the return of an undisclosed bonus paid to the player, having renewed his contract at the club last year, and a further 10% of that amount in interest. They have insisted that PSG take responsibility for payment in the event that the player cannot do so. As former Dublin plumber now UFC champion Conor McGregor prepares for his $100m boxing debut against Floyd Mayweather, he sits down with the Guardian's Donald McRae, who uncovers a complex genius helped by those who know him best in this in-depth feature interview. Thinking time | 
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A RAAF F/A-18A Hornet aircraft. Photograph: SGT Shane Gidall/Commonwealth of Australia, Department of Defence 
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