Tuesday's news in under 5 minutes.

1. Gammy’s mum may sue

Pattharamon Janbua, Gammy’s Thai surrogate mother, has told the ABC she will sue the Australian couple who left their son behind.

She says the biological father of the twins came to the Bangkok hospital where she gave birth six months ago and saw both children – the girl, whom he took home, and Gammy.

But the West Australian parents at the centre of the controversy have denied abandoning him. According to the ABC, the father says the Thai surrogacy clinic doctor only told him and his wife about the girl.

“If they don’t know about the twin then they wouldn’t be crying the day that they took the girl out from the hospital [and home to Australia],” Ms Janbua told the ABC.

News broke last night that the man at the centre of this case has been previously convicted for indecently dealing with a child under the age of 13. He was found guilty and jailed in 1998.

Meanwhile it is believed that couple are preparing to speak to the media. A lawyer was expected to make an announcement on behalf of the parents last night but so far none has been forthcoming.

For more on his convictions read this post here.

For more on the sad story of Gammy read this post here.

2. Call for boycott of World Congress of Families conference.

There is a call today for a boycott by politicians of the World Congress of Families Conference, which takes place in Melbourne later this month.

The conference, which will be attended by politicians including Victoria’s attorney-general Robert Clark, and Federal social services minister Kevin Andrews, promotes anti-gay, anti-choice views and some of its speakers propagate the notion that women who take the pill lose interest in sex and are more likely to be the victim of violent assault and murder.

It also encourages ideas that single-parenting contributes to the decay of “society’s moral values”, and that abortion, divorce, single parents and LGBT people are responsible for promiscuity, sexually transmitted diseases, poverty, human trafficking and violence against women and child abuse.

For more and to sign Mamamia’s petition calling for a boycott of the conference read this post here.

3. Vigil for Joey

Police in the NSW Tablelands are investigating an incident where a toddler was found unconscious and not breathing after allegedly being tripped up by the family’s pet dog.

Ninemsn reports three-year-old Joey Woodcock remains in a critical condition with head injuries after his mother and stepfather claimed he was injured after being tripped by the family dog’s lead and struck his head.

He was airlifted to Sydney’s Westmead hospital and remains in a critical condition. Detective Inspector Luke Rankin said the family’s dogs, a husky and an alsatian, were also removed from the Oberon property.

Anyone with information should contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000

4. Lin Family murder trial

Crown Prosecutor Mark Tedeschi is expected to give his opening address today in the trial of Robert Xie, who is accused of killing five members of his family in the Sydney suburb of North Epping in 2009.

Potential jurors were warned yesterday that the evidence throughout the trial would be ‘graphic’ and ‘gruesome.’

5. WW1 commemorations

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Prince Harry and British Prime Minister David Cameron are among those attending a WW1 commemorative service at St Symphorien military cemetery near Mons, Belgium.

The royals are in Belgium for a ceremony to mark the centenary of Britain entering the First World War.

6. Gaza conflict

The Israeli military resumed its attacks on Gaza overnight, ending a seven-hour ceasefire that was in effect for much of the day.

Moments after the ceasefire came into effect, an Israeli air strike is reported to have hit a house at the Shati refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.

The BBC reports that three people were killed, including an eight-year-old girl, and at least 30 wounded.

But Al Jazeera reports that Israel and the Palestinian factions have now agreed to an Egyptian proposal for another three-day ceasefire.

7. Baby dies after being left in car

A baby girl one week shy of her first birthday has died after being left in her car seat.

Her mother raced home to use the bathroom and left the little girl in the car on a hot day in the US.

For more, see this post.

8. City childcare will cost more

Many families will be worse off under the Productivity Commission proposed childcare subsidy, The Australian reports.

Industry modelling based on one of the country’s highest-priced markets, the Melbourne CBD, shows that most families will probably pay more for childcare — with only those with a household income of about $140,000 to $160,000 being slightly better off.

9. Meningococcal deaths

In QLD, a teenager has died from Meningococcal.

17-year-old Jazmyn Carter died yesterday in Warwick Hospital.

In NSW a woman has also died from the disease in the Hunter New England hospital.

For more information on meningococcal disease, visit this page.

10.Surf Lifesaving completion ‘should have been delayed’

A coronial inquest into the death of a teenage boy has heard the surf lifesaving competition he was in should have been postponed because an inflatable rescue boat was not in the water at the time.

Matthew Barclay, 14, vanished in rough seas during the Australian Surf Life Saving Championships at Kurrawa Beach on the Gold Coast on March 28, 2012.

Sky News reports the under-15 board race went ahead despite concerns from lifeguards about the challenging conditions.

Matthew’s death was the third fatality at the national championships since 1996.

11. How could no one know this woman?

Police have released an image of a woman who died after living in a cave in Middle Cove in Sydney.

The woman is thought to have been living in the cave for six years when she was found dead in February.

She had few possessions – a pillow, a blanket and three plastic containers.

“She’s obviously the daughter of someone,” the officer in charge of the case, Constable Andrew Schepis, told Fairfax Media. “Perhaps there were some family issues that caused them to become disconnected – we’re unsure.”

Anyone with relevant information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

12. Prince Charles furious about new book

Prince Charles is said to be “furious” at claims in a new book by the Queen’s ex-press secretary, 73-year-old Dickie Arbiter.

The book, On Duty with the Queen, is reported to be a behind-the-scenes look at life in the Palace during a time called” the most turbulent” in the history of the modern British monarchy.

“It is just a case of a man who he thought was a friend and who could be trusted cashing in on the misery of that time. It is disloyal,” a Palace source told The Daily Express.

13. Video Games good for kids

Children that play video games for less than an hour a day can become better adjusted, according to a new study.

The research, published today in the journal Pediatrics, found that young people who played video games were associated with the highest levels of sociability and were most likely to say they were satisfied with their lives.

This compared with those who had never played or who used video games for three hours or more. Those who spent more than half their daily free time playing electronic games were not as well adjusted.

But the findings showed that the influence of video games on youngsters – whether for good or bad – is very small when compared with more “enduring” factors, such as their school relationships.

14. New mums still sleepy four months after giving birth

Queensland researchers have warned new mums not to rush back into work after having a baby with findings that half of new mothers were still ‘excessively sleepy’ 18 weeks into motherhood.

The Queensland University of Technology research showed that Aussie mums actually slept more than those in the US. Mums wake on average twice a night up until 18 weeks and their total sleep time was about seven hours and 20 minutes. American mothers get about six hours and 53 minutes.

Dr Ashleigh Filtness, of QUT, studied the sleep patterns and tiredness in women after giving birth. She found that despite new mothers recording stable night sleep times at 18 weeks, they continued to report being excessively tired.

She told Ninemsn her research was important for parental leave policy makers.

 15. Jodhi Meares fails to turn up to court

Jodhi Meares has failed to turn up to court, 9News reports.

It’s believed she is in the US.

Model and fashion designer Meares, who was once married to James Packer, was caught driving three times over the limit on 21 June  in Sydney’s eastern suburbs, after she crashed into three parked vehicles and rolled her own 4WD.

Court documents also reveal Jodhi’s name is spelled the traditional way; she is listed as Jodie K Meares on the court list.

The 43-year-old is now due to appear in court on August 20.

16. Tony Abbott has announced the government will not be making changes to 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act.

The Abbott government has announced it will not be going ahead with its proposed changes to Section 18C of the Racial Discrimination Act.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott said the decision was based on a “leadership call”, as the proposed changes were a “complication” leading the government to decide they were “just not going to proceed with it”.

The proposed changes to 18C – which currently make it unlawful to “offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate another person or a group of people” based on their race or ethnicity – were criticised by many members of the public and ethnic leaders.

Mr Abbott explained that, “Leadership is about preserving national unity on the essentials and that is why I have taken this position.”

‘‘I’m a passionate supporter of free speech and if we were starting from scratch with section 18C we wouldn’t have words such as offend and insult in the legislation. But we aren’t starting from scratch. We are dealing with the situation we find ourselves in and I want the communities of the country to be our friend not our critic,” he continued. “I want to work with the communities of our country as team Australia here.”