Source of Ralstonia outbreak under investigation with 43 suspected cases across Australia
A bacterial outbreak in hospitals around the nation has been linked to more than 40 people, including an elderly patient who died in Queensland.
Australia’s medical watchdog has issued a quarantine notice for saline products which appear to be contaminated with Ralstonia – a form of bacteria normally found in soil and water.
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‘The biggest transformation in our country’s history’
Chris Bowen has been talking about Labor’s plans for reducing emissions, but he’s pressed on the fact that the government has been approving new coalmines and gas projects, which add to global emissions.
The way I see this, David, you can enter into a discussion with your international counterparts which we are doing which is us saying to them, “We will continue to be a reliable energy supplier but we want to work with you on your decarbonisation because we have advantages that you don’t have. We can provide renewable energy.” That is an important conversation to have.
Frankly the approach of others is more a slogan than a policy. We are making the biggest transformation in our country’s history and that involves both domestic policies and strong international engagements, as I will be doing over the next couple of weeks and we have been doing all the way through.
It will be treated in the budget statement of risks and liabilities in the normal fashion. But this is the right policy for the right times to ensure emissions come down and reliability goes up.
Continue reading...Authorities working to chemically eradicate three nests after ‘one of world’s worst super pests’ found in South Murwillumbah
Authorities are rushing to contain the spread of fire ants after the invasive species crossed the Queensland border into New South Wales for the first time since the infestation began in 2001.
The NSW Department of Primary Industries confirmed on Saturday that three red imported fire ant nests had been found in South Murwillumbah, 13km from the Queensland border in the state’s north-east.
Continue reading...Greens MP and Australian Festival Association say NSW force charging much more than other states to patrol equivalent events
New South Wales police have been accused of “price gouging” and operating a “rort” that threatens the viability of music festivals, by charging tens of thousands of dollars more than their counterparts in other states to patrol the events.
The Greens MP Cate Faehrmann told NSW parliament this week that a recent festival that played across three states paid $107,852 for policing for 16,000 people in NSW, but just $45,000 for 14,000 people in both Victoria and Queensland.
Continue reading...A sea of rats has been washing up dead on the beach, with others scurrying across boat ramps into garden sheds and homes
The north Queensland town of Karumba is home to saltwater crocs, brolgas and black swans – and, more recently – hundreds of swimming rats.
A sea of rodents has been washing up dead on the beach in recent days, with others scurrying across the boat ramps into garden sheds and homes.
Continue reading...Many believe Gold Coast councillor Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden will contest election despite being charged with stepfather’s murder
Ryan Bayldon-Lumsden’s Facebook page looks like any other local councillor’s would four months out from an election.
At a Gold Coast community centre, he’s pictured preparing food for the homeless. And if he’s not planting trees in the Arundel Wetlands, he’s out attending community events like Diwali, or posting updates about a new toilet block or development application.
Continue reading...Council becomes sixth in Queensland to oppose development of new wells after farmer concerns about sinking soil and water contamination
The largest council in Queensland’s Darling Downs region has called on the state government to put a moratorium on new coal seam gas projects, after local farmers raised concerns about subsidence.
The Toowoomba regional council on Tuesday unanimously passed the motion that requested a temporary prohibition, after discussing a submission to the state government’s proposed amendments to the Regional Planning Interests Act.
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Continue reading...The Mudgeeraba Bushman became a global star for taking six wickets in an over, but the world will have to wait to find out if he can extend his run
When a local sports reporter told Gold Coast cricketer Gareth Morgan he was going to write “a bit of an article” for the back page about Morgan’s six wickets in an over the day before, the 44-year-old was surprised.
“I said to him: that’s a little bit over the top for third grade cricket don’t you think?” Morgan recalls.
Continue reading...Organisers of Sydney pro-Palestine rallies say they have been attended by 30,000 people, as thousands gather in cities around the country. Follow today’s news updates live
Julian Assange’s father to address pro-Palestinian rally in Melbourne
A pro-Palestine rally will be addressed by the father of Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, with organisers confident a large crowd is set to attend.
The Australian public are disgusted at the Albanese government’s refusal to call for ceasefire.
We’ve had people come who have never before been to a rally and the following week they return with their relatives and friends.
Continue reading...Grant Stevens’ teenage son Charlie sustained a brain injury after allegedly being run down south-east of Adelaide, with a man later charged
The son of South Australia’s police commissioner has died in hospital after being struck by a car in an alleged hit-and-run incident during schoolies celebrations.
Charlie Stevens, 18, sustained an irreversible brain injury after being run down about 9pm on Friday in Goolwa, about 90km south-east of Adelaide, an emotional SA police deputy commissioner Linda Williams told reporters.
Continue reading...Destinys Church founder Brian Tamaki says his event will include 200 men performing the haka and a speech from Avi Yemini
Queensland Muslims say they are fearful and have requested police protection after a New Zealand far-right activist scheduled a pro-Israel protest for the same central Brisbane location – but an hour earlier – than a planned pro-Palestine rally on Sunday.
The “Anzacs” rally in Brisbane is being promoted by Brian Tamaki, who is the founder of Destiny Church and has a history of Islamophobic comments.
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‘A ceasefire is where we need to get to,’ Zoe Daniel says
Asked by RN Breakfast host Patricia Karvelas if she supports calls for a ceasefire, Zoe Daniel says:
If you call for a ceasefire, you’re letting down the Jewish community, if you don’t you’re allowing death and destruction to happen in Gaza.
At the end of the day, if I say to you right now, yes, I support ceasefire, that will make zero difference to what is happening in in Gaza.
I’m a former foreign correspondent. I know the logistics of this, of course, a ceasefire is where we need to get to, but you have a terrorist organisation in the middle of this. If there’s just a ceasefire, and there’s no capacity there to try to dismantle Hamas, does that allow Hamas to regroup? What does that actually lead to? That said, I’ve said to you before, very clearly, and I still stick to the position that the Israeli government has to adhere to international law and the rules of war, and I think, in some ways, has not been.
Continue reading...Exclusive: Palaszczuk government expected to begin process of establishing peak body amid pressure to crack down on youth crime
Queensland is looking to establish a youth justice peak body as the issue threatens to become a major sore point for the Palaszczuk government ahead of next year’s election.
Guardian Australia understands the state government will launch a competitive tender process and seek expressions of interest from multiple organisations across the sector.
Continue reading...Government urged to do more to support young people in residential care to ‘break the cycle of offending’
Nearly one in three children on Queensland’s serious repeat offender index is under a child protection order, new figures show.
As of 30 June, 133 of 452 serious repeat offenders had child protection orders, which are made when the children’s court decides a young person needs to be protected from harm.
Continue reading...Grattan Institute says Australia’s regional roads are a ‘dangerous disgrace’ due to paltry federal funding
Regional Australian roads have become a “dangerous disgrace”, according to a new report that warns they will get worse due to paltry funding that favours cities and forces poorer regional councils to waste repair money erecting signs in tribute to government grants.
In a new report, the Grattan Institute has found that roads across the country have become riddled with potholes and other hazards because inadequate federal and state government funding has left councils under-resourced and without sufficient knowledge or data to maintain the roads they are responsible for.
Continue reading...Police say two-year-old was pronounced dead in hospital before another boy was found at the same address, south-west of Rockhampton
Two toddlers are dead after being found inside the same parked car, several hours apart, in a central Queensland town.
Queensland police said they were investigating “the sudden deaths” of the two boys, aged two and three, after they were discovered in a car parked in the back yard of a Woorabinda home on Friday night.
Continue reading...The Queensland government will pay more than $2.2m to families of 97 patients of the hospital’s audiology unit
Townsville University hospital’s audiology unit programmed cochlear implants in some children incorrectly, misdiagnosed others, and even conducted hearing tests on an infant who was asleep, a damning independent review has found.
The clinic was poorly organised, staff were overworked, and key protocols “did not appear to be followed, leading to poor outcomes, monitoring, measurement, and reporting”, the report released on Wednesday said.
Continue reading...Deputy premier Steven Miles says it’s ‘too late’ to cancel projects and any effect on demand is likely to be years away
The Queensland deputy premier has demanded that federal Labor explain why it is cutting infrastructure spending to fight inflation rather than revisiting controversial tax cuts for high income earners.
Steven Miles has upped the pressure on the Albanese government over looming infrastructure cuts in an opinion piece in the Courier-Mail, arguing it is “too late” to cut projects to fight inflation and urging it to reconsider stage-three tax cuts instead.
Continue reading...The Queensland Conservation Council says new entity will take ‘proactive actions’ to ensure state’s environmental laws are enforced
Queensland’s peak conservation group says it will launch a new “enforcement arm”, amid frustration at stalled government promises to establish an independent environmental regulator.
Every Australian state or territory – except Queensland – has an independent Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Continue reading...Greens unveil policy designed to freeze rents at January 2023 levels in battle for Brisbane city council
The Greens say they would introduce an effective rent freeze across Brisbane by enacting massive land rates increases for any property investors who increase the rent.
The announcement on Monday will be a centrepiece of the Greens’ campaign for the Brisbane city council, a city where nearly four in 10 homes are occupied by renters.
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