More decapitated crocodiles found in Queensland amid reports of body part black market

Local Aboriginal land council says at least six crocodiles have been found shot dead in the past two months

Queensland wildlife officers are investigating the deaths and beheadings of several large crocodiles near the remote town of Normanton, in what appears to be a growing problem in the state.

Rangers from the Carpentaria Land Council Aboriginal Corporation (CLAC) have reported six crocodiles shot in the past two months, with some of the dead carcasses missing their heads.

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Queensland man extradited to NSW for allegedly disposing of dead body in Bunnings cabinet

Police say accused was called in ‘as a cleaner’ by another man who has been charged with drug dealer’s murder

NSW police have charged a Queensland man they believe was involved in the disposal of a murdered man’s body found in a metal container floating in a rural creek.

The 33-year-old was arrested in Brisbane in May after NSW homicide detectives travelled to the city while investigating the disappearance of a 22-year-old man they believed was selling illicit drugs in Sydney.

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Disability groups hit out at move to drop Queensland Health vaccine mandate

‘Come and live in somebody’s shoes who is at high risk of serious complications from the flu or Covid,’ disability advocate says

People with disability are more likely to feel unsafe in Queensland health institutions and may even avoid them after the state launched plans to drop its vaccine mandate for health staff, according to an advocacy group.

Nicole Lee, president of People with Disability Australia, said Queensland had been a leader in Covid protections and she had hoped the state might make the mandate permanent.

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Queensland may face damages bill for unlawful detention of children in watch houses, lawyers say

Dylan Voller’s solicitor argues new law retrospectively legalising practice could be successfully challenged

The Queensland government could still face a damages bill in the tens of millions of dollars, some lawyers say, despite retrospective legislation exempting it from liability for holding children in adult police watch houses.

Dylan Voller’s lawyer Peter O’Brien, the solicitor behind the class action against the Northern Territory’s Don Dale youth detention centre, said he believed the retrospective legislation could be challenged in court.

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Foreign ownership of Australia’s water rights on the rise

Report reveals that foreign interests hold 11.3% of Australia’s water entitlements – about half of which are in the food and fibre producing Murray-Darling Basin

Foreign interests hold almost 12% of all water entitlements in the Murray-Darling Basin and the level of foreign ownership in water is increasing, a new report shows.

Foreigners own or have a significant share in 4,503GL of Australian water entitlements, which is 11.3% of all the entitlements across the country, the Australian Taxation Office’s report says.

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Queensland childcare worker allegedly abused seven girls in a month, court documents reveal

Charge sheets show the man allegedly assaulted children over 15 years at centres all across Brisbane

The Queensland childcare worker accused of being one of Australia’s worst paedophiles is alleged to have sexually abused seven different girls in a single month, court documents show.

Charge sheets released on Tuesday reveal new details about allegations against the man, who is accused of abusing 91 children in Australia and overseas over a 15-year period.

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In Australia, children, young adults, parents and teachers can contact the Kids Helpline on 1800 55 1800; adult survivors can seek help at Blue Knot Foundation on 1300 657 380. In the UK, the NSPCC offers support to children on 0800 1111, and adults concerned about a child on 0808 800 5000. The National Association for People Abused in Childhood (Napac) offers support for adult survivors on 0808 801 0331. In the US, call or text the Childhelp abuse hotline on 800-422-4453. Other sources of help can be found at Child Helplines International

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Disney+ production Nautilus scrapped after wrapping on the Gold Coast

The UK series, which employed hundreds of Australian cast and crew, is the latest victim of cost-cutting measures at Disney and beyond

A big budget series filmed in Queensland which employed hundreds of Australian cast and crew has become the latest victim of cuts at Disney, being dropped by the studio after filming – and before it even had a chance to be released.

Nautilus, a UK series that had been set to stream on Disney+, is a prequel story to Jules Verne’s 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. Shazad Latif stars as Captain Nemo, an Indian prince who became a prisoner of the East India Company and sets off on a mission of revenge on submarine Nautilus.

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Rumours of a Queensland coup are premature – but Palaszczuk’s popularity is waning

The deputy premier, Steven Miles, called speculation about a challenge ‘rumours and gossip’

Annastacia Palaszczuk has never faced a serious threat to her leadership.

In 11 years as Labor leader – the past eight as premier – there have been no attempted coups or plots, or Canberra-style white-anting by ambitious rivals. Most senior ministers are part of the furniture. Backbenchers rarely vent their concerns, even privately.

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Children unlawfully detained in Queensland’s police watch houses blocked from suing

Law changes retroactively exempt government from litigation as Labor refuses to release legal advice used to justify rapid changes to Youth Justice Act

The Queensland government has refused to release key legal advice it used to justify urgent changes to the Youth Justice Act, amid criticism over its decision to retroactively prevent children from suing if they were detained unlawfully.

Defending the government’s hurried changes to the law, the deputy premier, Steven Miles, said the solicitor general had advised it could not delay amending the act – even for a few weeks – to accommodate scrutiny by a parliamentary committee.

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Keeping kids in watch houses: why the Queensland government could change the law to suit itself

Possible ‘robodebt’ scenario left Labor to either move the children or suspend the Human Rights Act – and it chose the latter

Queensland Labor MPs found out on Monday that they were expected to vote to suspend the state’s Human Rights Act, for a second time, to allow for the indefinite detention of children in adult police watch houses.

No one else seemed to have any warning. On Wednesday afternoon – on a particularly dreary day in state parliament – the police minister, Mark Ryan, tacked the law change on to an unrelated child safety bill, allowing it to pass through parliament the following day with no committee scrutiny.

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‘Farm animals with better legal protection’: Queensland’s new child watch house laws pilloried

Palaszczuk government overriding state’s Human Rights Act to allow for imprisoning children as young as 10 in adult watch houses

Queensland’s human rights commissioner has accused the government of setting a “dangerous precedent” after it overrode the Human Rights Act to allow children to be detained at adult watch houses and prisons.

In a surprise move, the Palaszczuk government introduced legislation on Wednesday to allow it to imprison children in adult watch houses “even if it would not be compatible with human rights”.

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‘Absolute dog act’: Queensland Labor pilloried for shock move to override state’s Human Rights Act

Proposed law changes include allowing children to be detained in adult watch houses for the next three years

The Queensland government has introduced legislation to allow it to imprison children in police watch houses for adults “even if it would not be compatible with human rights”.

Police minister Mark Ryan introduced the amendment as part of a swathe of changes to an unrelated bill in state parliament this afternoon. It will require a suspension of the state Human Rights Act.

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Australian police rejected Fifa requests for Gianni Infantino to be escorted during World Cup travel

Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria police turned down request for escort for Fifa president, which is normally reserved for foreign heads of state

Fifa asked Australian police in multiple jurisdictions to provide escorts for president Gianni Infantino during his travel for the Women’s World Cup, but was turned down.

Infantino asked Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales police to provide him with escorts, the Guardian has confirmed.

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Opposition refers minister to Ibac – as it happened

This blog is now closed.

Warren Mundine said he has kicked two people off his no campaign group Recognise a Better Way, one of which for allegedly making an antisemitic comment.

I’ve actually kicked several people off our campaign in regard to their comments and I intend to keep on doing that.

That’s just between us and the couple of people we had sent off. I don’t appreciate racist comments … All they know is I got rid of them and I don’t accept any racial comments from anyone in regard to these issues.

… It wasn’t particularly about Aboriginals, one was a very antisemitic comment and I’m not gonna wear that crap.

When I talk about treaties, when I talk about constitutional recognition, it is in regard to treaties that are signed between the commonwealth government and First Nations peoples.

… I believe in treaties between the First Nations and the commonwealth and at that, and I put it in that context.

I was involved in the beginning … and then after it got further down the track in regard to [what] it was looking at, [then I said] I don’t support that.

It has to be the First Nations, it has to be the traditional owners who make those agreements. I can’t speak for other people’s country, and they can’t speak for my country.

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Brisbane woman whose body was found hidden in a wall identified by police

Homicide detectives say skeletal remains partially buried at Alderley apartment block belonged to Tanya Lee Glover

The remains of a woman whose body was hidden in the wall of a Brisbane apartment block for about 13 years have been identified by police, who are investigating why anyone would target “a vulnerable single female in this way”.

Homicide detectives announced the breakthrough in the “jigsaw puzzle” investigation eight months after cleaners discovered her skeletal remains, tightly wrapped and partially buried in a locked area behind the wall in the building at Alderley.

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Woman and baby found dead in Rockhampton home

Police say they are investigating ‘sudden death’ of two people after bodies discovered at central Queensland house

Police have launched an investigation into the “sudden death” of a woman and a baby in a central Queensland house.

They discovered the bodies after being called to a house in Bean Street in Rockhampton about 10.502am on Thursday.

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Queensland man who says schools should reconsider the cane joins government’s youth justice group

‘If the parents of kids aren’t able to exercise discipline … then the state needs to be disciplining these kids’, says victims’ advocate

On a Toowoomba Facebook group, frustrated residents share regular updates about vehicles stolen, shops robbed and homes burgled. Some post photos of children accused of crimes; the “bleeding hearts” are shouted down.

Amid the emotion, Ken Cunliffe calls for calm and for the community to focus on solutions rather than politics.

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High-profile man accused of Toowoomba rape to find out if he can access alleged victim’s old phone data

Prosecutors to consider request from man’s lawyer to access six months of data, despite pair not knowing each other until date of alleged offence

Prosecutors in the case of a high-profile man accused of rape will decide within a week how much data from the alleged victim’s mobile phone can be disclosed to the defence.

The crown had sought an explanation from the defence about its request for a data download and has now been provided with an answer.

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Russell Island community shaken by fire that killed father and his five sons

Queensland police launch investigation, saying they are keeping an ‘open mind’ over fatal blaze

Everyone who saw the fire talks about how quickly it spread.

“Straight away there was black smoke everywhere,” says Brad Groat, a neighbour who saw the flames take hold of the old timber and tin Queenslander home on Russell Island in Redland Bay, near Brisbane.

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Russell Island fire: police giving ‘closer scrutiny’ to fire at Queensland home which killed five young boys and their father

The father was reportedly trying to rescue his children when he succumbed to the fire

A crime scene has been established at the site of a deadly Queensland house fire that claimed the lives of five young boys and their father on an island near Brisbane, as Queensland police said the fire required “closer scrutiny”.

The man, named by multiple media outlets as 34-year-old Wayne Godinet, was reportedly trying to rescue his children when he succumbed to the blaze.

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