Dancing will be allowed in Queensland venues from midday next Monday, Health Minister Y’vette D’Ath announced yesterday. 

Mosh pits are still not allowed but spread out dancing can take place in clubs, bars and RSLs across Queensland. 

The Health Minister advised that people should still maintain social distancing despite the easing of restrictions. 

Premier Anastasia Palasczuk announced this morning that Queensland will open its borders to New Zealand as of 1AM on Saturday December 12th. 

The premier was given the go ahead by Queensland’s Chief Health Officer Dr Jeannette Young last night. 

New Zealand is currently at 28 days without any community transmission.

Five people were arrested in Brisbane CBD at an unsanctioned climate protest yesterday afternoon. 

The climate protesters were a part of the Extinction Rebellion group. The protest began at 4pm on Thursday and blocked traffic throughout the Brisbane CBD. 

A spokeswoman for the group said the tactic was meant to force the government to face the threat of climate change.

The government has lowered the Jobseeker rate in a cut to the coronavirus supplement that passed through Parliament last night. 

By the end of 2020, people on Jobseeker will receive $50 a day, only $10 more than the Newstart rate that hadn’t been changed in 25 years. 

Australian Council of Social Services calls for a permanent increase to Jobseeker to at least $65 a day, which would keep receivers just above the poverty line.  

Clinical trials of COVID-19 vaccine developed by the University of Queensland have been abandoned after participants returned false positive HIV results. 

The Australian government terminated its one billion dollar deal with the University who partnered with Biotech to develop the vaccine. 

The vaccine was one of four the Government had engaged with in hopes to stop the coronavirus pandemic. 

Australia will now increase its production and purchase of the AstraZeneca and Novavax vaccines.

UN organisation the World Food Programme urged countries to prepare for a ‘hunger pandemic’ during their Nobel Prize acceptance speech. 

The WFP said that due to climate change, war, the pandemic and economic uncertainty, an estimated 270 million people could experience starvation if proper food security measures are not put in place. 

Executive director David Beasley said "Failure to address their needs will cause a hunger pandemic which will dwarf the impact of COVID-19."

The federal execution of death row inmate Brandon Bernard is set to go ahead in the United States this week, the first of five scheduled before the end of Donald Trump’s presidency. 

If the five take place, Mr Trump will have overseen the most executions by a US president in more than a century.

The executions break a 130 year old precedent of pausing executions during a transition between presidents. 

Many have advocated for Bernard’s clemency, including the federal prosecutor from the trial and vocal advocate for prison reform, Kim Kardashian West.

Up to 100 millimetres of rain in 24 hours is expected to occur in parts of south-east Queensland due to a coastal trough or low-pressure system predicted for the coming weekend.

This will be the first effect of an active La Nina cooling weather event with Bureau meteorologist Rosa Hoff predicting as much as 100 millimetres of rain in parts of the Gold Coast hinterland in a single day. 

Despite the heavy weather forecasts, Ms Hoff says it is unlikely to reach far inland, leaving many inland towns in high temperatures still.