Queensland's Prickly Job
Biosecurity Queensland has seized more than 300 illegal potted cacti, which could have caused serious environmental problems if allowed to spread, in the past year.
Minister for Agricultural Industry Mark Furner says the 315 plants were being sold by internet traders or nurseries in south east Queensland.
8AM Zedlines
[Photo credit: pxhere]
UK and US Warn Citizens to Avoid Sri Lanka
The UK and US foreign offices have told their citizens to avoid Sri Lanka warning that further terror attacks are likely over the weekend.
Britain updated its travel advice last week telling citizens to avoid the country unless absolutely necessary.
Australia’s Smart Traveller website, run by the Department of Foreign Affairs, advised nationals to reconsider any upcoming travel to Sri Lanka.
Scott Morrison Condemns Building on Bali Bombing Site
The ABC has revealed that Balinese developers plan to build a five-story “restaurant and monument” at the site of the Sari Club, where 88 Australians were killed when a car bomb went off in 2002.
A building permit has been issued and local vendors who have been using the vacant lot have been told to “clear out” next week, with construction scheduled to begin on May 9.
In a series of Tweets Prime Minister Scott Morrison slams the decision of a development at the site of the Bali bombings, describing it as “deeply distressing”.
Hobart Nurses Call for Separate Flu Clinic
Nurses at the Royal Hobart Hospital are calling for a separate flu clinic to open to take the strain off emergency departments.
Data from the Department of Health and Human Services has recorded an increase in statewide influenza A and B notifications this holiday season compared to last year.
Andrew Brake, chief of the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation Tasmania says he has scheduled a meeting to address the nurses’ concerns with the Department of Health on Monday.
Huge Swell Forecast to Hit Victoria
A huge swell is forecast to hit Victoria’s coastline today, with waves as big as 10-15 metres set to occur according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
Senior forecaster Chris Godfred said a strong cold front is expected to move across Bass Strait to create large waves.
Mr Godfred said the waves would not be that big close to shore, but would still provide some spectacular conditions at Bells Beach
University of Queensland Community to Build Art Installation
Australian Artist Lara Merrett will harness the community’s creative input in a 10-day outdoor studio starting at The University of Queensland Art Museum on Monday.
Art Museum Senior Curator Peta Rake says the St Lucia Campus community would help produce 60 paintings to be included in High Stakes, a large-scale art installation opening at the Art Museum later this year.
Forty volunteers will work with Merrett over 10 days, painting 60 fabric canvases suspended in the outdoor studio.
42 Gympie Jobs Saved
42 jobs have been saved with Gympie workers returning to the former Carter Holt Harvey timber processing facility to begin manufacturing again following an agreement with the Queensland Government and Laminex Australia through the $150 million Jobs and Regional Growth Fund.
RIVAH: RIVAH
- Reinvention is a tool that artists use sparingly, unless you are of the David Bowie, Kate Bush, or even Madonna calibre. It can produce some clunky results (Neil Young’s 1982 “Trans” album is one such example) or come across as a desperate attempt to still be relevant (yes, Madonna can claim a place on that side too.)
Salary: Cul De Sac Breakdown
- Cul De Sac Breakdown is the second album by Perth nine-piece folk-rock band Salary.
A band with nine members could be expected to make some pretty grand music, and Cul De Sac Breakdown does contain a few big choruses and epic buildups, as well as a couple of almost psychedelic sounding jammed out passages. But Salary are mostly quite restrained, and in fact songs like Scrublot Banksia and Pogo are beautiful in their sparse simplicity.