Women with breast cancer have secured commitments from both the major parties for additional funding for MRI scans – $32.6m from the Morrison government coming in next week’s budget, and $47m from Labor if it wins in May.

The Coalition will use next Tuesday’s budget to create two new Medicare items for MRI of the breast, scans that will enable more accurate diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer.

Federal Labor has announced it will withdraw support for a major part of Murray-Darling Basin Plan, if elected.

Opposition spokesperson Tony Burke has announced that Labor would change the way in which 450 gigalitres of water is recovered by restoring the socio-economic definition for delivering water.

It comes less than a year after the Government and basin states agreed on a way to measure the socio-economic impact of recovering water.

Queensland University of Technology has taken part in the first export of ‘Green Hydrogen’ derived from water from Australia to Japan in a major step towards sustainable fuel innovation.

In the revolutionary trial, Japanese researchers from petroleum conglomerate JXTG used QUT's solar facilities operating at Redlands to extract hydrogen from water.

Education Minister Grace Grace yesterday released the findings of a first-of-its-kind state-wide evaluation of NAPLAN and again called on the Morrison Government to commit to a comprehensive national review.

Ms Grace says the Palaszczuk Government’s evaluation identified that NAPLAN had played a role in supporting improvements in Queensland’s educational outcomes.

A lawsuit has been filed against aircraft manufacturer Boeing in the wake of the Ethiopian Airlines crash which killed 157 people on March 10th.

The lawsuit, filed by the family of Jackson Musoni, a Rwandan citizen who died in the crash, is the first to be filed against the company.

The claims in question are in relation to the manufacturing of Boeing’s 737 aircraft, which it is alleged contained a defective automated flight control system.

The European Union have vowed to faze out single use plastics by 2021 following a vote by EU lawmakers as there is a push for manufacturers to step up their recycling efforts.

Increasing concern over plastic waste in oceans and China’s decision to stop processing waste have prompted the EU to take more drastic steps in tackling the issue of pollution.

EU countries will be able to choose their own methods of reducing single-use plastics such as take-out containers and beverage cups.

The Law Society of the ACT has called for a relaxation of drug-driving laws in Canberra as the debate over whether to legalise recreational marijuana in the Australian Capital continues.

Currently, a small amount of cannabis in the system of a driver, like that of someone who had smoked days previously but was ‘otherwise unimpaired’, results in the same penalties as that of blowing a 0.15 alcohol reading.

Agriculture Minister David Littleproud says adjustments to the upcoming budget, specifically the Farm Household Allowance, will be made in order to provide for drought affected farmers ‘as quickly as possible.’

Critics of the FHA have said it does not cover livestock feed, council rates, or on farm expenses, and despite farmers in every state experiencing some level of drought, fewer than 6,300 even receive the fortnightly FHA payment.

Brisbane Lord Mayor Graham Quirk is set to quit his job next week after eight years in the position, saying that he could not commit to another four-year term in office.

Quirk entered the Brisbane council in 1985 and after spending 34 years in the organisation, he has decided that ‘now is the time to go’.

The Lord Mayor says he is extremely proud of what he has achieved and is confident that a vibrant and renewed LNP Council team will have new and exciting plans to keep Brisbane heading in the right direction.