Queensland fines revenue nudging half-a-billion dollars

The Queensland Government is reaping millions of dollars in revenue benefits following the rollout of new speed cameras and updated red light cameras.

The latest Government figures show $396m was made last year on fines, expected to grow to $444m in the next financial year. By 2021, the figure is expected to exceed half a billion dollars.

Mathematics' Abel Prize awarded to woman for the first time

This year’s Abel Prize has been awarded to a woman for the first time ever.

Karen Uhlenbeck, a mathematician and professor at the University of Texas, received the prestigious mathematics prize which is modelled after the Nobels.

The prize is awarded by the King of Norway to mathematicians who have greatly influenced their field and it includes a cash award of 6 million Norwegian kroner which is equivalent to almost $100,000 Australian.

Theresa May formally asks MPs for Brexit delay

UK Prime Minister Theresa May is writing to the EU to formally ask for Brexit to be postponed just nine days before the March 29 exit date.

EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier says the EU would not grant a delay without a “concrete plan” from the UK following the second rejection of the withdrawal deal last week by 149 votes.

Mrs May hopes to get in front of MPs for a third go, but says even if that happens and they vote in favour of it, the UK will need a short extension to get the necessary legislation through Parliament.

 

New Studies to Fight Against Zika Virus

Studies led by the University of Queensland and the QIMR Berghofer Medical Research Institute are exploring ways to fast-track research which could lead to new vaccines against the Zika virus.

Scientists are using a new technique to uncover Zika mutations that help foster virus replication in mosquito hosts while hindering its ability to replicate in mammals.

Lack of Storms Impacting Queensland Dams

Queensland Dam levels are sitting just over 70 percent of their capacity after a hot summer with and a lack of storms to fill them back up again.

SEQ water says the levels are lower than normal for the time of year due to the lack of rainfall and an increase in consumption of 25 litres per person per day as we tried to escape the heat.

Coniston Massacre Survivor Honouring

A Northern Territory parliamentarian has made a bid to honor his electorate’s Indigenous heritage by renaming it.

If successful, Scott McConnell would rename the Stuart electorate as Gwoya, in honor of Gwoya Tjungurrayi, an Aboriginal elder and boomerang salesman that survived the 1928 Coniston massacre.

Parkinsons Drug to be Subsided

The Federal Government has announced that medicines made to treat cancer, Parkinson’s and motor neuron disease will be subsidized, and placed on the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

It will cost the government $19 million to list the medicines on the PBS, but the savings to patients are well worth the cost, with some treatments reduced from an annual cost of up to $300,000 down to just $41 per script.

New Zealand Police Face Resistance

New Zealand police investigating online leads as a follow-up to Friday’s Christchurch terror attacks have been met with some resistance.

The founder of an American site asked to preserve the emails and IP addresses of users posting about the attacks reportedly labeled the request a ‘joke’, calling New Zealand an ‘irrelevant island nation’.