A woman was hospitalised in remote Queensland on Monday after being impaled by a catfish - an apparently common situation.

James Cook University Associate Professor Jamie Seymour says there was probably thousands of cases of catfish stings every year with the sting being venomous but not deadly and a catfish’s reaction to feeling threatened.

Queensland Detectives has answered questions regarding the delay of information released regarding the abduction of a girl from a North Lakes shopping centre on Saturday, claiming the delay did not put the community at risk.

The three day delay allowed police to speak to the suspect and gather enough evidence to lay charges as well as the release of information would not be in the best interests of the investigation according to Detective Superintendent Tony Fleming.

Theresa May has survived a no confidence vote and will remain prime minister of the UK.

Conservative Party MPs backed the embattled leader 200-117 yesterday with some MPs tweeting their ballot papers from inside the Palace of Westminster.

Before the vote, Ms May reportedly told MPs she plans to quit before the 2022 election. She now says she stands ready to finish the job and on Wednesday vowed to fight with everything she has - bid by her own party to oust her over her unpopular Brexit deal.

A Manhunt has been launched within France following a shooting spree by a suspected extremist within the french city of Strasbourg.

The shooting which occurred yesterday has left 2 dead, one brain-dead and 12 others injured which was perpetrated by a 29 year old suspected religious radical according to French intelligence services

The Mayor of Strasbourg has declared this attack was indisputably a terrorist attack.

Youth advocates are calling for better regulation of the sales of nitrous oxide canisters, or ‘nangs’ which are available over the counter and used for recreational drug use.

An annual survey conducted on a focus group in NSW has found the use of nitrous oxide to have jumped significantly in the last year, from 55% to 75% despite the adverse effects of the canisters being well known.

Residents have been warned to prepare as Tropical Cyclone Owen moves from Queensland towards the Northern Territory coast.

The strengthening cyclone is expected to do a U-turn and move back towards Queensland today with cyclone warnings already in place from Groote Eylandt in the Northern Territory to Burketown in Queensland.

The cyclone is predicted to reach category three strength, which includes gusts of up to 224km/h at sea with destructive winds of up to 170km/h reaching the coast and possible flash flooding.