The Turnbull government is set to spend $7 billion on several long-range, surveillance drones in the hope of increasing ability to spot ships in the seas of Asia and strengthen relations with the US.

The drone program comes as part of an alliance between Australia and the US which will see the two nations operating on shared missions as needed.

The first aircraft will come into service in 2023 and will have the capability to monitor an area the size of Switzerland in one day.

An inquiry has revealed Dreamworld executives cut spending on ride maintenance months before the fatal accident in October 2016.

A meeting which took place earlier that year showed that the park’s monthly expenditure was $125,000 over budget.

Despite Dreamworld's safety system not complying with Workplace Health and Safety laws, the park chose to focus on capital expenditure, reducing spending on required safety matters.

Brisbane residents can expect an increase in fees for parking, burials and animal registrations are set to increase.

As part of the Brisbane City Council’s recent budget, parking fees will increase by more than 11 percent, taking CBD parking rates up to $4.90 per hour.

The budget also includes a 2.5 percent increase for pet registration fees, as well as increased charges for adult cremations or lawn-graves at council cemeteries.

The Palaszczuk government has committed $840,000 to conservation councils to boost important environmental protection work throughout Queensland.

Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef Leeanne Enoch said funding over the next five years will be provided to the Queensland conservation council and nine regional conservation councils.

Funding is provided to assist the recipients with ongoing operating costs and ensure they are able to continue to provide these services on behalf of their local community.  

Residents of a country Queensland town fighting to keep a Sri Lankan family in Australia are worried the family could be deported as early as next week after losing an appeal.

Tamils Priya and Nadesalingam and their two Australian-born children lost a bid to stop their deportation at the Federal Circuit Court on Thursday, but the family has 21 days to appeal the ruling.

Family friend and Biloela resident Angela Fredericks said the family were issued deportation notices on Friday afternoon, less than two days into the appeal period.

In the next three years, house prices in Brisbane, Perth and Canberra are expected to surge by the most, while the Sydney market slows to a crawl.

Though in the short-term, property price growth will remain weak, or even decline in some markets, according to industry analyst BIS Oxford Economics in its latest report.

It argues this is due to tighter lending criteria, particularly a crackdown on interest-only loans and record levels of dwelling construction being completed which may lead to an oversupply in some states.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton said Australians must guard against compassion towards refugees as it could undo the government’s hard-fought success in discouraging people smugglers.

Minister Dutton said it was essential that people realise that the hard-won success of the past few years could be undone overnight but a single act of compassion in bringing 20 people from Manus to Australia.

He said that the boats haven’t gone away and if there was a success defined by an arrival of a boat then the word would spread like wildfire.

Syrian rebels in the south-west of the country have been warned by the US government to not expect military support to help resist a government offensive.

The news comes after russian jets hit opposition-held town to expand syrian army offensive in area bordering Jordan and Golan Heights.

Washington said rebels should not base their decisions on the assumption or expectation of military intervention by the US.