Vigil held for Queensland asylum seeker family

A Sri Lankan asylum seeker family last night were pulled from a plane at Perth airport, just minutes before they were due to be deported by Border Force Officials.

It's understood the couple came to Australia separately by boat in 2012 and 2013, following Sri Lanka’s civil war and settled in Biloela on a bridging visa which has since expired.

Biloela residents held a vigil last night, while a petition to return the family to their home has reached almost 60,000 signatures.

Commonwealth Games Homeless Fears

Charity groups in northern New South Wales have raised concerns the upcoming Gold Coast Commonwealth Games will strain their resources as persons experiencing homelessness move south as they are crowded out of the city.

St Vincent de Paul Lismore spokeswoman Linda Williams said Games preparations have affected access to some popular rough-sleeping spots.

Queensland housing minister Mick de Brenni said homeless people won’t be “moved on” from the Gold Coast “until such time as they're required to have a ticket.”

Animals born in captivity less likely to breed than wild animals

International researchers based in Australia have discovered animals born in captivity are half as likely to breed successfully compared those in the wild.

Study supervisor Dr Catherine Grueber of the University of Sydney's School of Life and Environmental Sciences and San Diego Zoo Global, was surprised by how universal the patterns were.

This new discovery puts into doubt the future success of animal breeding schemes across the world.

Overseas hackers breached Transport Department

It has recently been revealed overseas hackers breached the Queensland Transport Department's security network last year.

The hackers attempted to steal information from staff members and from other sections of government after gaining access to two official email accounts.

However the operations were shut down within 5 hours and the identified IP addresses were blocked.

 

Children design public playground

The University of Queensland is calling on children to help design a new playground.

UQ is planning on an all-abilities public playground at the St Lucia campus, and is holding a design competition to help create the best possible space.

Chief Operating Officer, Greg Pringle, says no one is better qualified to advise on the playground than children.

ADF search Commonwealth Games

The Australian Defence Force is searching the Commonwealth Games venues to support Queensland Police Security measures.

Major General Paul McLachlan, commander of the ADF’s Games support, says the ADF is providing specialised capabilities that will enhance the local state police security arrangements.

The ADF has already begun searching a number of key locations during the lead up and will continue to search after the commencement of the Games.

Salty Snag Scandal

A salty snag scandal has emerged as health experts slam the high levels of sodium in processed meats.

Over 1.1 billion sausages are consumed annually by Australians and nutritionist Clare Farrand says the excess salt found in such meats are “directly linked to high blood pressure, which increase the risk of heart attack, kidney disease and stroke.”

So you may want to reconsider your next trip to a sausage sizzle as one sausage in bread with barbeque sauce contains 58% of your recommended daily salt intake.

Brisbane City Council & the City of Brisbane Investment Corporation: Is anyone regulating developers?

Shona Hawkes

In 2008-2009 Brisbane City Council (BCC) established the City of Brisbane Investment Corporation (CBIC) — which describes itself as BCC’s ‘Future Fund’. CBIC is 100% owned by BCC, but managed independently.

More jobs and more tanks

Queensland has won the bid to build five billion dollars worth of fighting vehicles for the Australian Army.

 

The project is a part of the largest purchase in the Army’s history and 1450 jobs are expected to be created across the country.

 

Defence Industry Minister Christopher Pyne says the initiative will provide the Defence Force with modern capabilities which may be needed to face future challenges as the vehicles are equipped for peacekeeping and high threat operations.