Queensland is again bracing for another horror flu season, with some areas in the South East already recording nearly a 40 percent spike in cases.

Brisbane’s north, Logan and the Redlands are home to most influenza cases, up 12 to 15 percent on the same time last year, while the Gold Coast has seen the biggest increase of 38 percent with 419 cases so far this year.

Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been grilled by US lawmakers for a second day in a row, repeating his apology from the first session and revealing his own data was scraped by an app.

Mr Zuckerberg also conceded regulation of social media is “inevitable” as the internet grows “in importance around the world in people's lives.”

Mr Zuckerberg defended the platform, though, saying people are “proactively” choosing to share their data when they post information to Facebook and this provides a “control… every time.”

U.S President Donald Trump has warned Russian of the consequences of shooting down any missiles in Syria.

In a recent tweet he tells Russia to ‘get ready’ for ‘nice and new and smart’ missiles and the country ‘shouldn’t be partners with a Gas Killing Animal who kills his people and enjoys it’ after Russia vowed to shoot down any and all missiles fired at Syria.

A Sydney couple have pleaded not guilty to charges of reckless grievous bodily harm and failing to provide for a child after feeding their 20-month-old daughter a strict vegan diet which left her “malnourished” and suffering rickets.

The pair were arrested in Sydney’s eastern suburbs last Friday after their daughter was allegedly found to be severely deficient in vitamin D, vitamin B12, zinc and iron.

Authorities became aware of the girl when she was presented to Sydney Children’s Hospital after suffering a seizure on March 10 this year.

Tony Abbott has accused Malcolm Turnbull of behaving like a “clever barrister” after the Prime Minister denied a story in The Australian newspaper that claimed immigration minister Peter Dutton raised the prospect of reducing Australia’s annual permanent immigration intake in cabinet.

Mr Dutton allegedly proposed the number of immigrants allowed into the country be reduced by 20,000 to 170,000 people, which the article states Mr Turnbull overruled.

The final public hearing of a senate inquiry into flight services to rural queensland begins today in Cloncurry.

The inquiry, conducted by the Rural and Regional Affairs and Transport Committee, has surveyed the operations, regulation and funding of air route service delivery to rural and remote communities and hopes that its findings will lead to reduced costs for commercial airline flights to and from these areas.

Indigenous activists temporarily shut down the Gold Coast light rail system yesterday after 50 protesters stood across the tracks on Scarborough Street in Southport.

The light rail system is a crucial part of the Gold Coast public transport system for the Commonwealth Games.

The protest is another event of the “Stolenwealth Games” campaign which attempts to draw attention to issues that still plague Indigenous Australians.