Barnaby Joyce is being scrutinised for accepting the free rent of a townhouse from a prominent businessman in his electorate.

The businessman, Greg Maguire, owns the Powerhouse Hotel in Armidale and several businesses in Tamworth, and has been connected with two local political scandals over the past two decades.

Mr Joyce did officially report the free housing as a gift, but did not state its value, which is estimated to be around $14,000.

An investigation conducted by the ABC has revealed foreign domestic staff working in embassies in Canberra are being exploited and subjected to extremely poor working conditions.

The Four Corners report found staff have been escaping from conditions, like working for 12-18 hours a day at a rate well below the minimum wage.

Lawyer for a number of the escaped workers, David Hillard, said the exploitation occurs because diplomatic immunity prevents domestic law from being enforced in embassies and consular buildings.

An attempt to shift 17-year-olds out of Queensland's adult prisons has been delayed, following capacity concerns regarding youth detention centres

According to Child Safety Minister, Di Farmer, 17-year-olds who are currently in adult prison will stay there until it is appropriate and safe to move them, however says more research needs to be done regarding the best time to do so.

There are a total of 61 17-year-olds in Queensland’s adult prisons, 35 of which would be eligible to transfer to youth detention instead.

Portions of the Brisbane River will reportedly be quarantined later this week after testing has revealed high levels of coal tar present in the West End section of the river.

According to a leaked Brisbane City Council report, a former processing plant is responsible for the leak with significant groundwater and soil contamination stretching as far as 40 meters from shore.

The council says walking along the riverside should still be relatively safe, however urges people not to come in contact with the water until the quarantine is lifted.