Australia to begin trade with Peru

Australia has signed a trade deal which could lead to more local products being sold in foreign supermarkets.

Trade Minister Steve Ciobo signed the pact with Peru this morning, and said it will give Australian farmers preferential access to the fast-growing Peruvian economy for the first time.

The trade deal was expected to include Aussie products such as beef, sugar, dairy and almonds.

Palaszczuk Government crack-down on drug users

Queensland motorists will face thousands more roadside drug tests this year as the state government moves to tackle methamphetamine use.

Health Minister Steven Miles revealed the Palaszczuk government's strategy to help drug-users overcome addiction, which included funding for both health services and community organisations.

Queensland Police will share in $105 million of current and future funding to undertake an extra 12,500 roadside drug tests a year.

Brisbane scientist en-route to Antarctica

Brisbane-based scientist, Lee Constable, has been selected to play a part in the highly competitive Homeward Bound project in Antarctica later this month.

The project is aimed to empower women of the world and bring them to the forefront of decision-making and climate change discussions, according to Constable, who is notably excited for the adventure to come.

Cedie Janson: Stillness

- Former Brisbanite Cedie Janson, now based in LA, has returned - at least in musical form. Three years since his last little EP comes another handful of beats, this new collection bearing the title, Stillness. The five tracks are, apparently, a meditation on the concept. Ambience has certainly been a go-to in Cedie’s bag of stylistic tricks, so you might have been expecting vast, uncluttered soundscapes? You would then, like me, be wrong.

First Aid Kit: Ruins

- Swedish sister duet First Aid Kit have been treating us to subtly beautiful songwriting for almost ten years and their fourth record Ruins is no exception to that. A ten-tracker full of soft ballads, this is a prime example of their musical expertise.

The vocal harmonies that ring out in many places on the album are impeccable – it really shows that the thing they say about siblings singing together is true right? The marriage of their two unique voices works so well: a vocal match made in heaven.