Motorists in Australia’s Queensland will now be tested to see if they have cocaine in their system, with the drug added to the list of illicit substances that roadside police drug vans are set up to detect. The state had the countries highest road toll last year, with 299 lives lost. 61 people were killed…

Irish singer and political activist Bob Geldof has questioned claims that the 2032 Olympic Games will be “climate positive” and green. “I take the point that you’ve still got to extract minerals to get to a green policy: it seems odd and contradictory, but there you go,” he said in an interview with Queensland State…

Irish singer and political activist Bob Geldof has questioned claims that the 2032 Olympic Games will be “climate positive” and green. “I take the point that you’ve still got to extract minerals to get to a green policy: it seems odd and contradictory, but there you go,” he said in an interview with Queensland State…

Parents will be dialled in with training over Queensland’s plan to ban mobile phones and smartwatches in state schools when classes begin next year. Education Minister Grace Grace said parents would have two terms to adjust to the ban, which brings the state into line with the rest of the country as part of a…

BHP CEO Mike Henry has continued pressuring the debt-heavy Queensland Labor government over its contentious decision to raise mining royalties in the coal-rich state. Henry reiterated that recent policies from the state (and federal) government would compel the global mining giant to pull investment from the region, despite major opportunities in critical mineral mining. “Capital…

Commentary Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick is launching a $1.5 million (US$1 million) advertising campaign to fend off the Queensland Resource Council’s pursuit of him over his increases to Queensland’s coal royalties. He probably thinks it is money well spent. However,  the Queensland government should be embarrassed by the whole policy. The coal royalty reflects poorly on the…

Australia has opened the doors to a vaccine skin patch manufacturing facility in hopes to reduce the complexities and costs associated with existing vaccines and be better position the country for future pandemics. Situated in Brisbane’s riverside suburb of Hamilton, biotechnology company Vaxxas expects to manufacture and distribute the first commercially available vaccine patches within…

Self-identifying transgender children who are 12 and over will be able to change their birth certificate without needing to first undergo sex reassignment surgery, according to new laws just passed by the Queensland Labor government. Previously, a person would need to undergo surgery before they could alter the gender on their birth certificate; now, the Births…

Queenslanders are being showered with electricity bill relief, free kindy and a raft of other cost-of-living measures as soaring coal royalties powered the state budget to a historic surplus. Treasurer Cameron Dick said the $12.3 billion (US$831 million) surplus for 2022/23 was the largest ever for any state or territory while declaring “help is on…

Queensland is hoping to create home-grown vaccines and become a major international vaccine hub after a partnership was announced at an international biotech conference in the U.S. on June 7. The partnership between the University of Queensland (UQ) and Emory University in Atlanta would make Queensland a centre for the Asia Pacific region, and a significant player…