As it happened: Brisbane on Tuesday, February 4

Michael Woodford, a barrister and the Parliamentary Crime and Corruption Commissioner, has been announced as the new president of the state’s Parole Board.

The state government made the announcement this afternoon, saying the board had been operating without a president for seven months due to former president Michael Byrnes resigning under a “cloud of controversy”.

Byrnes was referred to the Crime and Corruption Commission last year.

Woodford started in the new role yesterday, with Corrective Services Minister Laura Gerber saying his appointment was the first step in providing integrity and accountability to the Parole Board.

“Since commencing practice in 1998, he has both prosecuted matters for Queensland and the Commonwealth, and undertaken the role of defence counsel, in a long line of important criminal and statutory prosecution matters,” she said.

Thanks for joining our live coverage of news in Brisbane today. We’ll be back tomorrow.

If you’re just catching up, here are some of the stories that made headlines:

A shark was spotted and drumlines were baited along Bribie Island’s coast in the days before a teenage girl was killed in an attack while swimming 100 metres offshore.

Car parking will be banned for longer on several of Brisbane’s major roads under a plan to extend clearway hours and speed up traffic.

Former Brisbane Lions player and Geelong assistant coach Troy Selwood has died, aged 40, stunning the football community.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers has seized on new figures showing companies are being created at their fastest rate this century to accuse the Coalition of misleading voters over the strength of the nation’s 4 million small businesses.

In NSW, Transport Minister Jo Haylen has resigned over a taxpayer-funded driver scandal that has triggered a new ban on ministerial vehicles being used exclusively for private purposes.

And if you’re looking to grab a bite before a show at QPAC, here’s the cheat sheet you need, taking in everything from Mexican-influenced street food to elevated Italian dining by the river.

An accused Sydney drug trafficker caught in the middle of the ocean attempting to flee the country on a luxury yacht travelled through Queensland during his intricate failed escape.

Hussein Chamas – an alleged member of a syndicate using the ANOM platform to import drugs – reportedly broke out of a Newcastle rehab centre on January 8.

The Sydney man was found on a boat off the Northern Territory coast last week.Credit: Australian Federal Police

He was found by border force teams on the luxury vessel in the Arafura Sea north of Australia about two weeks later, allegedly attempting to reach Indonesia and start a new life.

Federal police today revealed they believe Chamas was driven more than 4600 kilometres in a campervan to the Northern Territory through Queensland before boarding the boat.

A 46-year-old Irish man has been arrested for allegedly driving the vehicle and will face court in Darwin.

The border force teams were reportedly searching for sea cucumber poachers, and stumbled on the fugitive by chance.

Michael Woodford, a barrister and the Parliamentary Crime and Corruption Commissioner, has been announced as the new president of the state’s Parole Board.

The state government made the announcement this afternoon, saying the board had been operating without a president for seven months due to former president Michael Byrnes resigning under a “cloud of controversy”.

Byrnes was referred to the Crime and Corruption Commission last year.

Woodford started in the new role yesterday, with Corrective Services Minister Laura Gerber saying his appointment was the first step in providing integrity and accountability to the Parole Board.

“Since commencing practice in 1998, he has both prosecuted matters for Queensland and the Commonwealth, and undertaken the role of defence counsel, in a long line of important criminal and statutory prosecution matters,” she said.

Former Brisbane City Council chief executive Colin Jensen has officially headed for the hills, taking up the top bureaucratic job at Toowoomba Regional Council.

Jensen, who resigned from BCC last year, will start as interim chief executive at TRC from Monday, February 24.

Colin Jensen.Credit: Toowoomba Regional Council

Toowoomba Mayor Geoff McDonald said Jensen’s appointment came as the council progressed its recruitment for a new, permanent CEO.

“Recruiting a new CEO is often a lengthy process and it’s important we take the necessary time to find the best possible person for this organisation and for this community,” he said.

“To ensure we’re well-placed during this transition, we’ve appointed Colin as an interim acting CEO and we’re confident someone of his calibre will continue to progress us in the right direction.”

McDonald said the next three months would be crucial for the Toowoomba council, as it prepares its 2025-26 budget.

“As the former CEO of the largest local government organisation in Australia, Colin has experience managing an annual budget of $4.3 billion, serving a population of 1.3 million,” he said.

For his part, Jensen said he hoped to leave a “meaningful mark” on his new organisation.

“This is a wonderful part of Australia and one that I’m quite familiar with,” he said.

Federal parliament’s first question time of the year has begun, and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has paid tribute to those suffering through the Queensland floods, in particular to the family of a woman who lost her life near Ingham on Sunday.

“I received a briefing at the national headquarters here in Canberra yesterday morning,” Albanese said.

“One of the things about this country is when you have a briefing and there’s flooding and massive torrential rain in the north, but extraordinary heatwaves in southern Australia, you do realise the extent of danger … and the fact that we could have more than one type of natural disaster at once really places a strain.

“Rising floodwaters are inflicting devastation on homes and communities, thousands have had to evacuate, and I want to assure the House that in this challenging time, we stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the Queensland government and with every Queenslander.”

Opposition Leader Peter Dutton also paid tribute to those suffering through extreme weather events.

“Our thoughts and prayers are with everybody in North Queensland ... there’s a lot of work ahead to help rebuild that part of the world, and we stand ready to provide that support to them.”

A shark was spotted and drumlines were baited along Bribie Island’s coast in the days before a teenage girl was killed in an attack while swimming 100 metres offshore.

Charlize Zmuda, 17, died yesterday afternoon after she was bitten by a shark at Woorim Beach, north of Brisbane, just before 5pm.

Charlize Zmuda (left) loved the beach and had been a member of the lifesaving club since she was a young girl.

Her mother, Renee Zmuda, remembered her daughter as a shining light who touched the lives of everyone she met.

“She loved the beach, and it truly was her happiest place on Earth,” she said this morning, as friends and family gathered to lay flowers at the beach.

Read the full story.

Former Brisbane Lions player and Geelong assistant coach Troy Selwood, has died suddenly. He was 40.

Selwood’s death has stunned the football community. The popular Selwood family has deep connections throughout multiple clubs, states and the AFL.

Troy Selwood.Credit: Getty Images

Troy Selwood was the twin brother of West Coast player Adam, and the older brother of Geelong champion Joel and former Eagles and Geelong player Scott.

“We are heartbroken by the loss of our son, brother and father, Troy this morning. We will miss Troy more than words can express,” the Selwood family said in a statement released by the AFL last night.

Read the full story.

An alleged importer in one of Queensland’s biggest ever drug busts is set to be extradited to Brisbane years after his arrest overseas.

About 766 kilograms of MDMA power was located in Brisbane storage during a 2019 investigation into an international organised crime syndicate believed to be operating in the state.

The seizure of 766kg of MDMA was one of Queensland’s biggest drug busts.Credit: Queensland Police

Police said at the time it was the highest purity power ever found in Queensland, and was likely destined to be cut and manufactured into between six- and 12-million pills with a street value of at least $90 million.

A 54-year-old man from the United Kingdom was arrested in New Zealand that year, and is set to be extradited to Queensland today.

The man is scheduled to front Brisbane Magistrates Court tomorrow, charged with possessing and supplying dangerous drugs.

Multiple others in Queensland and overseas have been arrested. Investigations are ongoing, and hundreds of kilograms of illegal drugs found overseas are believed to be linked to the syndicate.

Several Brisbane clearways will have their hours extended, meaning the loss of off-peak parking spots, in a move designed to improve traffic flow.

Lord Mayor Adrian Schrinner said the Musgrave Road and Waterworks Road corridor between Red Hill and The Gap would be reviewed first, with the plan opened for community consultation.

Sections of Waterworks Road in Ashgrove are among those where clearway hours will be extended under the proposal.Credit: Felicity Caldwell

“Road upgrades and intersection upgrades can be costly projects … clearways are a critical tool that can cost-effectively keep traffic moving,” he said.

The Musgrave Road–Waterworks Road corridor currently has clearways in effect between 7-9am inbound and 4-7pm outbound, Monday to Friday.

The proposed changes could include adding an hour or two to the clearway times, or adding weekends.

Almost 130,000 vehicles travel the corridor between 5am and 7pm during the week.

Other major corridors to be considered include Wynnum Road, Vulture Street, Wellington Road, Moggill Road and Klumpp Road.