Aust to deport Kiwi who killed two boys

A NEW Zealand woman who killed two teenage boys when driving on the footpath in Australia under the influence of drugs and alcohol will be deported when released from jail.

Tania Winifred Paula Clark, 40, is serving a nine-year jail term for the manslaughter of Jye Strong, 15, and Nathan Sprecak, 16.

She struck and killed the boys when she deliberately drove on the footpath to pass another car in February 2008 in Labrador, on the Gold Coast.

Clark, who had been running late for meetings with probation and Centrelink officers, pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

Tests showed she had alcohol, valium, oxazapan, temazepan, cannabis, codeine and doxylimen in her system and the sentencing judge described her as a "pharmacological nightmare".

Australian Immigration officials said, in a recent decision, her visa would be cancelled.

Clark, who is married to an Australian man who supports her, said she was a "very different person" and had accepted responsibility for her actions.

She had paid the price by completing her sentence and was no longer a threat to the community.

However, immigration said there was a risk she would relapse into drug taking and driving, putting the Australian community at risk.

Her husband's support was not sufficient to stop the incident in 2008 and would not be sufficient now.

Clark's immediate family live in Australia, but have not indicated they would support her. Her husband has said he will move to New Zealand with her.

Clark has lived in Australia since 1991.

She has a previous conviction for breaking into a pharmacy and stealing drugs in 2007.

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Brake failure ruled out in Qld train crash

QUEENSLAND Transport Minister Scott Emerson says Fair Work Australia has debunked union claims that a passenger train crash was caused by brake failure.

Queensland Rail and police are investigating how a Brisbane train left the tracks and smashed into a toilet block at Cleveland station on Thursday.

The Rail Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) said its members would not drive the model of train involved over safety concerns, but was ordered to cease the ban by Fair Work Australia.

Mr Emerson said Fair Work Australia had informed him there was no evidence to support brake failure being an issue.

He said the RTBU should allow the Australian Transport Safety Bureau to complete investigations.

"Fair Work Australia has ordered the union to cease their bans to allow the investigation into the cause of the Cleveland incident to take place," Mr Emerson said in a statement.

"I welcome the decision by Fair Work Australia, and I urge the union to let Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) get on with their investigation."

Mr Emerson said the train underwent a full inspection on January 9 and it was not the first train to travel on that line that day.

The RTBU has been sought for comment.

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Dozens suspended in Harvard cheat scandal

Around 60 students at Harvard University have been suspended in a mass cheating scandal. Source: AAP

AROUND 60 students at Harvard University have been suspended and others disciplined in a mass cheating scandal at the elite college, the campus newspaper reports.

The Harvard Crimson quoted an email from Faculty of Arts and Sciences dean Michael Smith that said more than half of the cases heard by administrators in the scandal, which erupted last year, had resulted in suspension orders.

About half of the other students under investigation were disciplined in some other, unspecified fashion, the Crimson reported. Officials at Harvard could not be immediately reached for confirmation.

The scandal first became public in August when Harvard said that as many as 125 students were suspected of helping each other in a final exam.

The university said a large number of undergraduates "may have inappropriately collaborated on answers, or plagiarized classmates' responses, on the final exam for the course."

Harvard, a college in Cambridge, Massachusetts, near Boston, is one of the most exclusive universities in the world, with students paying about $US63,000 ($A60,702.41) per year to attend.

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GG visits flood-ravaged NSW residents

GOVERNOR-GENERAL Quentin Bryce has visited the NSW Clarence Valley to comfort residents who lost all their possessions to record floods.

At a barbecue for the Clarence-Nambucca State Emergency Service, Ms Bryce met Britteny Desvaux and Aaron Godwin, and Mr Godwin's children Caleb, 10, and Trinesha, 5, who slept in their car for three nights with their pet dog before the Salvation Army found them emergency accommodation.

"You should be very proud of yourselves for how you have coped," Ms Bryce said before offering Ms Desvaux a hug on Friday.

"It's easy for me to stand here and say I know how you feel, but in times of hardship we often find the resources to cope within ourselves."

Ms Desvaux, who is 24 weeks pregnant, said her house was still isolated but the landlord had taken a boat over to have a look.

"We've pretty much lost everything," she told AAP.

"It means a lot to have met the governor-general because it shows that someone cares and that there's support out there."

Earlier, Ms Bryce visited Copmanhurst Public School and spoke with Linda Miles, who has five children and whose house was submerged to the roof line.

Ms Miles said the water was ankle deep at 2am on Tuesday morning, then waist deep by 2.30am.

"It just came up so quickly," she said.

Ms Miles and her family and dogs are staying with friends. Her insurer has told her not to enter the house until they can send an assessor - but they don't know how long that will be.

"I don't think it's properly hit me yet. It probably will when I have to do the clean-up," she said.

"We're wearing other people's clothes because we've lost everything.

"The kids were upset because they've lost their Christmas presents, but I said to them, 'It's just things, we're all okay and that's the main thing.'"

Copmanhurst school principal Andrew Patterson said it was a "big thrill" to have the governor-general visit the 65-pupil school.

"The few kids who were able to make it through to the first day of school yesterday learned a bit about who she is and what her role is," Mr Patterson said.

At the SES barbecue, Ms Bryce paid tribute to the spirit and hard work of volunteers, some of whom have been working 24-hour shifts over the past week.

"I know many people have been working so hard to help others who have lost much and need support," she said.

"The generosity of spirit shines through in these times of hardship and we can all say thank you that no lives were lost and people are safe."

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Woman nabbed for salary sacrifice fraud

A BRISBANE woman has been charged with stealing salary-sacrifice money from government and other workers.

Police refused to say how much money was involved but it's believed it could run into millions of dollars.

The 58-year-old allegedly misappropriated the money while she was working for a finance company managing salary sacrifice contracts for government and non-government employees.

She is facing two counts of fraud and two counts of fraudulently falsifying records.

She was arrested after investigations by the Fraud and Corporate Crime Group.

She's due to face the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Friday.

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Gallery celebrates nation's leading ladies

THEY'RE Australia's "First Ladies".

Not to be mistaken for prime minister's wives - they're more the pioneering kind.

The National Portrait Gallery's latest exhibition illustrates the accomplishments of Australian women in medicine, politics, academia, arts, sports, science and business.

Curator Joanna Gilmour says her exhibit First Ladies: Significant Australian Women 1913-2013 provides a visual display of just how far women have progressed in society over the past 100 years.

"It starts off with portraits of two women who were very much engaged in the suffragette movement just before the first world war," she said.

"As you go around the gallery you get a chronological walkthrough of women's achievements in the 20th century.

"By the time you finish you end up at the portrait of the current Prime Minister (Julia Gillard)."

Olympian Cathy Freeman, Nobel Prize winner Elizabeth Blackburn and aviatrix Nancy Bird Walton are just a few of the faces proudly displayed on the walls.

However, the main feature of the gallery is businesswoman Imelda Roche AO.

Ms Roche co-founded Nutrimetics International (Australia) Pty Ltd in 1968 before acquiring the world-wide interest of the company 23 years later.

In 1997 she sold the group to the Sara Lee Corporation.

She told AAP her granddaughter had asked her on Thursday why she was chosen as the main feature.

"I said I have absolutely no idea, but I'm going to ask the question and by the time I come back tomorrow I will have an intelligent answer," Ms Roche said.

And has she found it?

"It's an enormous honour, I don't understand quite why. But at the end of the day I hope to," she said.

Ms Roche's portrait, by artist Paul Newton, will be on display until June 16.

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Tony Windsor opens social media accounts

MP Tony Windsor has launched new social media accounts but denies it is the start of his campaign. Source: AAP

FEDERAL independent MP Tony Windsor has launched two new social media accounts, but denies the move is the start of his re-election campaign.

The 62-year-old member for New England, in northern NSW, published his tonywindsormp Twitter and Facebook sites on Thursday.

The independent held the seat in 2010 with a thumping 61.88 per cent of the vote but faces a voter backlash over his support for the minority Labor government.

Mr Windsor said he'd been reluctant to join social media sites because he was "more focused on getting things done, rather than telling people about it".

But a young supporter at a recent meeting in Tamworth persuaded him to take the plunge.

Mr Windsor denied the move was the start of his election campaign, despite the accounts being published a day after Prime Minister Julia Gillard called the September 14 poll.

"I'm glad the Prime Minister has announced the date of the election so far in advance, as I believe it gives people and businesses certainty," Mr Windsor said.

"But that doesn't mean I'm going to start campaigning for the next parliament."

Mr Windsor confirmed last year he would run again for New England.

By 1pm (AEST) on Thursday the MP had not sent a tweet but had attracted more than 1000 followers.

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Statue of Governor Macquarie unveiled

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has unveiled a new statue of Governor Lachlan Macquarie at Hyde Park. Source: AAP

NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell has described Governor Lachlan Macquarie as "a great builder of this city" as he unveiled a new bronze statue of the colonial administrator in Sydney.

Situated in Hyde Park near his namesake street, the statue recognises Macquarie's part in founding and shaping Sydney.

"He not only explored, he not only developed public works, he (sought) to beautify what he said was a fine and opulent town which has become a fine, opulent and global city," Mr O'Farrell said on Thursday.

"I think he shaped that Aussie 'fair go' that we see today."

The new statue replaces a previous monument to Macquarie which was removed in 2009.

Sculptor Terrance Plowright was commissioned to create the new sculpture in 2011.

"It's been complete for a couple months and we've been looking for a suitable time (to unveil it)," Mr O'Farrell told reporters in Sydney.

"Her excellency (Governor Marie Bashir) thought the anniversary of Macquarie's birth, the 31st of January, with the 225th anniversary of the founding of the city, was an excellent time."

Enthusiastic Macquarie admirers gathered at the unveiling, dressed in traditional clothing.

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Cord blood under the microscope

IN 2008, Melbourne leukemia patient Graham Barnell was the eighth person in the world to receive a revolutionary stem cell treatment in Seattle.

The experimental therapy to replace his diseased bone marrow used stem cells from umbilical cord blood which had been multiplied in the laboratory to increase the chances of transplant success.

At first, it was. The father-of-two was cleared of the rare and fatal type of acute myeloid leukaemia.

After battling one infection after another, he died in 2009 from pneumonia.

His wife, Samantha MacRae, believes if a similar treatment had been available earlier in Australia, things may have turned out differently.

"If we had been able to go straight to a stem cell transplant I think the chances of survival would have been much higher," Ms MacRae told AAP.

A stem cell researcher, Associate Professor Louise Purton from St Vincent's Institute in Melbourne, hopes her new project will lead to the first treatments in Australia using expanded umbilical cord blood stem cells.

The research aims to increase the number of stem cells derived from cord blood and accelerate the rate at which the cells develop into mature blood cells.

Prof Purton said if successful the treatment could overcome a number of problems with transplants using cord blood.

Umbilical cord blood is becoming a popular source of stem cells for patients requiring bone marrow transplants who may have been unable to find an exact match.

According to the New York Blood Centre, more than 80 different diseases have been treated to date with unrelated cord blood transplants.

There have been more than 30,000 cord blood transplants throughout the world so far, with most patients having been affected by leukemia, lymphoma, severe aplastic anemia, and other blood or immune system diseases or inherited metabolic diseases.

Public cord blood banks around the world freeze the precious samples and distribute them as needed when an appropriate match is confirmed.

Cord blood has several advantages over stem cells derived directly from bone marrow for transplants, says Ngaire Elwood, the chair of Australia's cord blood collection network, AusCord.

A bone marrow donor has to be a perfect match with the recipient. Not so with cord blood, she says.

"One of the most fantastic things with cord blood is that you don't need a perfect match between the patient and the cord blood," Dr Elwood said.

"That means there is a much higher chance of finding a suitable match for someone and, nowadays, almost anyone who needs a bone marrow transplant will be able to find a cord blood unit that matches."

But there are drawbacks with cord blood.

For one, there are often not enough stem cells in a single cord blood unit to use in an adult transplant, although this has been partially overcome by infusing two unrelated units.

But there is a major issue restricting the use of cord blood stem cells for transplantation.

Cord blood stem cells, which are more immature than those found in bone marrow, can take longer to start developing into oxygen-carrying red blood cells, infection-fighting white blood cells and platelets, responsible for clotting.

"After a cord blood transplant some patients might die, or get really bad infections, because it's taking longer for their immune (white) cells to recover," Dr Elwood said.

At the Murdoch Children's Research Institute, where Dr Elwood is the head of cord blood stem cell research, investigations are under way to determine whether some cord blood samples are more effective than others at developing into mature blood cells.

In a different approach, Prof Purton is trying to increase the number and quality of cord blood stem cells by growing them in the laboratory.

She has proven the method works in mice and is now aiming to do the same with human cord blood.

To increase the number and quality of stem cells, she will use compounds derived from vitamin A.

She has previously found that activating or inhibiting the vitamin A pathway can both increase the number of immature stem cells and speed up the process to convert the cells into mature blood cells.

"The whole goal ultimately will be to start off with one cord blood unit, treat it with the vitamin A compound that causes the stem cell numbers to increase, then take a portion of that and culture it with the one that will cause the stem cells to become more mature, combine the two, and transplant them," Prof Purton said.

She received human ethics approval in January to start collecting 400 umbilical cord samples from babies born at St Vincent's Private hospital in Melbourne over the next four years for use in the research.

The samples will be obtained only from infants whose parents give their informed consent.

If the pre-clinical research proves successful, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Centre in Seattle, where Prof Purton completed her post-doctorate studies, will conduct clinical trials testing the safety and efficacy of the procedure on patients, in collaboration with the Melbourne scientist.

The centre has carried out clinical trials with expanded cord blood cells - the same as those used in Graham Barnell's transplant - but employing a different scientific method than Prof Purton.

"The ultimate dream would be to get the treatment up and running in Melbourne," Prof Purton said.

"But that's quite far in the future."

"At the moment, no one is doing expanded cord blood cell transplants in Australia."

For Samantha MacRae's family, travelling to Seattle for the experimental treatment, which ended up costing about $A1.3 million, carried the best chance of her partner's survival at the time.

A bone marrow match could not be found for him despite a nine-month search and an unexpanded cord blood transplant was unlikely to work, given the shortcomings in treating adults.

Accessing an expanded cord blood treatment in Australia was "essential" for people who can't find a bone marrow match, Ms MacRae said.

"With those stem cells I think you've got more options for people," she said.

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Fate of Dulcie Birt still a mystery: court

THE fate of Ipswich mother Dulcie Birt remains a mystery even as a man awaits sentencing for causing her death.

Alwyn John Gwilliams, 43, pleaded guilty on Wednesday in the Supreme Court in Brisbane to the manslaughter of Ms Birt, 31, and to interfering with her corpse.

His lawyer, Simon Lewis, told the court Gwilliams claims Ms Birt died when he crashed his car while he was drunk and driving along a 4WD track in bushland at Riverview, west of Brisbane, on October 21, 2009.

Mr Lewis said his client, who had a significant distrust of police, panicked and dumped his mistress's body in a waterway.

Her body has never been found.

Prosecutor Vicki Loury said a raft of evidence suggested Gwilliams' story was fabricated.

She told the court police never found any sign of an accident in the bushland area, and no forensic material was found in the cabin of Gwilliams' ute to suggest a woman had died during a crash.

Ms Loury said Gwilliams had told numerous lies to police during the investigation - a fact that was not disputed by his defence team - and he had a history of violently assaulting women.

She told the court a more likely scenario was that Gwilliams' killed Ms Birt outside the car and buried her body at the same location.

However, Ms Loury conceded the crown was unable to prove categorically what happened that evening.

Gwilliams' sentence hearing will continue on Wednesday afternoon.

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Motorbikes ok to weave in Sydney trial

SYDNEY'S motorbike riders will be able to "lane filter" with impunity under a road safety trial.

It is illegal in NSW for motorbikes to overtake slow or stopped cars by weaving between lanes, but the practice will be permitted in some inner Sydney streets during a two-month trial to see whether it can safely help ease congestion.

The trial in March-April will be monitored by the CBD Motorcycle Response Team.

The Centre for Road Safety's General Manager, Marg Prendergast, said the trial will test the benefits to Sydney's traffic flow.

"This trial needs to take place to ensure it improves traffic flow while not jeopardising road safety for all road users," Ms Prendergast said in a statement on Wednesday.

The exemption means motorcyclists will be able to ride past stopped vehicles at specifically chosen intersections, travelling within the lane, on the lane line and/or into the next lane.

They won't be able to filter when there is moving traffic, bus lines or intersection queues.

The practice will be allowed on Sydney roads including George Street, Hickson Road, Sussex Street, Market Street, St James Road and Macquarie Street.

Lane filtering will remain banned on the Cahill Expressway, Western Distributor and Harbour Bridge.

The findings of the trial will be released later in the year.

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Mali rebels may move to Libya: UN official

THE UN's special representative for Libya has warned the Security Council that France's military offensive in northern Mali may drive Islamic insurgents out and across the porous borders with Algeria and into Libya.

UN officials including peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous have said that the Islamist occupation of northern Mali was partly triggered by the downfall of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011, as well-trained militiamen fled into Mali with looted heavy weapons, driving back the Malian army.

UN special representative for Libya Tarek Mitri told the Security Council that "the opposition of armed radical groups to the military intervention in Mali may exacerbate the situation (in Libya) given ideological and/or ethnic affiliations as well as porous borders in Libya".

Mitri said that he was also concerned about the continued detention of several thousand people as a result of the Libyan conflict.

He told reporters that some 7000 detainees are held in Libya, most of them in cells run by the anti-Gaddafi revolutionary brigades.

"There have been cases of torture in the past," but conditions are improving as more prisoners are transferred to state-controlled prisons.

"There are still a few cases of torture, but only a few," Mitri added.

Although about 20,000 revolutionary brigade members have joined the new Libyan army or police forces, about 200,000 armed men "are not ready to get absorbed" into the new Libyan institutions, adding to the instability, Mitri told reporters.

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Travellers delayed as flights cancelled

THOUSANDS of travellers making their way home after the long weekend are facing delays and disruptions at Sydney Airport, as ex-tropical cyclone Oswald forces airlines to cancel flights.

Among them are Jackie Bialockie and her two high-school daughters, from Melbourne, who were delayed for 24-hours on Monday morning after their Jetstar flights from Ballina were cancelled.

"This morning we got on another flight to Coolangatta and then to Sydney," she told AAP.

"Now we're on a connecting flight, so it's been a bit of a roundabout way to get to Melbourne.

Also waiting at Sydney Airport was Romona Stainer from Alice Springs, who was delayed for 24-hours on Tuesday.

"I was supposed to catch the 6.30am (AEDT) Qantas flight from Wagga Wagga to Alice Springs, and now I've been asked to stay in Sydney overnight," she said.

Virgin Australia said it had cancelled twenty flights nationally on Tuesday, 16 of which were flying in and out of Sydney.

The majority of the flights affected are those to and from Brisbane, the Gold Coast, Canberra and Melbourne.

The Qantas group, including Jetstar, says the number of flights affected will not be known until later on Tuesday.

Strong cross winds were also causing average delays of 30 minutes on flights in and out of Sydney, a Virgin spokesman said.

Passengers can access a fare waiver on qantas.com if they have tickets issued on or before January 29 for travel to or from Queensland and northern New South Wales ports, a spokeswoman said.

The waiver may be changed and customers are being urged to check the website regularly.

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US says Iran blast reports not credible

THE White House has dismissed reports of an underground explosion at Iran's Fordo atomic plant and also accused the Islamic Republic of adopting delaying tactics on nuclear talks.

Iran had previously condemned reports in sectors of the US and Israeli media about the alleged blast as "western propaganda" designed to influence the outcome of its stalled nuclear dialogue with Western powers.

"We have no information to confirm the allegations in that report, and we do not believe the report is credible," White House spokesman Jay Carney said on Monday.

The reports cited the conservative American news website WND, which reported that an explosion at the Fordo facility on January 21 had caused major damage and trapped workers.

Iran has several times accused Israel and the United States of taking action to sabotage its nuclear program, through assassinations of its scientists and unleashing computer malware against its facilities.

The Fordo site is dug into a mountain near the holy city of Qom, some 150 kilometres south of Tehran, to protect it against air strikes.

Iran says it has been targeted previously, and blamed an explosion that reportedly cut the power supply to Fordo on saboteurs.

The site, whose existence was revealed by major powers in 2009, began in late 2011 to enrich uranium to purities of 20 per cent, a process at the heart of US and western concerns that Iran is trying to make a nuclear bomb.

The last round of Iran's talks with the so-called P5+1 - the United States, Britain, China, France, Russia - held in June in Moscow ended with a stalemate, as did previous rounds.

The sides have failed to agree on a new stage of talks, blaming each other for uncertainty over a date and venue. The US side has said Iran was offered talks in Istanbul at the end of this month, but never confirmed.

"Iran, not for the first time, has been continually putting forward new conditions as a delaying tactic," Carney said.

"Negotiations about negotiations is a familiar tactic that only results in further isolation and more pressure on Iran."

State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the ball is in Iran's court after the US proposed "another set of dates and another range of venues in February".

She said the US had been extremely "open and flexible" but that Washington had to ensure the talks were held in "a venue that's not politicised".

"I don't think we're going to Tehran, for example," she added. Tehran and Washington have not had diplomatic relations since the storming of the US embassy in the Iranian capital in 1979 and the subsequent hostage crisis.

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NBN just a start, Tim Berners-Lee says

NBN Co boss Mike Quigley says the company is "ramping up" the $37.4 billion NBN project. Source: AAP

"A piece of fibre coming out of the wall" is just the starting point for the national broadband network (NBN), world wide web inventor Tim Berners-Lee says.

Credited with inventing the web in 1989, Sir Tim says Australia must recognise the need for continual innovation if it's to succeed in the digital era.

The British academic, speaking at the launch of a CSIRO digital research project in Sydney on Tuesday, said the NBN will be a brilliant tool if it is used to help concepts like the research body's $40-million-a-year plan for a digital economy.

"The national broadband network is a wonderful commitment to getting everyone connected," the 57-year-old said.

"It's a brilliant foundation - it will be a foundation for many things.

"But having established that foundation, the fact you have a piece of fibre optic coming out of the wall is really only a start."

The CSIRO's 'flagship' project, which may last 10 years, aims to find ways of helping businesses and governmental organisations make greater use of digital technology in Australia after the mining boom.

It will focus primarily on the services sector, which provides about 80 per cent of the nation's gross domestic product but has in recent years suffered from declining productivity growth.

The CSIRO hopes that by utilising the NBN and providing the sector with innovative new ways of working digitally, it can boost the economy by up to $4 billion a year by 2025.

The research is already looking at ways of using technology to predict emergency department waiting times at Queensland hospitals and tracking social media conversations to help fight bushfires.

Helping to launch the project in Sydney, Sir Tim said it was an example of how broadband internet may be used to improve quality of life for all citizens.

He also urged Australian governments to make far more data available online, including information about schools and hospitals, and to avoid online censorship.

His comments came as new figures showed that far more work would be needed for the NBN to reach its 2013 mid-year rollout target.

Rollout figures for the second half of calendar 2012, released on Tuesday by NBN Co Ltd, showed the fibre-cable work has now passed 46,100 existing premises and 26,300 new home lots.

The June 2013 target is for it to pass 286,000 premises.

Federal Broadband Minister Stephen Conroy insisted the rollout was on track and would be ramped up in 2013.

"This year you will not be able to walk around a street in Australia without falling over construction work for the NBN," he told the CSIRO launch.

"It will continue to ramp up in every state and territory around the country."

NBN Co Ltd boss Mike Quigley said the government-owned entity was "ramping up" the $37.4 billion project, but acknowledged there was much work to do to meet the June schedule.

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Towns isolated in Lockyer flood crisis

AUTHORITIES are trying to get emergency supplies to people isolated in Lockyer Valley evacuation centres as floodwaters in some areas surpass the levels seen in the devastating 2011 floods.

Mayor Steve Jones says waters have already risen one metre higher at Glenore Grove and about three metres higher in Tent Hill Creek than they were two years ago.

The 2011 floods claimed 19 lives in the Lockyer Valley, west of Brisbane.

Mr Jones says it's too early to say how many homes in the valley have been inundated, but the focus is on the isolated town of Laidley.

The mayor personally tried to deliver emergency supplies to the town's evacuation centre on Monday morning but was stopped by floodwaters at the last crossing.

He said a truck loaded with supplies was waiting to cross at the first opportunity.

"I always like to come through in the truck first and make sure everything's all right before we get any of our blokes to come in, so that's what I did," Mr Jones told AAP.

"We like to be on the job. We feel responsible for all the people we're trying to help."

Meanwhile, floodwaters have begun to subside in Grantham, the place hit hardest by the 2011 floods, and Mr Jones says supplies have reached the town.

He said the 2011 floods were still clear in residents' minds.

"A lot of people are very emotional, but in saying that I think it's prepared people a lot because they don't take risks now," he said.

"They had a flogging two years ago, but people seem to be in good spirits."

Mr Jones said authorities were trying to get supplies to residents where they could and were surveying the region by helicopter to make sure people weren't in any immediate danger.

"There's a lot of damage. There's broken water mains, broken sewer mains broken, damaged roads - it's difficult to get around," he said.

Mr Jones said there had been no real emergency situations, but sick and elderly residents had been evacuated.

Acting Superintendent Joe White has urged isolated Laidley residents to stay inside their homes and call police if they are in danger.

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Ipswich flood begins as river breaks banks

THE Bremer River has broken its banks at Ipswich and businesses are beginning to flood, Mayor Paul Pisasale says.

"This is the start of our emotional pummelling," Mr Pisasale told AAP on Monday afternoon.

He said there was already water through one carpet business in the CBD and evacuations had started.

He said about 350 properties were expected to flood as the river heads towards the first of a number of peaks.

A 15-metre flood peak is expected in Ipswich about 6pm (AEST) on Monday night.

Mr Pisasale said residents, still traumatised by the 2011 flood, were leaving their homes even when they did not need to.

The city was not expected to experience the damage that happened two years ago.

"We are a city in very emotional stress at the moment," he said.

"We'll survive, but I tell you what, it does get to you."

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Sydney, Illawarra in Oswald's path

About 2000 people have been isolated by floodwaters as destructive winds and rain hit northern NSW. Source: AAP

HUNDREDS of emergency service workers are on standby across NSW as floodwaters rise and ex-tropical cyclone Oswald heads south.

Some 2000 people were cut off in the state's drenched north and flood warnings remain in place for seven NSW river systems on Monday.

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned residents near the Tweed River, Wilsons and Richmond Rivers and the Clarence Valley they could face major flooding.

State Emergency Service spokesman Phil Campbell says the service had already received 1400 calls for help by 2pm (AEDT) on Monday, mainly from the north-east corner of NSW.

Mr Campbell said there had been 13 flood rescues already, including several involving people who had ignored warnings and tried to drive through floodwaters in the Tweed area.

"Our warnings are not being heeded quite as diligently as we would hope," he said.

Authorities expected the number of people isolated to continue rising through the afternoon and the night.

"We would expect potentially several thousand more people may be affected," Mr Campbell said.

Flood rescue crews are already on standby in northern Sydney, where the SES expects storm, coastal erosion and rescue operations to ramp up over the next 24-hours.

A severe weather warning takes in major population centres including metropolitan Sydney and the Hunter region, and the weather system is expected to reach the Illawarra at dawn on Tuesday.

Northern Sydney SES incident controller Tony Pinelli told AAP rescuers were bracing for prolonged rainfall, gale force winds and damaging surf conditions.

Waterfront residents were sandbagging on Monday afternoon and SES volunteers were helping with property protection.

"We're talking about astronomically high tides," Mr Pinelli said.

Flood rescue specialists and boats, as well as two winch-capable helicopters, were ready to go if required.

Those travelling home from being away over the long weekend should be extremely careful when driving, he said, but it was hoped most Sydneysiders would be "wrapped up in bed" during the worst of the storm overnight.

The Ambulance Service of NSW has deployed 11 paramedics specially trained in swiftwater rescue to Coffs Harbour, on the NSW mid north coast.

The paramedics have already rescued a couple from a car in a caravan park near Coffs Harbour.

"We are in constant contact with the SES to see how the situation develops as the ex-cyclone moves out of the Northern Rivers region and tracks towards Coffs," Superintendent Wayne McKenna said.

"So it's a watch and see as we go situation."

NSW Police said the Public Information and Inquiry Centre had been activated and people can contact the centre on 1800 227 228 with questions about the flood and storm operation across NSW.

The inquiry hotline does not replace any emergency hotlines.

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NSW police hunt stolen highway patrol car

A MAN has stolen a fully marked highway patrol car following a struggle with police officers in Sydney's northwest.

Police said Mount Druitt Highway Patrol officers stopped a man in his vehicle on the M4 near Richmond at just before noon (AEDT) on Sunday.

When a struggle ensued, the man allegedly broke free before hopping into a highway patrol car with the registration plates of BQ12MU and a call sign of MD203.

Police are asking for anyone who spots the light blue Holden Commodore sedan not to approach it but to contact Triple Zero immediately.

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We're going to need a lot of help: Newman

PREMIER Campbell Newman says Queensland will need a lot of help from the federal government to recover from the state's unfolding flood disaster.

Mr Newman is meeting with the state's disaster managers as cities along the central coast flood, and the southeast corner braces for cyclonic winds and flooding rains.

Before the meeting in Brisbane, he said he was saddened to see the damage tornadoes had done to homes in the Bundaberg region.

He spent the morning with residents of Bargara, where homes were severely damaged by a tornado on Saturday.

"What's been hit has been really smashed bad," he told the Seven Network.

He said he toured one family's home and the damage was terrible.

"All their possessions are totally soaked in water, the roof is half ripped off, their caravan smashed, their car smashed and debris all over their yard," Mr Newman said.

He said he was very aware of the flood crisis unfolding in Bundaberg, where a flood could be bigger than the one of 2010/11 and where whole suburbs had been evacuated.

He said some of the properties that went under two years ago would go under again, and that was a heart-breaking prospect for those affected.

He said this afternoon's disaster management meeting would also focus on the impacts for the southeast corner.

"This afternoon the big one is what is going to happen in the Bremer River, Lockyer Creek and the dams," he said.

"That's something I intend to give the community some advice on this afternoon."

He said the meeting would also discuss what help would be sought from the federal government.

"Clearly now we are getting to a situation where we have big impacts. We're going to need a lot of support, particularly with the clean up."

Deputy Prime Minister Wayne Swan will hold a press conference at 2.45pm (AEST) to outline what federal assistance will be offered.

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MP's app searches for the answers

Federal Liberal MP Andrew Laming has launched an iPhone app to canvas voters' opinions. Source: AAP

THE Liberal MP whose tweets about the Logan riots caused a stir earlier this month has launched an iPhone app to canvas voters' opinions.

The Andrew Laming MP - Have Your Say app lets users answer poll questions through its engagement section.

"Let Andrew know, not just what you think (but) most importantly how you feel about an issue that matters to you," states the app's description on iTunes.

"Why sit on the side-line when you can actually be part of what's happening!"

To access the polls users have to register by giving details including name, email, sex, address and birthday.

The question being asked on Sunday was "How does the Carbon Tax make you feel?" with answer options "stop stealing my $" or "i support tuff luv" (sic).

People using the app can also view the federal MP for Bowman's tweets and YouTube videos.

Mr Laming is one of federal politics' more prolific social media users.

Earlier this month, he hit headlines for tweeting: "Mobs tearing up Logan. Did any of them do a day's work today, or was it business as usual and welfare on tap?"

The clashes in Logan, Queensland were between groups of Aboriginal and Pacific Islander communities.

Mr Laming later followed up that comment with a clarifying tweet suggesting he meant to say that training and employment were key ways to solve the community's issues.

Mr Laming is not the first MP to have an iPhone app - senior Liberal Malcolm Turnbull released one in April 2011.

There are also apps available to keep users up to date with news from the Labor and Liberal parties.

Mr Laming's app was developed by Sydney-based Political Media International.

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