A man who tried to sexually assault a woman while she was standing on an inner Sydney street is still being hunted by authorities.

Police are looking for the man, who forced himself on a 28-year-old woman when she was standing on the corner of Terminus St at Petersham about 1.30am on Thursday.

Police said he tried to sexually assault the woman but she pushed him away and both fled in opposite directions.

The man, aged in his 20s, drove past the woman on Crystal St soon after and tried to speak to her before driving off.

Detectives are urging anyone with information to come forward.

A fast-moving fire has ravaged a residential building on the northern edge of Paris.

Firefighters spokesman Gabriel Plus says there are no known victims in the Saturday night blaze that moved through four floors of the large modern structure. Teams are searching for potential victims.

The spokesman told BFMTV that it is too early to know the origin of the fire. He said it began on both the outside and inside of the building and raged through the third through sixth floors. He did not clarify.

The building has two elevator shafts, which typically can spread flames.

Paris recorded its deadliest fire in a decade earlier this year, when a blaze in a posh western district killed 10 people in February. Arson was suspected.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has defended spending $185 million reopening an immigration detention centre on Christmas Island only to close it again.

The federal government reopened the mothballed facility after legislation passed against its will, making it easier for sick refugees on Manus Island and Nauru to seek medical transfers.

The government warned the laws would open the floodgates to hundreds of people.

However, just one person has been evacuated since the laws took effect six weeks ago.

The individual bypassed Christmas Island and came straight to Australia, because the level of medical care they needed was only available on the mainland.

Mr Frydenberg dismissed suggestions reopening Christmas Island was an alarmist and expensive mistake.

"You could see it on the other way," he told the ABC's Insiders program this morning.

"Which is the so-called emergency that everybody else was talking about hadn't eventuated because what we've done by reopening Christmas Island is send a deterrent to people who would try to game the system."

The government intends to repeal the medical evacuation laws and close Christmas Island if it wins the upcoming election.

"Our policy is to close it in July that's a publicly stated position and we'll do so given the first opportunity," Mr Frydenberg said.

At least two inmates have been injured in a Sydney prison brawl that only ended after security officers used tear gas.

Corrective Services NSW said the brawl on Sunday broke out between five remand inmates in a yard at Long Bay Hospital, a maximum to minimum security facility in Matraville.

Staff needed to use tear gas to break up the fight.

NSW Ambulance said two inmates were taken to nearby hospitals with puncture wounds.

The condition of the other three inmates was unknown but none required hospital treatment.

Two men have been seriously injured in a home invasion in Queensland.

Around 11.40am three men forced their way into a Pymble Place, Queensland Police said.

Reece King, 27, was shot in the face, while his 29-year-old brother Brendan was attacked with a hammer at their Robina house.

Three men then left the scene in a small black car.

Their mother apparently witnessed the whole attack.

"It was pretty full-on, she was screaming quite dramatically," a neighbour told 9News.

"If it was going to be anyone I supposed it was them, you do see hott-ed up cars around there and stuff, and guys with tatts," another neighbour, Aaron Whiting told 9News.

Police are investigating whether the attack has links to bikies. They have not confirmed whether the brothers knew their attackers.

The brothers are in a stable condition at the Gold Coast University Hospital, and their injuries are not life-threatening.

Promises of tax cuts appear to have helped Scott Morrison to his best Newspoll result since seizing the prime ministership.

The Liberal-National coalition has halved its margin to Labor to trail 48-52, according to the latest poll published by The Australian on Sunday night.

That's the closest the coalition has been since August 12, 2018, when Malcolm Turnbull was the nation's leader.

The government's primary vote rose two points to 38 while Labor's dipped by the same margin to 37.

One Nation also lost primary votes - down one point to six per cent - after a documentary revealed two key men in Pauline Hanson's party had tried to solicit $20 million from the powerful US gun lobby.

Mr Morrison's personal approval rating jumped three points to 46, while Mr Shorten's dipped a point to 35.

In contrast, an Ipsos poll shows Labor holding a more significant lead over the government.

The poll commissioned by The Age and The Sydney Morning Herald and also released on Sunday night says Labor leads 53-47 on a two-party preferred basis.

If the results, which have a margin of error of plus or minus 2.9 per cent, were replicated in a uniform swing, Labor would win 83 seats in the 151-seat lower house.

The poll also suggested Mr Morrison remains the preferred prime minister, with 46 per cent of those polled liking him compared to 35 per cent choosing Opposition leader Bill Shorten.

Almost one in five voters were undecided.

A 60 Minutes special report has revealed Sarah Jane Parkinson’s allegations of horrific domestic violence and rape were part of an evil, premeditated plan to send her partner to jail, so she could claim their family home.

Former prison guard Dan Jones met Sarah Jane Parkinson in 2011. After just months of dating, they began planning their wedding.

Parkinson told her fiancé she had a troubled past, alleging she had been raped not only by one of her friend’s fathers, but also by a Turkish diplomat who fled the country before charges were laid.

Believing Parkinson’s heartbreaking stories, Dan was overwhelmed with sympathy for his future bride.

He was determined to build a stable home for the couple to forge ahead with their life together.

Dan Jones told reporter Liz Hayes their relationship changed when Sarah Jane Parkinson started a new job at Queanbeyan Police as a clerical assistant – and as 60 Minutes revealed, it was also when Parkinson began weaving an intricate web of lies.

When Parkinson came to work with bruises, police said she told them Dan was abusing her.

But what she failed to mention was that she suffered a heart condition that made her dizzy, and she had tunnel vision, all of which contributed to a series of household accidents and injuries.

“She was always clumsy. We always used to make it into a joke,” said Dan’s father, Ian.

“But what she was doing was giving herself a bruise or a mark that she could then weave into her tale.”

Dan was surprised when Parkinson’s boss – Inspector Anthony Hill - called him for a “chat”.

He was told an Apprehended Violence Order (AVO) was being taken against him for abusing Parkinson, and that Inspector Hill would put up five witnesses against him if he was to fight it.

Dan returned to the home he shared with Parkinson bewildered. But his fiancé assured him the AVO was a huge misunderstanding and she would “sort it out.”

But Dan began to have other concerns.

“You're suspecting that she might be cheating?” asked Hayes.

“Yeah, with some of the mobile phone messages, and ringing late at night.”

“I was crushed… I'd just built a house. She'd moved in with me, everything was going well, I had a good career, my dream car I always wanted.

“Everything was going right and in that instant everything just went to shit.”

Their relationship ended in November 2013.

Within days Sarah Jane Parkinson, supported by her new policeman lover, made a series of terrible claims to police about Dan’s alleged abuse.

Dan was suddenly confronted with accusations that painted him as a monster, which included striking his fiancé with a lump of wood, a tyre lever, locking her outside of their home in the rain and urinating on her.

All of which he vehemently denied.

“You've come from meeting this innocent, sweet girl to this premeditated monster who is capable of making all these allegations against you without a care in the world,” he told 60 Minutes.

“She just flipped, she was like a complete stranger.”

On Christmas Eve 2013, his world fell apart.

While finishing his shift as a prison officer he was arrested in front of his colleagues and charged with 32 counts of domestic violence – including rape.

It seemed police had believed every word Parkinson told them. 

Acting-sergeant Scott Corcoran – who has since left the force – was the first investigator in the case against Dan. When Sarah Jane Parkinson escalated her allegations to include harassment by Dan’s father, Ian, he was also served with a court order.

All the while, Parkinson was setting up her new life with her policeman lover – living in the home Dan had built.

“I was paying for a mortgage for him and his three kids to live in my house,” Dan told 60 Minutes.

Then on March 21, 2014 a posse of police officers arrived at the Jones’ home to arrest Dan. He had no idea why – but he soon found out.

Parkinson had told police Dan rammed her head into a retaining wall, jumped on her, kicked her, forced her to open a condom wrapper, then violently raped her.

A horrific allegation that was utterly untrue.

Because at the time of the alleged assault, Dan’s sister-in-law had taken a photograph of him holding his baby nephew.

Stamped with date, time and location – it made it impossible for him to have been anywhere near Parkinson at the time she claimed he’d raped her.

NEPHEW PHOTO

Dan, a former prison officer, was sent to Australia’s toughest gaol, Goulburn’s supermax, on remand, where his helplessness turned into the darkest of thoughts. He told Hayes he contemplated self-harm.

While Dan was in gaol, his parents Ian and Michelle were living haunted lives outside – afraid at every step that further false allegations by Parkinson might land them in gaol too.

But then, a breakthrough almost too good to be true for the Jones, who’d come to expect little independent investigation into Parkinson’s claims by police.

Detective Sergeant (then- Detective Constable) Leesa Alexander took over the case from acting-sergeant Scott Corcoran and began to seriously scrutinise Sarah Jane Parkinson’s allegations.

“I believed her until the evidence started to show something different,” Detective Alexander told Hayes.

“As far as I was concerned and what the evidence showed is [Dan] wasn't responsible for any of it. It didn't happen.”

In addition to her allegations against Dan, Sarah Jane Parkinson claimed his family were harassing her. Claims that would eventually expose her as a serial liar.

Parkinson told Detective Alexander she was driven off the road and attacked by a man wielding a knife, a man she believed to be Dan’s father.

But Detective Alexander traced the knife back to Parkinson’s own kitchen, one of a set of six.

Parkinson also implicated the Jones family in multiple break-ins at her house. She claimed her iPad had been stolen, and that software indicated it was at the Jones’ house.

Using a police GPS tracker installed on Parkinson’s car, Detective Alexander proved Parkinson had driven to the Jones’ home and planted the iPad on their property.

“It was clear to me… that Sarah had lied.

“So I thought, if she's lied to me, perhaps she's lied to the earlier investigators… My blood ran cold. I was horrified that that may be the case.”

The case against Sarah Jane Parkinson was so compelling that the Department of Public Prosecutions in the ACT called for an emergency bail hearing. The DPP, which had failed to adequately test the evidence against Dan in the sexual assault charges, now wanted him freed as soon as possible.

After four and a half months, Dan was released from supermax.

And as Liz Hayes revealed, this was not the first time Parkinson has accused an innocent man of rape.

Ten years ago, Parkinson accused Canberra man Keith Lewis of raping her and threatening to kill her and her family.

They were extraordinary allegations, because at the time Parkinson’s best friend was Keith Lewis’ daughter Sarah.

“This is a girl I trusted my life with and why would she lie? My Dad wouldn't do that, but why would someone lie?” an emotional Sarah told 60 Minutes.

“People at school thought for ten years that my dad was a rapist.”

Police agreed Keith Lewis didn’t have a case to answer and he was never charged over Parkinson’s allegations.

For the last five years Sarah Jane Parkinson has vigorously fought the charges brought against her by Detective Alexander, of falsely accusing Dan Jones of rape and abuse.

But early this year she finally pleaded guilty – admitting to the court she’d made it all up.

She was sentenced to prison for three years and one month – at least two of those years will be spent behind bars.

“I think it's appalling what she did. I think it's awful that anybody could do that to another person,” Detective Alexander told Hayes.

That Sarah Jane Parkinson was, as described in court, a pathological liar, is shocking enough.

However the Jones’ have questions about why she was not stopped by authorities earlier, and whether the DPP properly test the police evidence against Dan.

“This was a failure at every point,” said Dan’s father, Ian.

“The police, the legal profession, the judiciary, the DPP, at every single point this was a failure… catastrophic failure.”

The magistrate also acknowledged that Parkinson's relationship with police may have emboldened her.

“Sarah, in my opinion, knew the system,” said Detective Alexander.

“There are many protections put it place for the real victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. My opinion is that Sarah knew them, and she abused them.”

To watch ‘Sex, lies and police tape’ and for more on 60 Minutes, visit the official website.

A video of a kangaroo locked inside a tiny cage at a US petting zoo has sparked a wave of outrage across the globe.  

After footage of the distressed animal caged in the Connecticut event centre was uploaded to social media, a Change.org petition was created calling for the kangaroo to be released to a US sanctuary or brought home to Australia to be in its natural environment.

The kangaroo is seen pacing back and forward in the cage and sticking its nose through the wire, with fears the animal may be heavily sedated.

There are also fears for the animal’s welfare as the marsupial is being held in an outside pen with extremely cold temperatures recorded.

“The roo is in a small confined space and really should be with other kangaroos in its natural environment,” the petition read.

“I doubt it would be able to survive in the bush/wild now, so hopefully we can get it to a wildlife park or sanctuary in Australia.”

The petition said the situation had been reported to the United States Department of Agriculture, PETA, and local government representatives, with the roo just “one of the many exotic animals” held captive at the zoo.

Kangaroos are a natural pack animal in the wild, with the mobs most active during the dawn and dusk.  

A #savetherooCT protest will take place outside the facility today.

The latest controversy comes after a kookaburra was found for sale in a US pet store.

The Australian native was alone, confined to a small cage and sometimes dressed in tiny outfits for the amusement of customers.

A GoFundMe page was created to raise enough money to purchase the kookaburra and bring it home to Australia, although the fundraising effort said the animal had already been purchased.

The family of falsely accused man Daniel Jones have been told they don’t qualify for compensation – despite spending over $600,000 to prove their son’s innocence.

Thirty-two-year-old Daniel Jones believed he and his family must be compensated, after their legal battles against his former partner Sarah Jane Parkinson devastated them emotionally and financially.

“Without mum and dad's financial backing, I'd be in jail – simple as that,” Mr Jones told 60 Minutes reporter Liz Hayes.

To watch ‘Sex, lies and police tape’ in full and for more on 60 Minutes, visit the official website.

“I want mum and dad to have what they lost, be compensated for everything that's happened.

“It’s torn our family apart.”

In 2014, Daniel Jones was charged with 32 domestic violence charges including the violent rape of his partner Sarah Jane Parkinson.

But he was innocent, a victim of Sarah Jane Parkinson’s elaborate web of lies – created to send him to jail and gain possession of their family home and assets.

Gullible police believed her allegations and Mr Jones was sent to Australia’s toughest prison – Goulburn Corrections Centre – while he awaited his trial.

Mr Jones was kept behind bars for almost five months, while Parkinson moved her police officer lover and his three children into the home Mr Jones had built and was still paying for.

When police detective Leesa Alexander took over Parkinson’s case against Mr Jones, she noticed a number of inconsistencies and outright lies that Parkinson had told police.

Her investigation finally exposed Parkinson’s deceitful behaviour and her false accusations of abuse and rape.

Mr Jones was freed from prison in an urgent bail application by the DPP, which had previously failed to adequately test the evidence of his guilt.

Over the next five years, Parkinson vigorously fought charges brought against her by Detective Leesa Alexander of falsely accusing Mr Jones of rape and abuse.

Mr Jones’ father, Ian, says the damage caused by Parkinson’s allegations, together with the prolonged legal fight and financial burden of proving his son’s innocence, were all major contributing factors in the breakdown of his long marriage to wife Michelle.

“It's destroyed our family. It has ruined us,” Ian Jones told Hayes.

“Daniel's lost his career, his reputation, his livelihood, his house.

“Michelle and I expended huge amounts of money, which significantly contributed to our divorce, after over 30 years of marriage.”

But while the Jones family are victims of crime, they don’t qualify for compensation for their suffering.

Their only hope for financial restitution is if the ACT attorney general authorises a special payment.

In January 2019, Parkinson finally pleaded guilty, admitting to the court she’d made up her allegations against Mr Jones.

She was sentenced to prison for three years and one month – at least two of those years will be spent behind bars.

“Sarah destroyed that family,” Det Alexander told Hayes.

“It's awful what happened to the Jones. They are good people, and she destroyed that family. Dan didn't do anything to cause this.”

Sarah Jane Parkinson will be eligible for parole in January 2021.

Dozens of neglected animals were evacuated from a ramshackle Gaza zoo on Sunday in the fourth and largest such rescue mission in the blockaded Palestinian enclave.

Vets and volunteers from Four Paws International transported some 40 animals into Israel from the neglected zoo in the southern town of Rafah.

The animals, including lions, foxes, monkeys, pelicans, wolves and ostriches, will be resettled in sanctuaries in Jordan and South Africa.

"The zoo has been in a bad situation in recent years due to economic and political turmoil," said Amir Khalil, a veterinarian from the Vienna-based organisation. "Most of the animals had a sort of traumatisation."

Many of the animals were smuggled into Gaza via tunnels beneath the southern border with Egypt, which along with Israel has blockaded the territory since the Hamas militant group seized power there in 2007.

The blockade and three wars between Israel and Hamas have made life miserable for Gaza's 2 million residents. Animals kept in captivity have suffered from a combination of neglect and lack of resources on the part of zookeepers.

Some died of cold and hunger in makeshift zoos as keepers failed to provide adequate care, while others were killed during the 50-day war in 2014.

Uri Madar, agriculture coordinator for the Israeli body responsible for the crossings with the Gaza Strip, said COGAT "sees this evacuation as a mission of ethics, and will continue working in support of animal welfare in the Gaza Strip."

In January, four lion cubs died in the Rafah zoo.

The owner later released grisly footage showing a lioness being declawed, in an apparent effort to push the organisation to speed up the evacuation process.

The owner was compensated for the animals, but the amount paid has not been publicised. There are no animals left at the zoo following the evacuation.

Four Paws International has carried out four rescue operations and has sent numerous medical missions to treat animals and birds in Gaza.

Two other zoos have closed since Four Paws removed their animals, while animals are still being held in poor conditions at three other zoos.

The latest evacuation was scheduled last month, but a round of cross-border violence between Israel and Gaza militants forced the organisation postpone it.

Animal rights activists launched protests across the country, with 38 protesters arrested after blocking a major Melbourne CBD intersection for most of the morning.

The vegan activists have also swarmed abattoirs in Goulburn and Queensland, with protests held to mark one year since the release of the film Dominion -a documentary focusing on factory farming in Australia.

There were multiple arrests across the country this morning and Prime Minister Scott Morrison has admonished the group as "un-Australian".

Police confirmed protesters had blocked the intersection of Flinders and Swanston streets using vehicles, which a small number have chained themselves to.

A total of 27 people - including two 17-year-olds and a 15-year-old - have been arrested following the CBD protest.

The protesters have been arrested in relation to obstructing a roadway, resisting or obstructing police, and are assisting police with their enquiries.

Superintendent David Clayton said the lack of prior engagement with police from the protesters was disappointing and also caused considerable disruptions to thousands of people attempting to navigate through the CBD during peak hour.

“This lack of engagement puts the entire community at risk with road closures and delays to transport services," a spokesman said.

“We respect the right for people to protest peacefully but we will not tolerate anti-social behaviour that disrupts the broader community.”

Police have monitored a number of other protests at locations state-wide, including Bacchus Marsh, Laverton North, Pakenham and Corio. Officers are also monitoring a protest at the aquarium, where protesters have blocked the main entrance.

More than 100 activists were chanting: "What do we want? Animal liberation - now!" with some sitting on tram tracks near the Flinders-Swanston St intersection.

One man started jumping up and down before being detained by five police officers

The vans, promoting vegan documentary Dominion, have also now been towed.

Vegan activists also blocked the entrance to the MC Herd abattoir in Geelong.

Event organiser Christine Lee said protesters were on site to bring attention to the film Dominion - a film hoping to expose "the dark side of animal agriculture".

“The film shows the truth about what is happening to animals in this country and around the world, but it was all Australian footage,” she told Today.

“We want to show we're regular people who have had enough, we are killing the planet and killing animals at rates that are just unacceptable.

“And drastic times call for drastic measures so that is why we're here today. We have nine teams around Australia that are going to places of violence to draw attention to them directly.”

Protest organiser and director of animal rights film documentary, Dominion, Chris Delforce, said the protest marked one year since his film's release.

"The industry is telling people these animals are being killed ethically, that they are being killed humanely - the reality is ... it's the furthest thing from humane.," Mr Delforce told AAP.

He laughed off Prime Minister Morrison's suggestion the protests occurring across the country were "un-Australian".

"Most Australians are opposed to animal cruelty," he said.

The protests come as the Queensland Government is drafting new laws to allow police and agricultural officers to fine vegan activists whose activities risk the lives of farmers, workers and animals. 

A joint task force with the state police intelligence unit and the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries will focus on acts of animal activism. The move comes after Federal Agriculture Minister David Littleproud has been calling for higher fines from states.

Activists in Queensland could face a trespass offence, which currently carries a penalty of up to one year's imprisonment or a maximum fine of $2611. 

The penalties in Western Australia are the toughest in the nation, with the maximum penalty for trespass 12 months’ imprisonment and a $12,000 fine. 

NINE ARRESTED AS PROTESTS CONTINUE

Nine people have been arrested at an abattoir in the state’s Southern Tablelands.

About 2.30am, nine people attended an abattoir on Mazamat Road, Goulburn, where they chained themselves to a conveyor.

Officers from The Hume Police District were contacted and attended the scene, after the protesters allegedly refused to leave when asked by the owner.

Goulburn Police Rescue cut the people free and arrested them at the scene.

Three women refused to walk from the abattoir and had to be carried to the police vehicle.

Three men, one aged 46 and two aged 22, and six women, aged between 21 and 61 were taken to Goulburn Police Station where they will be charged.

QUEENSLAND PROTESTERS INVADE ABATTOIR

About 20 animal rights campaigners descended on the Warwick abattoir and chained themselves to equipment, with up to 200 others remaining outside the facility protesting what they label as the barbaric slaughter of sheep and pigs.

Police were called to Carey Bros Abattoir about 3.30am and began negotiating with the activists.

The protest was over by about 5.30am after the handing over of three lambs. No arrests have been made.

Farm Animal Rescue activist group member Brad King was among those at the protest and said animals slaughtered at the site had endured terrifying deaths.

"There are numerous occasions where they're not stunned properly, but even when they are, the footage unequivocally demonstrates that it's impossible to 'humanely' kill an animal who desperately doesn't want to die," he said in a statement.

A Queensland Police spokesman said the situation had been resolved peacefully and no charges had been laid as there was no complaint from the land owner.

Police said there would be no further investigations into the protest.

PRIME MINISTER SLAMS ACTIVISTS

Scott Morrison has admonished as "un-Australian" the animal activists behind a controversial map of farmers' addresses and contact details.

The prime minister has also scolded the "shameful" actions of vegan protesters who have invaded farms and abattoirs.

"It is shameful, it is un-Australian," Mr Morrison told 2GB radio on Monday.

"This is just another form of activism that I think runs against the national interest, and the national interest is being able to farm their own land."

Tony Mahar from the National Farmers' Federation has also slammed the behaviour of the protesters, saying it was extremely concerning.

"What we're dealing with is radicalised extremists, and they are that," he said.

"They have philosophical views. They are forcing on to other parts of the community. So farmers are law abiding, hard working citizens going about their daily jobs of producing all the food and fibre that Australians love.

"They have had to put up with drought, floods and fires. And now - now they have to deal with these radical extremists coming on to their businesses, terrifying them, invading their homes so it's a really serious development and we would love the community support to stop this."

Mr Mahar said there are indiciations which suggest this will be targeted in every state across the country.

"It's just irrational behaviour, unreasonable behaviour. Can you imagine if 100 or so people dressed in black turned up to your place of business or your home and forced their views on to you because you have a different view to them?," he said.

"It is unreasonable and we would love the community's support to sign our petition at farmers.org.au to bring some deterrence to these people. They're terrifying the population."

THE 'SECRET MEMO' PLANNING THE PROTESTS

The National Farmers Federation and the Australian Livestock Exporters Council sent alerts to members warning about the nationwide protest from the activists after an interactive map was published showing the location of the nation’s farms and abattoirs.

“We want people around the world to see that our work for animal rights is no longer a minority grassroots movement but instead a rapidly growing phenomenon that can’t be stopped,” an internal memo by a group read.

The Aussie Farms memo added the plans would be kept completely private to protect them from sabotage.

“We ask that you respect this by not asking details about the plans on the day and not speculating what might be planned,” it wrote.

“It’s important to not communicate about any plans, known or speculative on any form of electronic communication.”

The move was labelled “despicable” by the federal government.

Last month, 100 members of the organisation also stormed onto a Queensland cattle farm wearing “meat the victims” T-shirts.

Farmer David McNamee said he feared for his family as they were alone with no protection during the invasion. He added when he ordered the demonstrators to leave, they ignored him.

On Sunday, state Agriculture Minister Mark Furner said he'd had a "gutful" of activists putting farms at risk and said new regulations were being drafted to allow police and agriculture ministers to issue protesters with on the spot fines.

The Department of Agriculture will also form a taskforce with the state police intelligence unit to try and prevent animal activism attacks on farmers.

- AAP contributed to this report.

A Queensland single mother-of-two with cancer has told how she was left with a $6500 child care bill because of a mistake made by Centrelink.

When Katrina Odgers, from Beerwah on the Sunshine Coast, was diagnosed with breast cancer in May 2017, doctors told her the disease had already spread to her lymph nodes.

She underwent six months of chemotherapy, followed by radiation and surgery but not all of the cancer cells were removed. Ms Odgers has since had another six months of chemotherapy.

Ms Odgers, 46, said the cancer treatment had left her in pain and affected her cognitive functions to a point where she was unable to adequately care for her two children, Isabella, 3, and Asher, 9.

Both Isabella and Asher have special needs. Isabella has global developmental delays and Duane Syndrome, an eye movement disorder which has left her with no peripheral vision on one side.

Asher suffers from Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (AHHD) and severe anxiety.

Ms Odgers said just getting through the day was a daily struggle because of her ill health.

“The chemotherapy, radiation and the cancer medication that I’m on has stopped me thinking properly,” she told nine.com.au.

“I have trouble speaking and doing daily tasks and understanding what has been said to me. Some days I’m fluent but some days I’m shocking. I could even talk to you tomorrow and forget today’s conversation.

“It’s quite debilitating and I’m in a lot of pain. I can’t walk more than 50 metres because my feet are so sore.”

To manage the care of her children, Ms Odgers was given support through the Child Care Subsidy and Additional Child Care Subsidy.

The subsidies pay for a large portion of Isabella’s fees at a childcare centre and for nannies to look after the children in the mornings, evenings and on weekends.

The arrangement was working well, but in February Ms Odgers suddenly starting getting some unexpected bills from the nanny service and childcare centre.

The bills amounted to thousands of dollars and were adding up fast.

Ms Odgers said she called Centrelink and was told a “computer glitch” was to blame which meant the nanny service and child care centre were suddenly sharing the same number of hours, rather than individual allotments, which added up to a higher amount.

“There’s been a lot of tears and I’ve been on the phone to Centrelink four to five hours at a time over weeks trying to get some help,” Ms Odgers said.

“Each person said they were going to fix it but then it just wasn’t getting done.”

Last Thursday, Ms Odgers was sent a message from the children’s nanny service saying it had no choice but to stop providing care because of the $6500 still owing on her account.

“We have heard nothing from Centrelink to confirm their position of your approved hours,” the message, seen by nine.com.au, read.

“Given that there is no commitment from anyone to pay the amounts owing to our service from February 4 onwards, it is with regret that we will be suspending care from tomorrow afternoon.”

The message also asked Ms Odgers to pay the outstanding amount “at the earliest opportunity”.

Nine.com.au contacted the Department of Human services last week who vowed to investigate Ms Odgers’ case.

“The Department of Human Services has contacted Miss Odgers to apologise for her experience and we are doing everything we can to resolve her issues for her,” Department of Human Services General Manager Hank Jongen said in a statement.

“We can confirm this was not a systems issue or ‘glitch’,” he said.

Ms Odgers said after nine.com.au became involved in the case a Centrelink social worker had managed to convince the nanny service not to suspend its services.

Centrelink has also reassured Ms Odgers that the problem would soon be resolved, she said.

“I still don’t quite believe it is fixed. I will wait until I see it,” Ms Odgers said.

Ms Odgers said she was worried that the same situation was also happening to others.

“I have since found out that there is another lady who uses the same nanny service, who has been going through the same thing for the last six months. It is just disgusting that we are being put through this,” she said.

Contact reporter Emily McPherson at emcpherson@nine.com.au.

Two anti-Adani protesters have stormed a stage to disrupt Scott Morrison at a Brisbane business lunch, but the prime minister appeared to take in his stride.

"Do we have contestant number three?," Mr Morrison asked as the protesters were jeered and removed from the Valley Chamber of Commerce on Monday.

One woman carrying a stop Adani protest flag managed to reach Mr Morrison's side but was dragged away by security as a second protester stood to yell "stop Adani".

Then a table of 10 protesters started chanting "climate election, no more coal" before they were escorted out by security.

One woman carrying a stop Adani protest flag managed to reach Mr Morrison's side as he began his address at the Valley Chamber of Commerce business lunch.

There were about 100 anti-Adani and refugee protesters outside the event.

Australian Youth Climate Coalition organiser, Melanie McAuliffe, said they wanted to highlight LNP government's inability to react on climate change.

"We just had a summer of unprecedented heatwave, bushfires and floods and yet this government still continues to ignore what we need to do to address the climate crisis."

Several teenagers said they were looking for action to save the planet.

Jo, from Cleveland, told the crowd outside the business lunch that all she wanted was a future.

"I am 17 years old and I want is for our government to do what they need to to save the planet," she told the crowd.

"This is our home, this is what houses us, we have a responsibility to care for it."

The protesters mocked Morrison government's claims they were on track to meet the Paris climate commitment.

They chanted "hey Scomo, I'm talking to you, no Adani and no Nauru" and yelled "bad for business" as people entered the venue.

A father who died with the rest of his family at Davidson on Sydney’s Northern Beaches is believed to have planned the alleged murder suicide on his own. 

An inquest into the deaths of Fernando Manrique, his wife and two children has heard he ordered two cylinders of carbon monoxide ten days before they were found dead in 2016.

Police who found him, Maria Lutz and the children Elisa, 11 and Martin, 10 also discovered a hose rigged up to the roof which pumped the lethal gas into the bedrooms as they slept.

The cylinders had been hidden in a back shed and Mr Manrique had made four visits to Bunnings in the days beforehand.

Counsel Assisting Adam Casselden said the evidence suggested Mrs Lutz was not complicit.

"Maria had no awareness of or involvement in Fernando's plans."

The court heard Mrs Lutz was dedicated to her two children who had autism and was described as "resilient, strong, passionate, selfless and happy”.

Her friends told police she was excited about going back to work after finding out she would be getting five hours of home assistance a day through the NDIS.

"Lives cut short just as they were about to receive potentially life changing support," Mr Casselden said.

TAX BILL STRESS AND A MISTRESS IN THE PHILIPPINES

But the couple were also experiencing marital difficulties with Mr Manrique travelling regularly to the Philippines for work, where he had a mistress who he was supporting financially.

Colleagues reported that he was stressed about money, particularly tax bills with the ATO.

Counsel Assisting told the court while it appeared Mr Manrique intended to die with his family, they couldn't be certain of that fact.

The inquest will also look at the purchasing of such a dangerous gas with few checks.

"A real concern is the relative ease with which Fernando was able to source the carbon monoxide" Mr Casselden said.

If you or someone you know is in need of support contact Lifeline on 13 11 14 or Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36 or MensLine Australia on 1300 78 99 78.

Police are looking for a man following the alleged assault of a teenager who broke an egg over the head of far-right Queensland Senator Fraser Anning.

Will Connolly, 17, from Hampton, Melbourne, became instantly famous after smashing an egg over Senator Anning in Moorabbin. Senator Anning was speaking following his comments linking the Christchurch attacks to the migration of Muslims to New Zealand.

Mr Connolly was given the name “Egg Boy,” after footage of the egging, which occurred during a press conference, emerged.

The teenager was then tackled by a number of men. According to police, one man can be seen approaching Mr Connolly before assaulting him a number of times.

“While the 17-year-old boy was being held on the ground, another male has approached and kicked him in the body a number of times,” a police spokeswoman said.

Police have released an image of a man they believe may be able to assist with their enquiries.

Anyone with information regarding the male depicted is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au.

Two Victorian men who raped a female friend after she rejected a threesome with them have appeared in Victoria’s County Court claiming their innocence.

Shaun Bloomfield, 24 and Luke Merryfull, 24, were found guilty by a County Court jury last year of raping the victim inside a caravan at a 21^st birthday party in 2016.

Despite being found guilty, the pair continue to deny their crimes and today told a sentencing hearing that the sex was consensual.

The duo, both from Balmoral, a small town in Western Victoria, had more than 70 friends and family attend the court to support them.

In an impact statement read by the victim’s lawyer, she spoke of the ongoing pain inflicted by having two friends she “trusted for 10 years sexually assault me.”

“This will always have an impact on my life,” the statement said.  

She says she’s been shunned by her local community and is medicated for PTSD and anxiety.

“The offenders have not shown any remorse, guilt or empathy of what they have done for me.

They have continued to live their lives normally, playing sports, working and hanging out with friends in our hometown.”

While Merryfull was found guilty of one count of rape, the 24-year old has been assured by the president of his football club that he will be welcomed back after he’s been sentenced.

Lawyers for Bloomfield say he’s settled into prison life losing 12 kilograms and building muscle in the gym.

Both men will be sentenced on Wednesday and have been told by Judge Gerard Mullaly to expect significant jail time.

Sometimes you just want your mother.

Even if you have no memory of her and, when you were just hours old, she abandoned you.

Like many teenagers, Jessica Boatwright is still trying to work out who she is in the world and what she wants her future to look like.

One thing she is certain of though, is that somebody very important to her is missing.

So with every ounce of courage, she is retracing her story, right back to the day was born.

As I sit with 14-year-old Jessica, at the dining table in her suburban Sydney home, she braces, about to watch the moment she became an orphan.

"I've never seen this before, so it's a bit emotional seeing it,” Jessica explains, her voice quivering.

The teenager remains still, her eyes fixed on the computer screen, as the security footage begins to play.

It shows Jessica's birth mother walking into Liverpool Hospital's Emergency Department.

A sleeping, oblivious Jessica is wrapped in a towel, snug in her mother's arms, just eight hours after being born.

The footage shows the woman talking to medical staff at the counter.

Police say she asks for a Thai interpreter and tells the triage nurse a fake name.

Six hours later, the same woman is captured by cameras leaving the hospital alone.

She walks slowly, looking around, trying not to be detected, straight through the exit.

Jessica's birth mother has just made the heartbreaking decision to abandon her newborn bundle.

"I've only ever read the articles and seen pictures - never actually watched the footage,” Jessica said.

Emotional and her eyes glossy with a hint of tears, Jessica knows the interview we’re about to shoot is her best chance yet to find her mother.

She sits quietly as she waits in anticipation for our camera crew to set up.

Once again, Jessica is left to rely on the media, in a bid to help her be reunited with her birth mother.

Surrounded by lights and cameras, for thirty minutes, she is open, honest and impressive.

Jessica owns her story and begins what will hopefully will be her most important chapter yet.

Her voice finds strength and conviction, as the teenager sends a heartfelt message.

"I love you, even though I've never met you … just be brave and come forward. It's not her fault - whether it was any external reasons or any other reasons, it's not her fault," she said.

Jessica forgives her mother and doesn’t hold a grudge against her for her start to life, vastly different to her Year Nine classmates.

"I want her to know not to feel terrible - not to feel guilty in any way,” she said.

“I want her to know that, for any reason why she left me there, whether it was because she needed to or she felt like I would have a better life, I am doing really well right now and it would just be amazing to find out who she was."

For five long months, the nation searched for Jessica's mother.

Police investigated, doctors grew desperate, as the media pleaded for the runaway mum to come back.

Hope faded and Jessica remained all alone in the world.

Then along came Wendy.

She is a very special lady, who’s opened her heart to many children over the years, including Jessica.

Wendy picked her up from Liverpool Hospital when she was just four days old.

I meet Wendy in the foyer of Liverpool Hospital.

A retired grandmother, she's nervous about our morning together.

We've organized for her to be reunited with Jessica, up on the maternity ward.

We wait for Jessica to arrive with her adopted parents Brad and Anna.

Two people who couldn't be more thankful to Wendy, for giving their daughter the start to life she deserved.

Wendy recalls the day she picked Jessica up from hospital, needing to hatch a plan to sneak her past the waiting media. 

"The police were outside and security were at a distance, following me out, but I walked with the capsule with a blanket over it, through the main foyer and the media were all sitting around, and I pressed the button for the lift and I'm thinking 'please, come on, come on,' the doors opened and I stepped in and then security come in and stepped in with me, and the doors shut and I said 'Gee, we pulled that one off!'" she said.

Wendy cared for Jessica for the first five months of her life.

"I'm the mother, I've got to take on the role of being the mother for this baby, this defenceless baby, and just do motherly instinct and do everything for them until the court system says, 'well they've got to be passed on'," she said.

The door opens and in walks Jessica and her adopted parents.

Once again, Jess is a little lost for words. Emotional.

"Oh my goodness, you're not the little tiny baby, are you?” Wendy said.

“Oh my goodness, how beautiful are you? You were a beautiful baby, and now, oh my!"

"You were still a baby that needed to be nurtured, not this media image. I felt I had to really, really protect you to keep you away from that.”

It's a special reunion, not only for Jessica and Wendy, but also for Brad and Anna, who will never forget the day they became parents for the first time.

"In the back of my mind, I was thinking, 'Is this the baby that I've been reading about in the papers and on the news? I asked her and she said it was," Anna said.

"We were sitting there looking at these news articles wondering whether she might be getting placed with us and I guess we were the lucky ones," Brad explained.

It was the start of the Boatwright family and the beginning of a rich childhood for Jessica.

"They're the best parents ever - they're amazing, supportive, caring parents, always there helping me along,” she said.

“I have lived my life like a normal child who just had a bit of a different start to life."

Jessica is now big sister to eight-year-old Jay and four-year-old Aydah, who are also adopted.

Their family home oozes love and nurturing.

The walls are lined with picture frames, the piano covered in trophies.

Brad and Anna Boatwright know it is important for their daughter to unravel her heritage and get the answers she wants.

"We're excited at the thought of meeting Jessica's birth mum,” Anna explained.

“We'd love to meet her birth mum, we'd love to give her a big hug," Brad said.

Jessica says searching for her birth mother is like searching for a piece of her heart that is missing.

"I would really, really love to meet you, sit down with you, have a conversation,” she said.

“You are my birth mother and I would really like to have that opportunity, but I'm living in a fabulous family at the moment.

“Be brave. There's no judgement. I'm not going to judge you no matter what reason or anything.

“It would be the fairytale ending that I've always wanted."

If you have any information that might help us to reconnect or reunite Jessica with her birth mother, please send us an email.

A grieving Queensland mum says the consumer watchdog, the ACCC, and the Federal Government need to act now to prevent more children dying from swallowing button batteries.

Andrea Shoesmith is angry that key recommendations made after the death of her daughter, Summer, still aren't in place four years later.

The four-year-old died in 2013 after swallowing a button battery.

In 2015, the Coroner investigating Summer’s death recommended all products that contain button batteries should have a child resistant battery compartment.

The Coroner also recommended the ACCC “rapidly” develop regulation for the Federal Government to consider, which would mandate a standard so all button battery compartments are child resistant.

But last week another Coroner investigating the death of one-year-old Isabella Rees in Victoria reiterated calls for stricter regulation of button batteries.

Meanwhile another child, five-year-old Shaylah Carmichael, had to undergo emergency surgery in Melbourne last week to remove a button battery stuck in her oesophagus.

“I’m very angry, very angry because children are dying,” Ms Shoesmith said.

“I’m calling on the ACCC and the Federal Government to do something.”

Twenty children a week are taken to emergency rooms around the country after suspected exposure to the tiny, shiny objects.

They are easily ingested and can lodge in the body, burning through the oesophagus causing life-threatening damage.

It can also be hard to diagnose initially because young children can’t or don’t know to say what they’ve swallowed and the early symptoms can be the same as common childhood illnesses.

For that reason, Ms Shoesmith also said X-rays should be done when parents remain concerned that something is wrong with their child.

“They (button batteries) are loaded guns and they’re everywhere and it just needs to be taken seriously. The Government needs to step in now and do something about it,” Ms Shoesmith said.

Child safety experts are also calling for the Federal Government to act urgently.

“What I want to see done is a general standard for button batteries. Any product that contains a button battery must have a secure button battery compartment which means that you might need a tool to undo it like a screwdriver and a screw, ” Kidsafe Queensland CEO Susan Teerds said.

Toys for children under three years old must legally have a secure battery compartment.

But many other common products don’t including television remotes, torches, kitchen and bathroom scales as well as products aimed at children such as flashing bracelets and balloons.

In March 2019, the federal assistant treasurer issued a safety warning notice to consumers and industry about the risks of button batteries.

An ACCC spokesperson said it’s “currently considering the development of a mandatory standard to improve the safety associated with the supply of button batteries.”

ACCC FULL STATEMENT TO NINE NEWS

Button Batteries are a significant safety issue in Australia and globally. In March 2019, the ACCC identified button battery safety as one of its product safety priorities. Also in March 2019, the Assistant Treasurer issued a safety warning notice to consumers and industry about the risks of button batteries.

The ACCC is currently considering the development of a mandatory standard to improve the safety associated with the supply of button batteries.

This follows the implementation of a National Strategy on button battery safety with the overall objective of reducing incidents of child exposure to button batteries.

In response to the coronial inquest into the death of Summer Steer, the ACCC, in conjunction with state and territory regulators, implemented this National Strategy with the objective of reducing incidents of child exposure to button batteries. This has included market surveillance, testing and guidance to consumers, industry and medical professionals. The ACCC and ACL regulators are now conducting an evaluation of the National Strategy to consider whether adoption of the voluntary Industry Code for Consumer Goods that Contain Button Batteries, is significantly and sufficiently influencing the marketplace to supply safer button battery products, and if not, to identify whether targeted regulatory intervention is required.

No other jurisdiction has implemented a mandatory regulatory response to deal with the risks associated with button batteries. This is in part a result of the fact that button batteries are used in a vast array of products and therefore effective regulatory intervention would have to extend beyond a specified product.

A former Joondalup mayor has blamed police for a 15-month ordeal that landed him in court charged with assaulting a neighbour.

Troy Pickard was accused of assaulting next door neighbour Mark Wild by throwing coffee in his face in January last year, after a dispute over dirt on a driveway escalated.

The incident, part of which was captured on CCTV, also showed the two men spraying each other with high pressure hoses.

Mr Pickard maintained his innocence, saying he threw the coffee on instinct after Mr Wild sprayed him in the face.

Today a magistrate described Mr Pickard's actions as provocative, un-neighbourly and rude, but she acquitted Mr Pickard because the CCTV, which was partially obscured, didn't rule out that Mr Wild had sprayed him moments before the coffee was thrown.

Mr Wild had testified his face exploded in pain after the coffee was thrown and said he was momentarily blinded, but denied he’d sprayed him in the face first.

He also described Mr Pickard, his neighbour of about nine years, as "horrible", saying he'd previously stalked and harassed him, and on the day in question, had deliberately hosed dirt onto his driveway.

Outside court Mr Pickard said he was delighted by the outcome, but said he had no respect or confidence in the WA Police force.

"I encourage all West Australians, if they feel bullied, intimidated or threatened by the WA Police service, that they stand up for their rights," he said.

Mr Pickard’s legal battles may not yet be over - employees and suppliers are pursuing him for payment after three Bucking Bull stores he owned closed down.

In a statement, Mr Pickard said payment is being finalised for all staff and suppliers.

If you speak with your manager now, you could score an impressive 10-day break over Easter by using just three annual leave days.

This year, Good Friday will fall on April 19 while Easter Monday will fall on April 22 and Anzac Day on April 25.

This means if somebody who works a standard Monday to Friday week, could submit an annual leave application for April 23, 24 and 26, they will lock in an impressive (and no doubt well-deserved) 10 days off.

The last time these holidays coincided was 2014 and it won’t happen again until 2025.

While it seems too good to be true, many businesses are in fact already implementing a forced break over the period, including those in the electrical, plumbing, construction, energy, forestry and mining industries.

However, not everybody is happy with the shutdown, which can be costly for some, and even dangerous.

"It's a symptom of construction union bullying that employers feel pressured to sign EBAs where the unions have the power to dictate the timing of RDOs each year and insist they are bundled out as public holidays," Master Builders Association CEO Denita Wawn told 9News.com.au.

"It's one thing to manage one RDO per fortnight, but shutting sites down for 10 consecutive days increases costs for restarting and shutting down sites and expensive equipment which is usually hired.

"Construction projects are also subject to deadlines so having shutdowns for 10 days is a long time and unions can demand triple time for workers to work on these RDOs."

With school holidays also kicking off next week, many parents will welcome the extra time with their children over the extended period.

But employers will be watching out for those who haven’t been granted time off, with plenty prepared to try it on by throwing a ‘sickie’.

“If people take a sickie on the Friday after Anzac Day, they are letting their customers and their co-workers down,” Australian Chamber of and Industry Chief Executive James Pearson told 9News.com.au.

“In the past, more than 180,000 workers have called in sick on the Friday so with hours lost compared to the median wage, the Australian economy will see losses in excess of $60 million.”

The NSW Business Chamber’s Damian Kelly agrees, telling 9News.com.au workers should: "Be organised and don't leave your co-workers in the lurch.

“We are urging people to have the conversation with their bosses now so they don’t leave their boss or fellow workers in the lurch and short staffed.

“We are also encouraging bosses to be as accommodating as possible in regards to granting leave during this time.”

The unseasonably warm Autumn weather will also extend into the Easter break, with clear skies and temperatures expected to reach 23C on Good Friday, staying at similar levels through until after Anzac Day.