Girls basketball holiday tourney actionThe man tasked with running the under-administration Queensland construction division of the CFMEU has called on the new state government to engage with him to ensure the safety of workers while hitting out at recent LNP attacks. In his first public comments in the role, Travis O’Brien called a media conference outside the union’s Bowen Hills state headquarters late yesterday to express “deep disappointment” in statements made by Police Minister Dan Purdie a day earlier. Purdie had accused the state union of being in “lockstep” with outlaw motorcycle gangs after its national administrator arranged security for the Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne offices in response to threats from bikies and others ostracised from it. “The minister’s comments have jeopardised the safety not only of organisers and staff, they are just plain wrong,” O’Brien said, confirming threats had been made against Queensland officials, but noting it would be “irresponsible” to go into detail. “I have to be responsible enough to not look for column-inches in the gossip column, and I ask the police minister to take the same approach,” he said. “To be clear, and I want to be as clear as I can be, the CFMEU [in Queensland] is not in lockstep with bikies. That is just wrong. If the new government is opposed to organised crime in the construction industry, I suggest they have a look at some of the building companies currently engaged on government-funded projects.” O’Brien criticised the LNP’s dumping of the former Labor government’s Best Practice Industry Conditions procurement policy as a way to ensure projects were kept on time and budget – noting some under such conditions were. With the LNP making clear they would refuse to deal with the union, despite it still operating under administration for its more than 20,000 members in the state after allegations of organised crime links and corruption against Victorian and NSW figures, O’Brien called on the government to “stop playing politics”. “Stop looking for clickbait, and instead sit down with me to talk about how we can ensure that construction workers in Queensland are staying safe,” he said. “I am convinced that the actions of this government are going to lead to increased risks on site that will include workers being killed.” It was only a matter of time before billionaire X owner Elon Musk weighed in on Australia’s bid to ban social media for children under 16. Last night, Musk reposted a statement from Prime Minister Anthony Albanese about the introduction of the ban to the parliament, writing that the move “seems like a backdoor way to control access to the Internet by all Australians”. The ban is being fast-tracked through parliament, with Albanese saying the government wanted this “action to happen as soon as possible”, as the opposition confirmed it would work constructively to see the bill passed next week. A teenage girl has been reported missing in Ipswich. The 14-year-old was last seen on Thursday at a property in Bell Street about 8am. The teenager was last seen in Bell Street, Ipswich. Credit: QPS The girl is about 160 centimetres tall, with blonde hair and blue eyes, and was wearing a black hoodie and tracksuit pants when she was last seen. She is known to frequently visit Collingwood Park and Redbank. Police are calling for anyone with relevant information to come forward. Townsville City Mayor Troy Thompson had been suspended from his position. Thompson had been the subject of investigation for almost 250 days, following allegations of suspected voter fraud during his March 2024 mayoral election campaign, including a claim he served five years in the army. In an interview on Nine’s A Current Affair* earlier this year he acknowledged misleading voters about his military record, blaming “100-plus” concussions. Minister for Local Government Ann Leahy said in a statement yesterday that she had signed off on regulation to suspend Thompson for 12 months on full pay. “During his suspension Mr Thompson cannot perform any of the duties of a councillor or mayor,” Leahy said. “This result is a win for the residents of Townsville who deserve stability and a functioning local government.” In a statement released on October 21, when Thompson was required to submit evidence for the ongoing investigation, Thompson said he would not step down of his own accord. “Should I be suspended by the minister, I will respect her decision at this time, but I will challenge this and look to a high court injunction, if required,” his statement read. During Thompson’s suspension, Deputy Mayor Paul Jacob was expected to assume the role of acting mayor. *Nine also owns this masthead. As the government continues to delay its gambling ad policy announcement, opposition communications spokesperson David Coleman said it was “remarkable” that Communications Minister Michelle Rowland conceded no decision had been made. It’s now been well over a year since a parliamentary inquiry chaired by late Labor MP Peta Murphy recommended a ban on all gambling ads across television, radio, newspapers and online within three years. “The prime minister is scared that whatever he announces on gambling advertising is going to upset people, so he’s taking the weak option and basically doing nothing,” Coleman told ABC’s RN Breakfast . “So the position he’s taken is do nothing, and that has very real consequences. And it’s well past time that action was taken.” Coleman was pushed repeatedly on whether the Coalition would go one step further and commit to a full ban on gambling ads. Coleman avoided the question, deferring to a promised response to any policy the government announces. “We’ve got a policy that we put in place already... The next step is for the government of Australia to have an opinion on this issue.” Foreign Minister Penny Wong has responded to the International Criminal Court issuing arrest warrants for Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former defence chief Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Ibrahim Al-Masri, for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the Gaza conflict. “Australia respects the independence of the ICC and its important role in upholding international law,” Wong wrote in a statement posted to X. “Australia is focused on working with countries that want peace to press for an urgently needed ceasefire.” The man tasked with running the under-administration Queensland construction division of the CFMEU has called on the new state government to engage with him to ensure the safety of workers while hitting out at recent LNP attacks. In his first public comments in the role, Travis O’Brien called a media conference outside the union’s Bowen Hills state headquarters late yesterday to express “deep disappointment” in statements made by Police Minister Dan Purdie a day earlier. Purdie had accused the state union of being in “lockstep” with outlaw motorcycle gangs after its national administrator arranged security for the Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne offices in response to threats from bikies and others ostracised from it. “The minister’s comments have jeopardised the safety not only of organisers and staff, they are just plain wrong,” O’Brien said, confirming threats had been made against Queensland officials, but noting it would be “irresponsible” to go into detail. “I have to be responsible enough to not look for column-inches in the gossip column, and I ask the police minister to take the same approach,” he said. “To be clear, and I want to be as clear as I can be, the CFMEU [in Queensland] is not in lockstep with bikies. That is just wrong. If the new government is opposed to organised crime in the construction industry, I suggest they have a look at some of the building companies currently engaged on government-funded projects.” O’Brien criticised the LNP’s dumping of the former Labor government’s Best Practice Industry Conditions procurement policy as a way to ensure projects were kept on time and budget – noting some under such conditions were. With the LNP making clear they would refuse to deal with the union, despite it still operating under administration for its more than 20,000 members in the state after allegations of organised crime links and corruption against Victorian and NSW figures, O’Brien called on the government to “stop playing politics”. “Stop looking for clickbait, and instead sit down with me to talk about how we can ensure that construction workers in Queensland are staying safe,” he said. “I am convinced that the actions of this government are going to lead to increased risks on site that will include workers being killed.” Another wet one is forecast for Brisbane today, so don’t forget your umbrella. The bureau predicts a high chance of showers, both in the morning and in the afternoon. It should be a clearer weekend, however, with the chance of showers much lower on both days. And today the maximum temperature should top out at a cool 25 degrees, before higher daily maximums for much of next week. Here’s the outlook into the weekend and beyond: Here’s what’s happening beyond Brisbane this morning: Simone White, the 28-year British lawyer who died in the suspected methanol poisoning incident in Laos. Credit: Facebook A British woman who fell ill after drinking contaminated alcohol in Laos has died, the fifth foreign national now suspected to have died in the incident. Four other tourists – including Australian Bianca Jones , two Danes and an American – have died in the incident. Some households face spending more than their entire income to keep a roof over their head. Far-right Republican Matt Gaetz has withdrawn his bid to become Donald Trump’s attorney-general amid ongoing revelations of alleged sexual misconduct involving an underage girl. Black Friday can be both tempting and overwhelming, so here are a few ways to get the most out of any bargain . And in sport, the WA premier and $500m went to Sydney . The Perth Bears dream is alive and well. The mood in India: Complacency and anxiety, but this Test battle will decide the series. Good morning, thanks for joining us for Brisbane Times’ live news blog. It’s Friday, November 22, and we’re expecting showers today and a top temperature of 24 degrees. In this morning’s local headlines: A busy Riverside Expressway off-ramp has closed to traffic at least four times this week because debris from the Queen’s Wharf development caused the road to flood. The off-ramp may need to close again today, for a more extensive investigation into the blockages. Transport workers clear the Margaret Street off-ramp debris. Credit: Catherine Strohfeldt A report has found households in the four outer urban councils forming Greater Brisbane have less than half the access to frequent public transport than their more central city neighbours. As Brisbane-born Nathan McSweeney prepares to take on India as Australia’s new opening batsman, his old junior teammate and Brisbane Heat paceman Xavier Bartlett says McSweeney has the makings of a Test star. And are you strong on current affairs, or just good at guessing? Try out the weekly Brisbane Times Quiz.None
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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. (AP) — Honor Huff had 24 points in Chattanooga's 85-63 victory against Alabama A&M on Sunday. Huff shot 6 for 12 (6 for 11 from 3-point range) and 6 of 6 from the free-throw line for the Mocs (7-4). Trey Bonham added 21 points while going 6 of 9 from the floor, including 3 for 6 from 3-point range, and 6 for 6 from the line while he also had three steals. Makai Richards shot 4 of 6 from the field to finish with eight points. The Bulldogs (4-6) were led by Anthony Bryant, who posted 19 points and four steals. Alabama A&M also got 11 points from Darius Ford. Chad Moodie had nine points. The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar .