BURPENGARY: Jets speedster Matt Couper has primed himself for a big rugby league season by running for Queensland over the summer.

MT GRAVATT: One local couple has found cold comfort in claims burglaries are on the decline, after thieves ransacked their home during the Christmas holidays.

CABOOLTURE: A local boat building company has developed a new catamaran with a major point of difference.

BRIGHTON: Morning tea and big lunch have become the latest casualties in the fight against food allergies.

MITCHELTON: As Queensland Cricket starts its search for the man to replace retiring Michael Kasprowicz, Mitchelton teenager Matthew Elworthy has produced a spell that would make the former Australian Test player proud.

GREENBANK Hundred of local jobs will be on the line and half a million dollars of community funding in doubt if controversial poker machine legislation is approved in Federal Parliament next week.

KENMORE: Brisbane City Council bus drivers will be counselled about how they deal with young people after two primary schoolboys were stranded at a Kenmore bus stop.

BRISBANE: The struggling bus network has become the focus of the battle for City Hall, with both major parties unveiling ambitious upgrade plans within a day of each other.

KILCOY: Craig Lowndes, the Caboolture Shire Senior Sportsperson of the Year in 2002, will be one of the favourites for the 2008 V8 Supercar Championship. Herald reporter Andre Grimaux caught up with the former Wamuran resident now based at Kilcoy, ahead of the season launch in Melbourne.

WOOLLOONGABBA: Car dealer Joe David has been crowned Queensland's oldest and longest-serving motor vehicle dealer.

BRISBANE: It is the great barbecue-stopper, the most talked about issue and the biggest frustration for its residents - traffic.