New South Wales farmers are being warned the mouse plague which has already caused millions of dollars in crop losses could be more devastating come Spring.

A national working group has been formed to prepare for the continuation of the worst mouse plague in living memory.

The group's chairman, Simon Humphrys, says around 3 million hectares in the southern cropping region were affected in autumn, including at Warren and Parkes.

However Dr Humphrys says mice attacking flowering crops during Spring will do a lot more damage to yields.

"One mouse at sowing time going through or down a row can really only probably get to 10 or 12 maybe 20 grains before it's satisfied, but if he's attacking flowers then he has the potential to impact on a lot more than just 20 grains and so one mouse can do a lot more damage in Spring than he can do in Autumn," he said.

He says the rodents will become more active as the weather warms up within the next six weeks.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-16/spring-heralds-devastating-mouse-plague/2840758

Opposition Leader Tony Abbott's anti-carbon tax campaign hit a snag at a Canberra butcher today.

It is Mr Abbott's custom to invite journalists, photographers and camera crews to observe him daily in a Liberal-friendly business, filleting a fish or driving a nail, and today was to be no different.

But it was far from business as usual. Reporters arrived at The Butcher Shop in Dickson at 10am to find one of Mr Abbott's staffers blocking their entrance and no sign of the Opposition Leader.

The picture opportunity had apparently been given the chop.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-08-17/abbott-carbon-campaign-hits-a-snag/2843290

An independent MP has sided with the opposition's attempt to force embattled Labor MP Craig Thomson to front Parliament and defend allegations he misused a credit card issued to him when he was a union leader.

But the Labor government dodged the bullet when insufficient crossbenchers followed Tasmanian MP Andrew Wilkie - who helped Prime Minister Julia Gillard get to power last year - in voting with the opposition, and the motion failed.

The opposition denied any "pairs" in Parliament, including Arts Minister Simon Crean, who was scheduled to attend a state memorial service for artist Margaret Olley in Sydney, and Ms Gillard who was to welcome the President of the Republic of Seychelles.

Mr Crean accused Mr Abbott of "taking the wrecking ball to Parliament".

Mr Abbott said it was a matter of "political integrity".

Speaking during a rowdy parliamentary session, leader of the house Anthony Albanese said the Coalition in the past had taken the same approach as Labor and allowed investigations into MPs to take their course without hindrance.

"It is a very dangerous slippery slope when the Parliament sets itself up for this sort of engagement and this sort of grubby behaviour such as we are seeing here," Mr Albanese said.

PM dodges bullet as Thomson motion fails