Metropolitan Police have confirmed human remains found in English woodlands are those of Sarah Everard.

Assistant Commissioner Nick Ephgrave on Friday (1am Saturday AEDT) confirmed the body found during searches near Ashford, Kent, earlier this week was that of the 33-year-old.

A serving Met Police officer remains in custody, held on suspicion of kidnap and murder.

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"I know that the public feel hurt and angry about what has happened and those are sentiments I share personally," Mr Ephgrave said during a press conference, before addressing the wider topic of women's safety.

Police confirmed Ms Everard's family had been informed of the finding.

Hours earlier the family paid tribute to their "bright and beautiful", "wonderful daughter and sister".

"She was kind and thoughtful, caring and dependable," they said.

"She always put others first and had the most amazing sense of humour.

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"She was strong and principled and a shining example to us all. We are very proud of her and she brought so much joy to our lives."

The suspect is a man in his 40s, who works with the Met's parliamentary and diplomatic protection command. He was taken to hospital yesterday suffering head injuries.

Met Police said he was being monitored in a cell by CCTV and received immediate first aid.

After being treated at hospital, the man was discharged and returned to the police station, where he remains.

A woman in her 30s was also arrested in Kent earlier this week, on suspicion of assisting an offender, and was later released on bail until mid-April.

The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IPOC) is investigating whether Met officers responded appropriately to reports of indecent exposure by the man in question, which is alleged to have occurred just days before Ms Everard went missing.

Ms Everard, who is originally from York, was last seen on March 3 in Clapham, south London, when she was on her way home from a friend's house about 9.30pm (local time).

She was wearing a green rain jacket, navy blue trousers with a white diamond pattern and turquoise and orange trainers when she went missing.

A security camera placed in a doorway reportedly captured her walking alone on the south London streets towards her home but police said it was unclear if she ever reached her Brixton home.

Metropolitan Police launched an appeal for the missing woman, leading to more than 120 calls from the public and officers visited 750 homes in the area before making the grim discovery in woodlands near Kent, south of London.

jasA Brisbane hospital is in lockdown and contact tracing is underway after a worker tested positive for COVID-19.

Queensland Health confirmed the decision on Friday evening after a positive test result was received earlier in the day.

All non-essential visits to patients at the Princess Alexandra Hospital have been banned, elective surgeries postponed and a mask mandate for anyone attending the hospital.

READ MORE: Early vaccine supplies 'a lot less than anticipated', concedes PM

The PA Hospital staff member had contact with COVID-19 patients early on March 10 and was infectious in the community the following day, Queensland Health said.

The department said all patients, staff and families who had contact with the infected staff were being identified and public exposure sites would likely be shared tomorrow.

Queensland Health said the emergency department would remain open but urged potential patients to choose another hospital or GP if possible.

"Staff will wear masks at all times," a Queensland Health statement said.

"Patients will be required to wear masks at all times unless it is not clinically appropriate.

"Non-urgent outpatient bookings and elective surgery will be postponed."

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk also shared the message on Twitter.

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In an email to staff, seen by 9News, the worker was described as a "medical officer".

"Effective immediately, PAH is classified as 'moderate risk' which requires flat surgical masks to be worn by all staff, patients and visitors [without] exception when interacting within 1.5 metres of others on the campus," the email read.

"Please follow the advice of your line manager and the concierge staff and please talk with your patients so that they can contact their family members to prevent visitors attending the campus who we cannot accommodate at this time."

Anyone with COVID-19 symptoms is urged to get tested immediately and isolate until receiving a negative result.

A former soldier has been charged with slavery offences after being arrested in a Bunnings car park at Armidale on the NSW northern tablelands.

James Robert Davis, 40, has previously been the subject of a documentary boasting about his BDSM lifestyle and being in a relationship with multiple women.

Today, five women who live with him, came to support him at Armidale Local Court where he appeared via video link from the police station.

The court heard Mr Davis was accused of "possessing a slave" and "causing a person live in servitude" at Maroubra in Sydney's east in 2013. 

Yesterday, Australian Federal Police raided the remote property where he lives with his partners, seizing several items as part of an ongoing investigation. 

Mr Davis is the leader of a cult like group called the "House of Cadifor", where Mr Davis calls himself the "patriarchal overlord" and all of his partners call him  "master".

"[People] think I must be some kind of abusive oppressor, a misogynist, manipulator, or even a monster," he said in a documentary. 

"But the truth is, I'm just a guy who loves both freedom and commitment, and who was lucky enough to find some incredible women to love, and who love me back.

In videos posted by the group online, the women he lived with bow down when he walks into a room.

"Good morning Master, your owned property Slave 808497061 has missed you, and is here presented ready and waiting to serve you," one woman said to him as he sits back on a couch.

The 40-year-old has previously been very open about his lifestyle, but in recent months he and his partners have deleted their social media accounts.

"I think every man needs a cage in their room. It helps managing extra girlfriends and sleepovers a lot easier," Davis said in the five-part series he filmed about his life. 

Davis did not apply for bail but is expected to apply next week.

A man who shared intimate images and video of his former partner and tried to blackmail her by threatening to spread them more widely has been jailed in a landmark revenge porn prosecution.

On October 13, the 26-year-old foreign national pleaded guilty to two charges, one of which was the first to rely on Commonwealth revenge porn laws passed in 2018.

According to the Australian Federal Police, he faced the District Court of South Australia on Friday and was jailed for two months.

READ MORE: New NSW revenge porn laws would offer extra protection to victims

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Authorities in the country where the former partner was living first alerted the AFP in November 2019, sparking an investigation in Australia.

When police examined his phones and computers, they found "four months worth of threatening and offensive messages from the man to the woman".

Police said while some of the videos and images were taken consensually, the Adelaide resident later sent some of them to the woman and her new partner, breaching her trust.

"He also tried to blackmail the woman and threatened to send the intimate content to her family and post it on social media and pornographic websites," the AFP said in a statement released on Friday afternoon.

"The man told his victim that Australian police would not be able to prosecute him because he was not an Australian citizen and she was living in a different country."

The 25-year-old pleaded guilty to two counts of using a carriage service to menace, harass or cause offence, one of which was aggravated by "the distribution of private sexual material".

Police said the man was sentenced to one year and 25 days in prison but would be released after two months on an 18-month good behaviour bond. 

Helicopters were put on standby and five fire trucks sent to help after a “food truck” caught on fire while being driven through a high fire risk area near Queenstown tonight.Dramatic photos show the truck fully ablaze on the Glenorchy-Queenstown…

Almost 14 million Australians with private health insurance will face a price hike come April 1 – the second in just six months – and the hits keep coming.

The federal government will also decrease its rebate slightly from 25.059 per cent for under 65s on the base tier to 24.608 per cent on April 1, making premiums a little more pricey.

Add to that, the latest APRA report published last month found out-of-pocket expenses for hospital treatment was up 13 per cent on the previous year.

READ MORE: Private Health Insurance changes for 2021 explained

"I think it will be tough for a lot of families," Consumers Health Forum of Australia chief executive Leanne Wells said.

With non-elective surgery wait lists at public hospitals growing exponentially as the pandemic added to the backlog, the number of Australians who took out private health insurance actually grew in the last quarter.

Private health insurers increase their premiums on April 1 each year. But as the pandemic hit last year, many deferred their annual increase to October 1.

This latest price hike of an average 2.7 per cent will add around $122 a year on average to the family policy – the second in six months. Singles will pay around $60 a year more.

APRA found that due to COVID, the health funds had negligible premium growth and weaker investment earnings because of market volatility especially in the first half of 2020 that led to a decline in net profit after tax of 61.2 per cent to $558.2 million.

"We do encourage Australians who are struggling with the cost of private health insurance to consider switching rather than ditching," iSelect spokeswoman Jessie Petterd said.

But it's not all bad news. If you're willing to switch insurers or sign up for the first time to avoid the 1.5 per cent Medicare levy surcharge, there are some decent incentives on offer.

And with the industry facing a big slump in profitability in 2020, they're all clambering for new business – as long as you commit by March 31.

Some funds are offering e-gift cards and frequent flyer points while BUPA, Medibank, hbf, Health Partners and hif are promising six weeks free with waiting periods waived.

Other funds like ahm, nib and Frank are giving one month free.

Ms Wells warned some premiums may cost more in the long run and to not fall for the gimmicks.

She said healthy young families had to weigh up whether private health insurance is worth the cost.

Below are some of the incentives on offer:

• BUPA: Six weeks free, two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• Medibank: Six weeks free, two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• ahm: One month free and two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• hbf: Six weeks free
• nib: One month free and two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• AIA: Up to eight weeks free
• Cua: Up to $400 e-gift card and 4 per cent off premiums
• Qantas insurance: up to 140,000 frequent flyer points
• Australian Unity: Four weeks free and two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• Health Partners: Six weeks free and instant access to extras
• hif: Six weeks free and two-month extras waiting period waived
• Frank: One month free and two and six-month extras waiting period waived
• TUH Health Fund: Win a year of health insurance premiums in gift cards

Three teenage girls involved in a home invasion that led to the death of a 90-year-old Levin woman have been sentenced in the Palmerston North High Court this afternoon.Grace Isobel Virtue died 25 days after the home invasion at…

Residents of the South Taranaki town of Pateā are frustrated with the number of unexpected cuts to the town’s power supply, with residents demanding answers from electricity supplier Powerco. Powerco confirmed to the Chronicle…

The lawyers of the truck driver who killed four police officers on Melbourne's Eastern Freeway last year have argued he deserves sympathy.

The families of the four fallen police officers had to sit in the same room as Mohinder Singh for a second day as the truck driver's lawyers made a pitch for him to be given a lenient sentence.

After speaking of their devastating loss yesterday, the families of Lynette Taylor, Kevin King, Glen Humphris and Josh Prestney were told to brace themselves for the details of Singh's life leading up to the crash on April 22 last year.

The driver's lawyers allege Singh was pressured to continue working by his boss at the trucking company, despite raising concerns he was not fit to drive.

Peter Morrissey SC said his client prayed with his boss for 40 minutes, before agreeing to complete one final delivery.

Singh was high on ice at the time and stopped on his route to do a drug deal, before veering into the emergency lane of the Eastern Freeway, colliding with the police officers.

READ MORE: P-plate driver sobs in court after being jailed for killing cyclist

On the day of the crash he was psychotic and driven by delusions he had been cursed by a witch.

A forensic psychiatrist revealed Singh had been on drugs for five years.

Singh's lawyer described him as an interesting character who is worthy of sympathy.

The Cranbourne father still has the support of his wife and two children.

He will be sentenced on April 14.

By Philip Chandler of Mountain Scene A seven metre-high digital billboard proposed for the side of Queenstown’s Crowne Plaza hotel has some locals seeing red.The 34sq m billboard would display advertising messages aimed at pedestrians…