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'Seven-foot' shark spotted in Port Hacking river

Andrew English was enjoying a day out on the water with his family in Sydney's south yesterday when he spotted a large shark swimming less than 20 metres away.

"I took the family out a swim, my wife and daughter were swimming in shallows when we spotted it," Mr English told nine.com.au.

In a video taken by Mr English about 2pm on the Port Hacking River near Warumbul, the shark swims along the water's edge and splashes as it chases prey.

READ MORE: Dog attacked by shark while playing in ocean

Mr Andrews said despite his four-year-old child and wife being close by, theshark seemed disinterested in disturbing them.

"It looked like it was about seven foot long."

READ MORE: Australia deadliest country in world for shark attacks in 2020

"It looked like it was just chasing baitfish and it wasn't interested in us but we out of the water pretty quick," he said.

Mr English said he rarely spots sharks while out on the water.

"It was pretty cool to see it up so close," he said.

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Immigration Officers sport new uniforms to mould their identity

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — The Immigration Department introduced new uniforms across the Federation this week as part of efforts to mould its identity as an independent institution. Immigration Officers in St. Kitts and Nevis came to work smartly dressed, donning new blue button-down tops and dark grey bottoms, with shoulder straps that display one, two, or three bars depending on the officer’s rank.

The Immigration Department previously fell under The Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force. It became a separate entity in July 2018, with former Assistant Commissioner of Police, Merclyn Hughes, at the helm as the first-ever Chief Immigration Officer. Since that time, under her leadership, steps have been taken to shape the department’s image. A logo was created and social media platforms, in addition to a webpage, are being developed. The new uniforms are the latest step towards achieving this goal.

Ms. Hughes registered how pleased she was to see the Immigration Officers sporting new uniforms.

“I think this uniform makes us look more like the law-enforcing body that we are,” said Ms. Hughes. Customs Officers posted around the Federation at ports of entry help to create the first impression visitors have of the country. It is important that they look the part, in addition to being professional on the job.

“We have Immigration Officers at the Robert L. Bradshaw International Airport,” she said. “We have the private jet facility, the Kayan Jet section. There are Officers at the Port Zante Marina, Marina Telca at New Guinea, and Christophe Harbour on the Peninsular.

“There are Immigration Officers at the Vance W. Amory International Airport, and the Long Point and Charlestown Piers,” said Ms. Hughes. “We also want to be a body that nationals can take pride in due to the way we present ourselves.”

Deputy Immigration Officer, Jacqueline Browne, was assigned to the Immigration Department for several years prior to its separation. Formerly an inspector of Police, she is excited about the changes being made.

“The new uniforms took a long time to make due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said Ms. Browne. “We are finally here and are very pleased with the results. With the new look, the team feels re-energized, reinvigorated, and motivated to carry out our mission. We provide an efficient and professional service to all arriving and departing our ports, to prevent people from entering illegally, and to liaise with local, regional and international agencies. We discharge our functions in a courteous and friendly manner.”

The officers gave the new uniforms their nod of approval and said they were thrilled with the direction the department is taking.

The post Immigration Officers sport new uniforms to mould their identity appeared first on The St Kitts Nevis Observer.

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Federation supports ILO ‘Intl. Year for Elimination of Child Labour’

Minister of Labour, Hon. Wendy C. Phipps.

BASSETERRE, St. Kitts — St. Kitts and Nevis joined the rest of the regional member states of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on February 11 in the launch of the International Year for the Elimination of Child Labour in the Americas, under the theme #EndChildLabour2021.

This year-long campaign against Child Labour is deemed appropriate by the ILO, particularly given the persistent child labour practices in some Caribbean and Latin American countries.
Continue reading Federation supports ILO ‘Intl. Year for Elimination of Child Labour’ →

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Australia's locally-made vaccine to begin rolling off production line

Scott Morrison said Australia's coronavirus vaccination program is on track, with doses of the vaccine being made in Melbourne to roll off the production line "in a matter of weeks".

The prime minister toured the manufacturing plant for the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine – one of two types of vaccine bought by Australia – at biotech firm, CSL in Melbourne.

"We are doing it here, in Australia, right here in Melbourne," Mr Morrison said.

LIVE UPDATES: Emergency vaccine ruled out for Australians

"That is something that few prime ministers and presidents around the world can say."

More than a million doses will be manufactured each week at the facility, with bottling of the vaccine planned to start on Monday.

The company is working around the clock until 50 million doses are ready but is still awaiting formal approval from the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA).

Prime Minister Scott Morrison at pharmaceutical company CSL which is manufacturing Australia's Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.Prime Minister Scott Morrison at pharmaceutical company CSL which is manufacturing Australia's Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines.

CSL said the first doses of its vaccine are on track for release in March.

Before the coronavirus vaccine leaves the manufacturing facility, scientists, "check it and they check it and then they check it again", according to the prime minister.

"When you go to your GP clinic or the place that you will go to get your vaccination, you can have great confidence, not just in the vaccine itself but the Australian production process," Mr Morrison said.

"It is another important day today, that final phase of that production process starts here Monday."

Production has been underway at the Broadmeadows plant since late last year.

From next week, the final manufacturing phase will begin at CSL's Seqirus facility in Parkville.

"We start our last phase of production on Monday in terms of getting those really important doses into vials and ready for final roll-out," General Manager of Seqirus, a CSL company, Stephen Marlow told Today.

"Our plan is we will have doses available for release at the end of March, which is fantastic. It is ahead of schedule so we are pretty pleased with where we are right now."

The vaccine is formulated to a precise concentration, before being repeatedly filtered and filled into vials ahead of labelling and packing, the company says.

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA - NOVEMBER 08: Staff at CSL are seen working in the lab on November 08, 2020 in Melbourne, Australia. CSL will begin manufacturing AstraZeneca-Oxford University COVID-19 vaccine from Monday. (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)

At the same time, each batch of finished vaccine will undergo an extensive quality check process – by CSL, by AstraZeneca, and by the TGA.

He's confident approval by the TGA will come "soon", he said.

"The TGA have a job to do. They are thorough. We have world-class regulators and they will do their job. Certainly we are buoyed by news that the World Health Organisation recently approved the vaccine for older groups," Mr Marlow, said.

https://twitter.com/GregHuntMP/status/1357177408873373700?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

"The AstraZeneca vaccine has been approved in a lot of countries. We are getting good data from the UK so we are hopeful to get the approval soon."

The firm is expected to release two million doses at the end of March, and then one million doses per week.

The vaccine is "flexible" and could be adapted to suit other variants of the virus, he said.

Also, the CSL facility set to manufacture millions of doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine could switch to other more effective vaccines if necessary, Health Minister Greg Hunt has said.

"What we have learnt from CSL is that CSL can do just about anything," he said.

Meanwhile, the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines are set to arrive here by early next week after the European Commission formally approved a shipment to leave the European Union.

Earlier this week Dr Michael Pulch, the EU's Ambassador to Australia said Australian orders of the Pfizer BioNTech vaccine would progress "as foreseen".

Older Australians and health care and hotel quarantine workers would be first in line for the jab, as soon as later this month.

Health Minister Greg Hunt confirmed the three stages of Australia's vaccination program are all on track.

"We are on track for the Pfizer vaccine to commence in late February," he said.

"On track for the AstraZeneca International – subject to the TGA's approval – to commence in early March.

"And most significantly, on track for the AstraZeneca/CSL, Australian-made vaccine to commence, as the Prime Minister said, in late March."

The vaccination program is set to be completed by the end of October.

So far, Australia is the only continent, alongside Antarctica, which has not started coronavirus vaccinations.