Retail juggernaut Wesfarmers has signaled its intention to purchase the entirety of Australian Pharmaceutical Industries for $687 million.

The offer, if accepted, will see Wesfarmers own 100 per cent of iconic retail chains Priceline Pharmacy, Soul Pattinson and Pharmacist Advice brands.

Wesfarmers notified shareholders of the offer today, which values API at $1.38 per share.

READ MORE: Woolworths, Coles to change make-up range after thousands of women sign petition

API also operates Clear Skincare clinics which offer services such as skin treatments, laser hair removal and non-invasive cosmetic procedures.

API's major shareholder Washington H. Soul Pattinson and Company Limited – which owns 19.3 per cent of API – has agreed to vote in favour of the proposal by Wesfarmers.

Wesfarmers Managing Director Rob Scott said the acquisition of API would provide an attractive opportunity to enter the growing health, wellbeing and beauty sector.

"If the Proposal is successful, API would form the basis of a new healthcare division of Wesfarmers and a base from which to invest and develop capabilities in the health and wellbeing sector," Mr Scott said.

"The combination of Wesfarmers and API is a compelling opportunity to capitalise on API's strengths and positioning in these markets while drawing upon Wesfarmers' capabilities in retail and distribution, our strong balance sheet and our willingness to invest in our businesses for growth over the long term."

READ MORE: Bunnings shelves stripped bare of mice control

Mr Scott said if successful in its bid, Wesfarmers is likely to keep the pharmacies operating as is but improve the product offerings and supply chains.

"Wesfarmers supports the community pharmacy model, including the pharmacy ownership and location rules, and considers API's relationships with its community pharmacy partners to be one of its key strengths," Mr Scott said.

"We see opportunities to build on these relationships and invest to expand ranges, improve supply chain capabilities and enhance the online experience for customers.

"These investments are expected to strengthen the competitive position of API and its community pharmacy partners."

Wesfarmers is one of the biggest companies in Australia, owning and operating a number of iconic brands including Bunnings, the Kmart Group, Officeworks and a number of chemical and industrial businesses.

9News has been granted an inside look into one of Queensland's biggest COVID-19 testing and tracing facilities.

While the Bowen Hills Sullivan Nicolaides building may seem like a simple office building outside, the real work inside allows thousands of tests to be processed each day.

Sullivan Nicolaides CEO Michael Harrison has also revealed how quickly the facility had to speed up its processes last year – and how it's still speeding along.

READ MORE: Superyacht crew caused Queensland COVID scare after coming from Sydney

"I describe it as a sprint that turned into a marathon … we've maxed out," Mr Harrison said.

Over 13,000 tests a day are brought into the 72 staff facility, with a revolving door of couriers dropping off tests from all over the region.

The testing process sees liquid extracted by hand from each delivered swab.

If the virus is present in the liquid, it's then chemically separated, combined with agents, and then analysed by heating it and cooling it repeatedly.

The process alone can take up to 12 hours and delivers a simple dot chart for staff to identify cases – red being positive and green being negative.

9News has been told a 24-hour turnaround from test to result is considered a "badge of honour".

"That's an extraordinary achievement – and I'm still amazed that we manage to do that," Mr Harrison said.

Seven men charged with the murder of bikie Shane Bowden have had their matter heard in court as police release new videos of their dramatic arrests.

The arrests, which took place primarily across the Gold Coast on Sunday, follow Brisbane West Mongols president Ian Ronald Crowden's arrest.

He was also charged with Mr Bowden's murder.

READ MORE: Superyacht crew caused Queensland COVID scare after coming from Sydney

The arrests were the culmination of a long-term police operation that included several videos and pictures being released to the public regarding the late 2020 killing.

Among those arrested included Haydn Forbes, 25, the son of the National Mongols President Nick Forbes.

Others include Junior Torope, 29, Fidel Gunes, 29, David Meatuai, 41, Junior Mau'u, 23, Joshua Small, 29 and Peter Cummins, 35.

It's currently unknown what part each man is alleged to have played in the lead up to the killing, or if any were one of two alleged triggermen captured of CCTV.

Their matters were wrapped up within minutes today at the Brisbane Magistrates Court, with none of the men appearing.

They were all denied bail.

They will face court again later this year.

9News understands Crowden plans to contest his murder charge, and most of the men will be making an application for bail in the Supreme court.

"I'd be surprised if the murder charge stuck in relation to the bulk of the men," Defence lawyer Michael Gatenby told 9News.

"Some people have almost no involvement."

Police have also released new video of the weekend arrests, with scenes showing large amounts of Mongols paraphernalia.

"You're under arrest in relation to murder," one officer can be heard saying.

Multiple Mongols jackets, banners, and shirts can be seen at the addresses searched.

9News understands more arrests are expected to be made.

By Liu Chen of RNZ New Zealanders stranded in Australia are increasingly frustrated as returning flights are snapped up moments after going on sale. Bookings opened at 10am today for flights from tomorrow on Air New Zealand’s…

More than a dozen inmates have been removed from the roof of a Sydney prison.

Prisoners at Parklea Correctional Centre in Sydney's north-west climbed onto the roofs of buildings at the prison this afternoon about 2pm.

Aerial images showed a number of prisoners standing and walking on the roofs of the facility.

Smoke was also seen pouring out of the roof.

By about 5pm, the 14 inmates on the roof had been removed and officials were now accounting for and securing all inmates.

The incident started about 2pm when those inmates accessed a roof area and refused to comply with staff directions.

About 50 inmates in yards also refused to comply and staff deployed "chemical munitions" to clear the yards, officials said in a statement.

Inmates inside allegedly lit fires, which have since been put out.

Corrective Services NSW is investigating the incident.

Fifteen men have been issued $1000 COVID-19 infringement notices for gathering to play volleyball in a breach of Sydney's current public health orders.

NSW police officers noticed the group of men playing at a park in Canley Vale around 3.30pm on Sunday and approached them.

When officers approached some men fled the scene, but police stopped and spoke with 14 men, who had travelled to the area from across south-west Sydney including Cabramatta, Carramar, Canley Vale, Canley Heights, Kemps Creek, Cecil Hills, Liverpool and Leppington.

READ MORE: Six-day coronavirus exposure alert for two Fairfield businesses

A fifteenth man, who left his car keys and wallet at the park, spoke with officers a short time later.

All 15 men – aged between 20 and 63 – were issued with $1000 fines.

It was the latest in a series of incidents that involved police discovering Sydney residents not abiding by the city's coronavirus lockdown.

In a second incident, officers from Inner West Police Area Command were called to a hotel at St Peters about 9.15pm yesterday following reports of a disturbance in one of the rooms.

READ MORE: When will Sydney's lockdown end?

On arrival, police spoke with four men – aged between 32 and 41 – who said they had gathered to drink and socialise as they had not seen each other in years.

All four men were issued $1000 fines – with three sent home and the fourth remaining at the hotel.

In total, police issued 105 infringement notices, 16 of which were $200 fines for failing to wear a mask.

READ MORE: NSW records 112 new COVID-19 cases

NSW Police to use 'less discretion' with COVID-19 fines

NSW Police Minister David Elliott said police will be using less discretion from now on when targeting Sydneysiders who break lockdown rules.

"In the last couple of days police have been working with communities that don't listen to mainstream media and maybe haven't got the message, so the days of excuses will soon end and you will find yourself with either a $1000 ticket or a trip to a courthouse," Mr Elliott told Today.

Mr Elliott said police didn't want to give fines and the roughly 100 which were given in the latest 24-hour period was out of five million people, so most were doing the right thing.

"I think that the $1000 fine is fair. We don't want to give fines. The government doesn't want to give fines, we just want everybody to do the right thing because we all want to make sure we can get through this as quickly as possible," he said.

By RNZ A Royal New Zealand Air Force aircraft has completed a high-risk mission to evacuate an injured person from Antarctica.The C-130 Hercules, with 13 crew on board, including two Defence Force medical personnel, left Christchurch…

An inquest into the death of a newborn baby at Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital has heard it took a week to discover the gas lines had been mixed up at installation.

Baby John Ghanem lived for just one hour after birth, given nitrous oxide instead of oxygen during resuscitation in 2016.

Amelia Khan was left with severe brain injuries in similar circumstances a month earlier.

READ MORE: Hospital subcontractor fined $100k over gas mix up that killed Sydney newborn

Today Lidcombe Coroner's Court was told the "shocking chain of events" made "no sense" to staff to begin with.

"It should be noted that his death also affected the doctors and nurses at Bankstown Lidcombe Hospital who had fought so hard to keep John alive."

One nurse had heard of a strikingly similar event in India and lodged a request that the gas lines be tested.

READ MORE: Charges over deadly gas mix-up at Bankstown-Lidcombe Hospital dropped

But the court heard they were not checked by BOC until a week later, exposing the tragic error.

Installer Christopher Turner was fined $100,000 for failing to test the lines in accordance with the Australian standard when he signed off on the work. 

Counsel Assisting said the inquest would try to build on what has already been done.

"What would any of us expect to see happen … to try to minimise the chance that a similar thing could ever happen again."

It will examine what changes have been made and if more has to be done.

Former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has said he would never associate himself with the government's "comprehensively botched" COVID-19 vaccine program.

His latest statement comes after reports he intervened to speed the delivery of Pfizer vaccines to Australia were denied by the Federal Government.

Health Minister Greg Hunt earlier rubbished suggestions an intervention from former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd had any impact on the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines from manufacturer Pfizer.

Pfizer has also denied any "third party" had been involved in their negotiations with the Federal Government.

"Mr Rudd would definitely not seek to associate himself with the Australian government's comprehensively botched vaccine procurement program."

A report by the ABC said Mr Rudd had been approached by a group of senior Australian businessmen to get in touch with the US pharmaceutical company to bring forward vaccine delivery.

LIVE UPDATES: Health Minister defends 'graphic' COVID-19 ad

It was reported the Federal Government had displayed a "rude" and "penny-pinching" attitude in initial negotiations, and that Pfizer executives had been reduced to dealing with junior government representatives.

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, from Mr Rudd's opposing political party though also dumped by his colleagues, tweeted congratulations to Mr Rudd for getting involved and said he was "staggered" by the news.

READ MORE: When will Sydney's lockdown end?

https://twitter.com/TurnbullMalcolm/status/1414349397337407489?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

In a letter dated June 30 to Prime Minister Scott Morrison's office, and obtained by the ABC, Mr Rudd said he had been acting as a private citizen and at no point had claimed to be a government representative.

The letter states Mr Rudd had asked Pfizer chairman Albert Bourla whether there was an opportunity for "significant quantities" of the Pfizer vaccine to be advanced to Australia in the third quarter of the year.

"In response to my representations, Dr Bourla said he would personally look at 'what further might be able to be done'," the letter read.

Mr Rudd this afternoon issued a statement, saying before contacting Dr Bourla, he had contact Mr Morrison asking if there was anything he could "say, or not say" to benefit Australia's vaccine rollout program.

"Mr Morrison provided some advice and later thanked Mr Rudd for his letter summarising the conversation," the statement read.

Mr Rudd confirmed again he had been acting as a concerned private citizen and that all negotiating powers rested with the federal government.

"Mr Rudd would definitely not seek to associate himself with the Australian government's comprehensively botched vaccine procurement program," the statement read.

Mr Morrison today told Sky News the government's work with Pfizer had been responsible for bringing forward the delivery of the contracted 40 million doses.

"I welcome the support from anyone who wants to assist with these things, and that's fine," he said.

"But ultimately, as Pfizer has made very clear, I mean, this is a contractual relationship between the federal government … and Pfizer."

Both Mr Hunt and Pfizer also sternly rebutted claims that negotiations between the Federal Government and the company were influenced by anybody else.

READ MORE: Help for struggling Sydney businesses 'imminent'

"Recent media reports suggesting that any third party or individual has had any role in contractual agreements reached between Pfizer and the Australian government are inaccurate," Pfizer said in a statement.

"Pfizer is committed to delivering 40 million doses of the Pfizer-BioNTechCOVID-19 vaccine to Australia over 2021.

"Pfizer has met its contractual agreements to date and is on track to deliver the remaining doses by the end of the year."

Mr Hunt similarly brushed the reports aside, saying they were "unattributed" and "unverified".

He said the government had secured the best deal possible from Pfizer.

"I had a little chuckle when I saw the story," he said.

"We received a letter from the individual in question, I think, not long ago and we said to ourselves, 'well, no doubt that will be released when our current negotiations are announced publicly'.

"That is exactly what happened."

Mr Hunt said he welcomed Mr Rudd's input into the vaccine rollout, but said it had not had any impact.

"We just got exactly the best outcome that we were seeking on exactly the terms and on exactly the time frame," he said.

"So I respect that individuals will sometimes take initiatives and we welcome and thank them, but did it make a difference? No."

He suggested the letter was part of "a little game".

A 12-vehicle pile-up blocked eastbound lanes on Auckland’s Northwestern Motorway on Monday night and left a motorist with critical injuries. A Waka Kotahi spokesperson said the crash before the Rosebank Rd on-ramp blocked the centre…