Bull shark inside swimming enclosure

NOT WELCOME: The shark inside the enclosure. PIC: Channel 7 Source: Supplied

A LARGE bull shark has been sighted in the swimming enclosure at Macleay Island in Moreton Bay off Brisbane this afternoon.

No one has been hurt.

Channel 7 has run footage of the shark.

Macleay Island wildlife officer Michael David said he had never heard of a shark getting into the swimming enclosure.

"The only way it would get in there if someone put it in there or if there was a rip in the net," he said.

"There's no way they can get in otherwise."

He said the swimming enclosure, close to Pats Park on the island's northern tip, has never had a shark infiltrate the swimming net before.

More soon

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Channel 10 news helicopter crashes

A Channel 10 cameraman and helicopter pilot have managed to escape uninjured after the chopper they were flying in crashed on Saturday.

A Channel 10 cameraman has been taken to hospital after a news helicopter crashed in Perth.

The wreckage of the Channel 10 news chopper in Perth. Picture: Twitter/Channel 7 Source: Supplied

A CHANNEL 10 cameraman was taken hospital after a helicopter crashed east of Perth while he was filming a truck rollover.

A Network Ten spokesperson this evening said the chopper suffered a problem mid-flight.

"Our Ten News Perth helicopter was forced to make an emergency landing earlier today after encountering some issues mid-flight,'' the spokesperson said.

The spokesperson said a cameraman on board the chopper and the pilot escaped uninjured.

The cameraman was taken to Royal Perth Hospital for observation but has since been released.

"Luckily both the pilot and camera operator were unharmed,'' the spokesperson said.

''The camera operator was taken to hospital for a check-up as a precautionary measure, however has since been given the all clear and released."

An Australian Transport Safety Bureau spokesman said they had received preliminary reports that the Bell 206 helicopter hit the ground hard while it was filming a traffic incident at Baskerville.

The spokesman said initial advice was that the helicopter sustained substantial damage.

A Fire and Emergency Services Association spokesman told AAP the helicopter was on its side in a paddock with the tail section broken off.

The helicopter was understood to be filming a truck rollover on Weir Road when the crash happened at about 11am.

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Our beaches are the best, say Aussies

Australian families ranked The Whitsundays in Queensland as the best spot for a coastal break. Source: Supplied

IT'S official - Australians may be travelling to Bali, Thailand and Fiji in record numbers, but they have realised our beaches are better.

Six out of ten Australians rate local beach destinations higher than our biggest Asian and South Pacific rivals, a new survey shows.

While young, childless travellers prefer overseas beach holidays, families ranked The Whitsundays in Queensland as the best spot for a coastal break.

Western Australia's north-west coast ranked highest amongst older travellers without children.

With the strong Australian dollar and cheap flights luring a record number of Australians overseas, Tourism Australia's Domestic Consumer Demand Survey tested six of Australia's most iconic beach holiday destinations popular with domestic travellers against Bali, Thailand and Fiji.

The Australian destinations were the Gold Coast, Whitsundays and Tropical North Queensland, the north-west coast of Western Australia, South Australia's Fleurieu Peninsula and Kangaroo Island and Tasmania's Freycinet Peninsula, which includes perennial favourite Wineglass Bay.

Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy said the survey put paid to the myth that Australians had fallen out of love with domestic beach holidays.

''This research confirms our country offers some of the most beautiful, safe and high quality beach holiday experiences in the world,'' he said.

''There's a place, of course, for overseas holidays but it never fails to amaze me that people are prepared to battle queues and immigration to sit on busy beaches, sharing the sea frontage with noisy pubs and heaving night clubs, when Australia has some of the world's most incredible pristine coastline and beaches.''

In addition to those in the survey, Mr McEvoy said there were many more wonderful beaches in Australia, such as Cottesloe in Western Australia, Bondi, Manly and Hyams in NSW, Glenelg in South Australia and Coles Bay in Tasmania.

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief executive said Australia had some very remote and pristine beaches.

''There's a few international beaches that have a very high profile that wouldn't be a patch on our beaches,'' he said.

The most recent National Visitor Survey figures showed domestic trips grew by four per cent in the year to September.

But Australians also continue to travel overseas in record numbers, with more than eight million international trips in the year to November, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures.

Of more than 1000 high yield Australian travellers surveyed 35 per cent said they would be more likely to take a beach holiday in Australia, compared to 24 per cent more likely to go overseas.

Value for money was the most important factor when choosing a beach holiday, followed by natural beauty, climate, safety and quality of accommodation.

Only 38 per cent of Australians said domestic holidays were more expensive compared to 32 per cent who said overseas vacations were.

The research, conducted by leading marketing research consultancy BDA Marketing Planning, will help Tourism Australia develop better marketing strategies to try to persuade more Australians to holiday at home.

Australians favourite beach holiday destinations
1. Broome/Exmouth, Western Australia
2. Tropical North Queensland
3. Whitsundays, Queensland
4. Gold Coast, Queensland
5. Thailand
6. Fiji
7. Freycinet/Wineglass Bay, Tasmania
8. Fleurieu Peninsula/Kangaroo Island, South Australia
9. Bali, Indonesia

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No worries. She'll be right, mate!

One in five Australians say they have ''a lot less'' money to buy things than they did a decade ago. Source: News Limited

EASY-going Aussies value time over money - and most see their future as bright.

An exclusive Galaxy poll for News Limited portrays a stoic nation of glass-half-full optimists.

The Mood of Australians survey shows two in every three people are satisfied with their lives.

Three out of four Australians feel hopeful or optimistic about their personal future.

But most crave more time with family and friends.

Money does bring some happiness - 82 per cent of high-income households are satisfied with their lives, compared to just over half of those on low incomes.

Financial security is the biggest challenge for most Australians, with half the respondents citing it as ''difficult''.

But only 29 per cent regard it as difficult to find the time to relax and enjoy themselves.

Spending more time with family and friends is regarded by 61 per cent of Australians as they key to improving their personal quality of life.

Time trumps money - only one in three Australians thinks that ''having more money to buy things'' is very important to improving quality of life.

However, 58 per cent feel it is very important to have ''less stress and pressure''.

Only 15 per cent regard doing more for their community as very important to improving their quality of life.

One in five Australians say they have ''a lot less'' money to buy things than they did a decade ago.

Nearly a third are suffering a lot more stress and pressure, and 18 per cent feel they have ''a lot less'' time to spend with family and friends.

''The problem facing many Australians is that setting aside time to spend with family and friends is becoming harder these days,'' Galaxy research director Peter Matthew said yesterday.

''It is twice as important to Australians' quality of life as having money to buy things.

''Money only leads to success and happiness as far as it delivers financial security and provides for a happy family.''

Mr Matthew said women have more trouble balancing work and family life.

Thirty per cent of women find the juggle a challenge, compared to just 22 per cent of men.

And Gen Ys in their 20s and 30s find it twice as hard to balance work and home life than the baby boomers, who tend to be more financially secure.

''Gen Y are focusing hard on getting ahead, they are more likely than baby boomers to say that having money to buy things is very important,'' Mr Matthew said.

Professor Barbara Pocock, who directs the Centre for Work + Life at the University of South Australia, yesterday said Australians were spending more time working and commuting.

Laptops, iPads and smartphones ''mean that work leaps the border of knock-off time''.

''People are under pressure and are giving more to their jobs, and I think they're conscious these things aren't what makes you happy,'' she said.

''Kids love time with their parents but they love it even more when the parents are attentive and relaxed.''

The Galaxy poll shows that just 18 per cent of Australians judge success as ''getting ahead at work''.

Two-thirds regard success as ''achieving personal happiness'', and 63 per cent as ''having a close and happy family''.

Sixty per cent of Australians judge success on being financially secure - yet only 39 per cent define a long-term relationship as the key to success.

A third of Australians find it difficult to stay healthy.

David Chalke, a consultant to Quantum Market Research's annual ''Australia SCAN'' survey, said Australians were showing a ''she'll be right'' attitude.

''Family, friends and home always win out every time,'' he said.

1004 Australians aged 18-64 were surveyed between 10 to 14 January.

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'Aussies exploiting foreign tradies'

The powerful Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union claims firms hiring foreign labour are exploiting local laws to hire foreign tradies cheap. Source: News Limited

A SHARP jump in the number of foreign 'tradies' coming to Australia has sparked calls for a freeze in temporary work visas - amid signs a growing number of employers are rorting immigration and workplace laws.

Despite sluggish conditions in construction and mining, nearly 5000 temporary skilled work 457 visas were granted to carpenters, electricians, tilers, plumbers, scaffolders, cooks and other ''trades occupations'' in the four months to October 31 - a staggering 57.2 per cent increase on the same period in 2011.

The powerful Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union claims firms hiring foreign labour are exploiting local laws - with one tiling firm alleged to have underpaid its mainly Korean workforce by more than $5 million since 2006.

But the Immigration Department has stepped up its policing role and slapped 134 penalties and sanctions on companies for rorting 457 visa laws in the six months to December 31.

This is nearly the same number applied for the previous full year - giving weight to arguments that a growing number of firms are abusing the temporary visa system.

At the start of a bruising election year - and with jobs policy to feature prominently in party campaigning - the CFMEU has called for a ''temporary freeze'' in the use of 457s to recruit tradies. One of Labor's factional convenors, Doug Cameron, has backed calls for a ''hard-headed assessment'' of the immigration scheme.

Nearly 26,000 visas in the 457 class were handed out between July 1 and October 31 2012 - an increase of 13.4 per cent on the previous year.

The controversial visa allows firms to ''sponsor'' foreign workers provided they can demonstrate the need to hire from overseas to fill skills shortages.

Mining firms in West Australia have been major users of 457 visas while some of Australia's celebrity chefs are pushing for an easing of visa restrictions so they can bring in more foreign labour to plug labour shortages in the nation's best restaurants.

But the CFMEU has taken aim at the Gillard government and says it is effectively ignoring Labor's own policy platform on the issue.

''The fact that the government is allowing a blowout in 457 and other temporary work visas when tens of thousands of construction jobs are being lost is just crazy policy,'' said Dave Noonan, national secretary of the CFMEU's construction division.

Australian workers ''will not cop employers using cheap overseas labour while their mates who have the skills and want work are told that there are no jobs'', Mr Noonan said.

He said too many employers ''are rorting the visa system to get cheap compliant labour''.

Labor's left faction convenor, Doug Cameron, said there should a ''reassessment of the numbers of 457s required given the on-going downturn in manufacturing, building and construction''.

''There has to be a hard-headed analysis on the need for 457 visas,'' Senator Cameron said.

But a spokesman for Immigration Minister Chris Bowen said the number of 457 visas across all five skill levels in construction actually fell - from 4,617 to 4,442 - in the first half of this financial year compared to 2011/12.

Despite the overall increase in 457 visas for trades occupations, the minister's spokesman said it would be ''irresponsible'' to shut down the 457 program.

''The government's first priority is always ensuring jobs for Australian workers. The 457 visa program is designed to address genuine labour shortages that cannot be met from the Australian labour market and we believe we have this balance right,'' he said.

The CFMEU is planning to launch court action against Queensland-based Echo Tiles, which employs around 50 mainly Korean workers around Brisbane and the Gold Coast.

An audit of the firm - conducted by the CFMEU under its agreement with Echo - claims the company has allegedly been underpaying its workforce by more than $5 million since 2006.

Chartered accountant Patrick Hoiberg believes Echo breached industrial laws by underpaying its workers with non-payment of holiday and sick pay, travel allowances and other entitlements.

Echo's principal director Mr Phillip Kang told News Limited he strongly disagreed with the CFMEU's allegations about under payments, declaring they had "incorrect information".

"If there was any incorrect payments made, this would have been noted by both Fairwork Australia and Immigration when they conducted their regular audits, but no such discrepancies were noted," he said in a statement.

"We strongly feel we have been victimised and bullied by the CFMEU, specifically targeted by them for having foreign workers on our staff."

Number of applications granted in 2011-12 and 2012-13 to October 31:
2011/12............2012/13....% change
Skill Level 3.....3,100................4,880.......57.2 per cent
(Source: Dept of Immigration)

Note: Skill Level 3 represents "trades occupations" including the following: carpentry, electrician, plumbing, tiler, painter, mechanic, welder, sheet metal fabricator, glazier, plasterer

Top eight citizenship countries for primary applications

...............................................% change from 2011/12
United Kingdom ....5,450.......-6.5 per cent
India.......................5,130.......25.4 per cent
Ireland....................2,640.......30.7 per cent
Phillipines..............1,850......19.9 per cent
USA........................1,590......-4.6 per cent
China......................1,260......72.8 per cent
Canada...................600.........-10.7 per cent
Korea.....................510.........98.1 per cent
(Source: Dept of Immigration)
 

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State's north subject of Russian invasion

Queensland's far north has become a hot holiday destination for cashed-up Russians. Source: The Sunday Mail (Qld)

RUSSIAN oligarchs and ex-KGB chiefs are turning to Cape York and Great Barrier Reef wilderness as the "new frontier" to hunt boar, fish for black marlin and bask in luxury.

Honeymooning couples from the former Soviet Union are part of the new order "glasnost" in tourism as they look to escape a brutal cold for adventure and warmth in the Sunshine State.

"The Cold War is over," said Natasha Arens, a Cairns-based Russian tour agent.

"Lots of Russians got very rich in the fall of communism and made their fortunes in diamonds, oil and gas.

"Now they want to come for holiday."

ALSO IN THE NEWS TODAY: FIRST ROO OF FIGHT CLUB

Latest figures show the Russian bear soared 17 per cent in visitor numbers to Australia in the past year, up the same percentage rate but off a much lower base than the boom Chinese dragon market.

But these are no ordinary travellers - many are used to ultra-luxury resorts, private jets, helicopters and superyachts.

Some are keen to emulate the exploits of President Vladimir Putin, an ex-KGB officer who cultivates his outdoor, tough guy image by going bare-chested on hunting and fishing holidays in the Siberian wilderness.

Exclusive Lizard Island on the Great Barrier Reef, north of Cooktown, voted the world's top resort lodge in 2012, confirmed it had become a popular destination for the Russian market.

"They are a market looking for luxury," said Lizard Island's Jill Collins, who rents out the whole resort for $270,000 a week.

Home to the Black Marlin Classic on the world-renowned Ribbon Reefs, Ms Collins said beyond fishing, snorkeling and eating fresh seafood the Ruskis "simply seem to love the climate".

In Moscow yesterday it was minus 13C compared to a balmy 30C in Cairns.

Australian filmmaker Ben Le-Van runs two beauty contests in the former Soviet Union and works and plays with Russia's oligarchs in the traditional ski-field playgrounds of Europe.

He has hosted small groups Down Under and said Queensland was the new hit "exotic" destination.

"These guys are ultra-wealthy - money is no object," Mr Le-Van said.

"They love glitz and glamour, fly in private jets and travel the world in luxury with an entourage of bodyguards and supermodels.

"They like Beluga vodka, Lamborghinis, and lavish parties with lots of gorgeous girls covered in jewels hanging off them.

"But some are into the Putin-esque thing of hunting and fishing in the wild and look for somewhere new.

"To them, Cape York is the new Courchevel (a swish ski resort in the French Alps)."

Dennis "Brazakka" Wallace, who founded Cape York Helicopters taking heli-fishing and hunting safaris, has flown Russian clients.

"They've got lots of money, heaps of cash, and want to be like Russian president Vladimir Putin, and go hunt and fish in remote wilderness areas, that's their thing," said the now retired aviator and skipper.

"We fly out and hunt pigs - or wild boar they call them - and catch barra and black marlin, but it's all a top-shelf expedition."

Russian tourists Sergey Gadelshin, 37, and Oleg Mikheev, 39, of Siberia this week flew to see "unattainable" Australia, taking in the Reef and rainforest before heading to the Australian Open tennis in Melbourne.

"For Russians, this is the new frontier," said Mr Mikheev, a construction baron in the oil-rich Ural Mountains.

Tourism Australia managing director Andrew McEvoy said Russia was worth watching.

Latest figures show visitor numbers are up 17 per cent. China, too, was up 17 per cent but with 573,000 tourists compared with the 16,400 out of Russia.

"Although we're seeing big growth in recent visitor numbers from Russia, the numbers are coming off a pretty low base and the market still only ranks 32nd in terms of international arrivals," Mr McEvoy said.

"Russia is certainly on our radar."

Queensland Tourism Industry Council chief Daniel Gschwind said both Cairns and the Gold Coast were popular with affluent Russians.

"We've got one eye firmly on the Chinese dragon. But we also need to keep our other eye on other potential markets like the Russian bear."

peter.michael@news.com.au

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Parents rattled over child care crisis

Brisbane mum Toni Francis and children Brian, 4, and Ruby, 2. Ms Francis is worried about finding full-time care for Ruby. PIC: Glenn Barnes Source: The Sunday Mail (Qld)

CHILDCARE centres are scrapping places for babies as working parents wait up to two years for day care.

Three in every four long day-care centres in Australia's capital cities do not have vacancies for babies, a new survey reveals. And two-thirds do not have places left for toddlers.

Brisbane parents are having to wait up to two years for a place, forcing them to quit their jobs, rely on grandparents or hire expensive nannies or unqualified babysitters.

The Greens survey of 231 private and community day-care centres nationally in the past week shows that vacancies for babies have fallen 10 per cent since 2010.

In Brisbane, nearly one in three centres has a waiting list for enrolments stretching one to two years.

Of the 36 centres surveyed, more than a quarter of these have waiting lists of six to 12 months.

Brisbane parents are paying an average of $76 a day for day care.

More than three quarters of the Brisbane centres do not have vacancies for babies and 61 per cent have no room for toddlers.

Australian Childcare Alliance president Gwynn Bridge yesterday said some Brisbane parents were putting their unborn babies' names down on up to 14 waiting lists at once.

But some centres were closing their nurseries because they cost too much to run.

Centres must employ one carer for every four babies and toddlers up to the age of two.

But for the over-threes, centres only need to employ one carer for every 11 children.

Ms Bridge said the Federal Government should pay parents a higher subsidy for babies to cover the higher fees.

"It is unviable for services to provide baby care with the same rate of (government) subsidy as older children," she told The Sunday Mail.

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said the survey showed the availability of day care for babies had fallen by 10 per cent over the past three years.

"Obviously there is a looming crisis in the sector," she said.

"The government needs to be doing far more to improve both the quality and availability of childcare while also helping mums and dads cover the costs."

The Federal Government will spend a record $4.4 billion on childcare subsidies and rebates to parents this financial year, Treasury budget papers show.

Federal Childcare Minister Kate Ellis has blamed the states and territories for the shortage of places, and demanded they fast-track planning approval for new centres.

Toni Francis, from Bardon, in Brisbane's west, said she was worried about finding a full-time place in childcare for her two-year-old Ruby.

"At the moment Ruby goes two days a week for the social side of it but I'm going back to study soon and I'm looking for four days.

"Some of childcare places do have room but I want somewhere that's suitable for my kids. The place we wanted in Paddington has an 18 month wait."

Melbourne mum Belinda Galloway applied for a place while still pregnant - yet still had to wait 14 months for Louis to enrol at a Port Phillip council centre.

"I put his name on the list when I was pregnant and when I got back to work there was no spot for him," she said yesterday.

"It forced us into a situation of nanny-sharing with another mum from our mother's group for six months.

"It ended up costing us $400 a week each, so for six months I was pretty much earning half a wage."

Now Ms Galloway pays $50 a day in out-of-pocket costs for daycare.

The new mum hopes she can find a place for her two-month old baby, Archer, by the time she heads back to work part-time, managing a jewellery gallery, in September.

"I do have to go back to work because being a small business, they just can't afford to have me away too long because the position is quite specialised," she said.

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Man almost 'eight times over limit'

Brisbane police allegedly found a man in a utility with the keys in the ignition with a blood alcohol reading of 0.397 per cent.
 

A MAN has allegedly returned a blood alcohol reading almost eight times above the legal limit, Queensland police say.

Around 6.40pm (AEST) on Saturday police were called to Deagon, in Brisbane's north, after reports an intoxicated man may try to drive his vehicle.

A short time later police allegedly found a man in a utility with the keys in the ignition. He allegedly returned a reading of 0.397 per cent.

The 38-year-old NSW man was charged with being in charge of a motor vehicle while under the influence of liquor.

He is due to appear in the Sandgate Magistrates Court on February 25.

 

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