International cooperation to combat immigration fraud

A new international agreement will boost Australia’s ability to detect and identify immigration fraud and cast a wider net when checking the backgrounds of unauthorised arrivals and other people held in immigration detention.

The Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Senator Chris Evans, said today that an agreement for biometric data-sharing between Australia, Canada and the United Kingdom was signed last night. Under the partnership, Australia will be able to securely and confidentially cross check fingerprints with Canadian and UK databases.

Currently, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship collects fingerprints from all people in immigration detention, including irregular arrivals and illegal foreign fishers. It is expected fingerprint collection will be progressively rolled out to other people in the immigration caseload in the future.

‘The Australian Government’s ability to detect immigration and identity fraud will be greatly improved as a result of new biometric data-sharing arrangements with partner agencies in Canada and the United Kingdom,’ Senator Evans said. ‘This data-sharing will help to establish the true identities of unknown people, and ensure that fraudulent cases are dealt with appropriately through the improved ability to detect inconsistent identity and immigration claims.

It will also help authorities to increase the chance of detecting people with criminal histories and other people of concern, aid in the timely removal of unlawful non-citizens where their identities and/or nationalities were previously unknown or uncertain, and improve detection of fraudulent immigration practices and trends.

The new biometric data-sharing plan was developed at the Five Country Conference, which is a forum on immigration and border security between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. The US is expected to join the data-sharing arrangement in due course.

The benefits of international biometric data sharing were highlighted recently when an individual claiming asylum in the UK was found to have previously been fingerprinted in the USA while travelling on an Australian passport.

The individual was subsequently confirmed as an Australian citizen wanted for sexual assault. The man was removed to Australia to face court, and is now serving a jail sentence.

Senator Evans said the new data-sharing arrangements would not affect privacy laws.

‘The protection of personal information is important to all the countries involved in these arrangements. All data shared by my department will adhere to the Privacy Act 1988,’ the minister said.

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Heavy rain, thunderstorms lash Perth and South-West

WILD weather has caused havoc across Perth, uprooting trees, tearing off roofs and plunging homes into darkness.   

Winds travelling at more than 100km/h tore through the city overnight, ripping the roof off a granny flat in Doubleview, collapsing a ceiling in Joondalup and blowing in the windows of a house in City Beach.

More than 17,000 are believed to be without power because of the storm, mostly in the Perth hills.

State and Emergency Services (SES) have recorded 70 calls for help since 7am, with a total of 125 incidents logged since 6pm last night and 240 properties impacted.

Damage has been reported in coastal suburbs from Two Rocks to Rockingham and all SES units in the metropolitan area have been activated with volunteers in Northam called in for backup.

A series of cold fronts have been lashing the city since Friday, with Rottnest, Ocean Reef, Mandurah and Bickley some of the worst hit areas.

Ocean Reef recorded a wind gust of 107km/h and gusts of 115km/h were recorded at Rottnest, where ferry services have been cancelled.

The ports of Fremantle and Kwinana ports have suspended operations until midday.

Across the state, Cape Naturalist and Cape Leeuwin recorded wind gusts of up to 109km/h.  There have been reports of fallen trees and minor damage to homes in Bunbury, Busselton and Capel.

The WA Bureau of Meteorology says it is the wettest day of the year.

Flights from Perth’s international terminal are running half an hour behind schedule, and Main Roads are urging motorists to slow down and take care in the inclement weather.

Near the city, waves from the Swan River were lapping around peak hour traffic on the Kwinana Freeway this morning, while Riverside Drive and parts of Beaufort St have isolated flooding.

Traffic lights are out on the intersection of Great Eastern Highway and Stoneville Rd in Mundaring and at the junction of Kalamunda Rd and Gooseberry Hill Rd.

WA Bureau of Meteorology climate information officer John Relf says 23.2mm of rain has fallen overnight taking Perth much closer to the 177mm average with 147.8mm of rain recorded this month.

“We have exceeded last year’s June rainfall of 142mm,” he said.

Heavy rain has been reported from Collie to Walpole.

WA Water Corporation spokeswoman Clare Lugar says dams should have now started benefiting from the all rainfall.

“Up until Friday the streams hadn’t started to flow,” Ms Lugar said.  “But we are expecting it to have begun flowing over the weekend.” 

The wild weather is expected to ease up later tonight with fine weather forecast by Thursday.

Source  :   www.news.com.au

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Rent a Holiday Home in Perth

CLICK HERE TO VISIT RENTAL PROPERTY WEBSITE

Set in the quiet residential neighbourhood of Mindarie, this picturesque house is only a minutes walk from a beautiful park and playground, 10 minutes stroll from the lively bars and restaurants found along the boardwalk at Mindaire Marina, and a quick 2 minute drive from door to shore.

What makes this house different, and so much better, than all the other rental properties out there today? Simple. It’s not just a rental property, it’s a home. And because it’s lived in, it will offer you exactly what you’ll be missing when you first touch down in Perth – all of the creature comforts that will make you feel at home.

So whether you are looking for somewhere to stay for your beach side holiday, or just a place to park your suitcases when you first arrive, this house might be just what you’re looking for – the perfect to unwind, relax, explore and settle into a new life in Perth.

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About Perth Airport

Strategically located in relation to South East Asia, Europe and Africa, Perth Airport is Australia’s fourth largest airport in terms of passenger traffic and is the winner of the (AAAustralian Airports Association A) award for Australian Major Airport of the Year for 2003 and 2004.

Only 12 kilometres from the heart of Perth, the capital of Western Australia, the airport is part of a 2,105 hectare estate with sufficient capacity to expand and meet the projected commercial aviation demand of the 21st century.

Of the 2,105 hectares, over 700 hectares is available for a wide range of non-aviation property development, providing the potential for the airport to become a major commercial and industrial centre.

Westralia Airports Corporation (WAC) also works closely with the tourism industry to develop tourism in Western Australia and is a member of the Perth Convention Bureau, the Pacific Asia Travel Association and is a gold member of the Tourism Council of Western Australia.

WAC is closely involved with Tourism WA in promoting the State as an attractive destination for overseas visitors, with a strong focus on working with airlines to increase the number of passengers travelling to Western Australia.

Perth Airport is the premier international, domestic and regional gateway to this exciting State for commercial aircraft, freight and passengers, and plays an important role in Western Australia’s economy.

Economic Benefits of Perth Airport

In 2003, Economic Research Associates Pty Ltd studied the economic significance of Perth Airport to Western Australia’s economy. The report estimated that all airport associated activities generated approximately $2.2 billion a year, or 3% of the Gross State Product
(GSP) for Western Australia.

Direct employment is estimated at 5,960 jobs, with $342 million in direct salaries and wages. In total, Perth Airport provides around 16,800 jobs for Western Australians, generating approximately $850 million in wages.

Perth Airport Facilities

Perth Airport’s primary aviation facilities include:

•A two building with nine operational aircraft barunway system able to handle both existing and planned intercontinental commercial aircraft
•An International Terminal ys, five of which have aerobridges
•A with three freighter positionMulti-User Domestic Terminal complexs and a total of 22 operational aircraft bays, five of which have aerobridges
•Air freight, aviation fuel and in-flight catering facilities
•Air traffic control facilities
•24-hour rescue and fire fighting facilities.
Terminals at Perth Airport

Terminal 1 (International) is located on the eastern side of the main runway and is positioned between this runway and a future wide-spaced parallel runway.

The Domestic Terminals are located on the western side of the airfield. Qantas operates Terminal 2, where Qantas, QantasLink and Jetstar domestic services arrive and depart.

Adjacent to Terminal 2 is the Westralia Airports Corporation (WAC) operated Terminal 3. The airlines operating from Terminal 3 are Alliance Airlines, OzJet, Skywest Airlines, Virgin Blue.

Perth Airport also encompasses several smaller terminal operations, which provide charter services and services to specific regional areas in Western Australia.

http://www.perthairport.com

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