Latest news with #DeCarteret
BBC News
28-04-2025
- General
- BBC News
Model of Red Cross ship SS Vega made for Guernsey Liberation Day
A large model replica of the SS Vega, a Red Cross Ship, will be used in Guernsey's Liberation Day celebrations. The Channel Islands Occupation Society worked with the States Prison and the Prisoner charity CLIP to build it. SS Vega brought Red Cross food parcels for the civilians in the islands after the occupying German forces were cut off from the continent following new model ship will be towed in the Liberation 80 cavalcade on 9 May. 'A lifeline' The Red Cross SS Vega first visited the island in December supplied more than 119,000 standard food parcels during the first visit and continued to visit the islands throughout the German Occupation and after liberation in May De Carteret, prison governor, said he thought it was really exciting. He said: "For me personally what the Vega signifies... it basically was a lifeline."My family were directly affected by that because they were here during the occupation and I think it's a great thing for us to get involved in."Prisoner Anthony Hamon said he painted the signage and red crosses. "It's reliving our history so that's the main thing about it really, reliving it and celebrating the past." Adrian Dilcock, committee member of th Channel Islands Occupation Society, said: "This is really a massive part of our heritage."This symbolises really, the keeping people alive and also the suffering by people that were evacuated and by people that stayed here."He added he hoped there would be somewhere for the model to be stored or displayed after Liberation Ozanne, founder of CLIP, said the scheme aimed to help prisoners build up skills that could help them find employment once they have served their sentence."The workshop is sophisticated, it's got a lot of equipment, and people here in Guernsey are learning to become carpenters or learning skills," he said.
News.com.au
23-04-2025
- Business
- News.com.au
Simple trick to boost Australia's productivity as workers turned off by bad bosses
Australian workers are going through the motions, with mediocre management one of the major reasons why Australians are not engaged with the workforce. New research released by Gallup shows just 23 per cent of Australians are engaged with their workplace, leading to an estimated $223bn in lost economic activity. Gallup managing director Claire DeCarteret said employers need to better meet the needs of employees and in turn will get a boost to their own business. 'We don't know if it's that they don't like their job, but they're not emotionally connected to the work that they're doing every day, and mainly it's because they're going through the motions,' Ms DeCarteret said. 'They may not be supported by a great manager, and a lot of the time, it's that their needs are not being met in the workplace.' The results back up a national issue, with Australia currently suffering through a slump in productivity over the last eight years, which accelerated post Covid. The last productivity reading for the fourth quarter of 2024 showed output per hour worked fell an annualised 1.2 per cent. Ms DeCarteret said while employers often spruik 'benefits' for employees like yoga mats and ping pong tables in offices, they miss the fundamental challenge of people feeling undervalued. 'When it really comes down to it, people want to feel supported, be recognised for their contributions, and actually feel like they're making a difference,' she said. 'And so it comes down to great management, so I would say, you know, that's probably where we can make the biggest difference.' Workers looking to leave Worse still for Aussie bosses is the finding that most Australians think now is a good time to leave their job. According to the figures, 42 per cent of people in Australia are really actively looking for a new job. 'I think the risk could be that when we stabilise a little bit post election, those who are dissatisfied or disengaged, who are intending to leave, may just do so,' Ms DeCarteret said. A further 72 per cent of Australians say now is a good time to find a job — the highest in the world and just shy of last year's record-setting 73 per cent. This sentiment signals continued labour market confidence but also suggests that retaining top talent will require more intentional engagement strategies. 'Obviously, it costs a lot for them to stay and not be productive, but it costs more for them to leave,' Ms DeCarteret said. 'The ideal scenario is that they feel valued and supported in a way that they could make a contribution.' 'The reason why they join an organisation in the first place, and why their skills were matched and they were the right fit at the time. So ideally, it would be better to engage them rather than lose them.'
Perth Now
23-04-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Bad bosses costing Australia $223bn
Australian workers are going through the motions, with mediocre management one of the major reasons why Australians are not engaged with the workforce. New research released by Gallup shows just 23 per cent of Australians are engaged with their workplace, leading to an estimated $223bn in lost economic activity. Gallup managing director Claire DeCarteret said employers need to better meet the needs of employees and in turn will get a boost to their own business. Grim new research shows the majority of Australians are not engaged with their workplace, and many are actively looking for new jobs. NCA NewsWire / Jeremy Piper Credit: News Corp Australia 'We don't know if it's that they don't like their job, but they're not emotionally connected to the work that they're doing every day, and mainly it's because they're going through the motions,' Ms DeCarteret said. 'They may not be supported by a great manager, and a lot of the time, it's that their needs are not being met in the workplace.' The results back up a national issue, with Australia currently suffering through a slump in productivity over the last eight years, which accelerated post Covid. The last productivity reading for the fourth quarter of 2024 showed output per hour worked fell an annualised 1.2 per cent. Ms DeCarteret said while employers often spruik 'benefits' for employees like yoga mats and ping pong tables in offices, they miss the fundamental challenge of people feeling undervalued. A lack of engagement among Australian workers is costing the economy $223bn. NewsWire / Nicholas Eagar Credit: NewsWire 'When it really comes down to it, people want to feel supported, be recognised for their contributions, and actually feel like they're making a difference,' she said. 'And so it comes down to great management, so I would say, you know, that's probably where we can make the biggest difference.' Workers looking to leave Worse still for Aussie bosses is the finding that most Australians think now is a good time to leave their job. According to the figures, 42 per cent of people in Australia are really actively looking for a new job. 'I think the risk could be that when we stabilise a little bit post election, those who are dissatisfied or disengaged, who are intending to leave, may just do so,' Ms DeCarteret said. Unemployment Figures A further 72 per cent of Australians say now is a good time to find a job — the highest in the world and just shy of last year's record-setting 73 per cent. This sentiment signals continued labour market confidence but also suggests that retaining top talent will require more intentional engagement strategies. 'Obviously, it costs a lot for them to stay and not be productive, but it costs more for them to leave,' Ms DeCarteret said. 'The ideal scenario is that they feel valued and supported in a way that they could make a contribution.' 'The reason why they join an organisation in the first place, and why their skills were matched and they were the right fit at the time. So ideally, it would be better to engage them rather than lose them.'
The Independent
13-04-2025
- General
- The Independent
Warning over surge in population of Asian hornets after ‘unprecedented' early sightings
An 'unprecedented' number of early suspected sightings of Asian hornets has raised fears of a surge in the UK population of the invasive species. Experts are warning of the potential impact on key native pollinators, with the hornets – which are capable of killing 50 honey bees a day – having already devastated colonies and severely reduced honey production in parts of France and Italy. The Asian hornet, also known as the yellow-legged hornet, is believed to have first arrived in France in a cargo of pottery from China in 2004, spreading rapidly across the continent to the extent that they have now been sighted in 15 countries. First spotted in the UK in 2016, experts warned last year that – despite the number of nests found and destroyed in Britain falling to 24 last year, three times fewer than in 2023 – the invasive hornets had successfully over-wintered in the UK for the first time. Now, with a warm start to the spring season, experts in Jersey have reported an unprecedented number of early sightings of Vespa velutina, whose sting causes allergic reactions which can be fatal due to anaphylaxis in extremely rare cases. 'The first queens were more than two weeks early this year,' John De Carteret, a founding member of the Jersey Asian Hornet Group, told The Guardian, adding: 'We're obviously concerned.' According to the group, there were 262 reported queen Asian hornets as of 11 April – marking an increase of more than 1,000 per cent compared with the same date last year. That number has also risen quickly from 147 reported queen hornets on 6 April, and just 33 queens a week earlier, Mr De Carteret said. 'When we reach 266 queens, we will equal the total from 2024 – and that figure wasn't reached until 25 June,' said De Carteret. Ian Campbell, of the British Beekeepers Association, told the newspaper: 'It would be a surprise if numbers were not above the 2024 level', and warned of their alarming ability to proliferate, saying: 'In some countries like Spain and Belgium, we've seen numbers increase from a handful of nests to 10,000 nests in four years. According to Mr Campbell, a typical nest of between 2,000 and 3,000 hornets can eat more than 11kg of insects per season – equating to the weight of around 90,000 bees. Research published in November 2023 suggested that in France – the worst-hit country in Europe – between 2.6 and 29.2 per cent of the country's bee colonies are at risk of being wiped out every year due to Asian hornets, in a blow to the economy of up to €30m. While just two hornets have officially been sighted so far in the UK in 2025, in Shropshire and Kent, according to the government's Animal and Plant Health Agency's database, the number of confirmed sightings is typically far greater than those ultimately confirmed and eradicated. Earlier this year, researchers at the University of Exeter carried out genetic analysis to identify prey species in the guts of more than 1,500 hornet larvae from 103 nests in Jersey, France, Spain, and the UK – and found that the hornets feast on hundreds of different insect species already under pressure from farming, land use changes, and chemical pollution. The study drew attention to the potential impact on agriculture, noting that 43 of the 50 most commonly identified species in the hornet larvae's diet are known to visit flowers. These included Europe's three main crop pollinators – the honey bee, buff-tailed bumble bee and the red-tailed bumble bee. Warning that their findings showed the hornets are 'highly flexible predators', the study's lead author Siffreya Pedersen said: 'Insects play vital roles in enabling ecosystems to function – including pollination, decomposition and pest control. 'Most insect populations are in decline due to factors such as habitat destruction and chemical pollution. The expanding area inhabited by Asian hornets poses an extra threat.'
The Guardian
13-04-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
‘Unprecedented' sightings of Asian hornets raise fears for UK bees
They have bright yellow legs, are about 25mm (almost 1in) long, and a single colony, if left unchecked, can 'butcher' 90,000 pollinating insects in just one season. Since the first UK sighting in 2016 of Vespa velutina – the Asian or yellow-legged hornet – beekeepers and scientists have waged a vigorous campaign to minimise the damage this invasive species can do to Britain's biodiversity and bee colonies. Last year, a wet spring and washout summer appeared to have hindered the insect's population growth as the number of nests spotted in the UK dropped from 72 in 2023 to 24 in 2024. But it was also the first year that the National Bee Unit received confirmation, via DNA, that the hornets had successfully bred and over-wintered in the UK. Now experts fear the dry, sunny start to spring this year and the rapid spread of the species in Europe will lead to a surge in this year's numbers. 'Unprecedented' early sightings of Asian hornets have been recorded in Jersey, leading experts to suspect that record numbers could try to establish nests in the UK this year. 'The first queens were more than two weeks early this year,' said John De Carteret, a founding member of the Jersey Asian Hornet Group, which has about 550 traps in place this year. 'We're obviously concerned.' There were 262 queen Asian hornets recorded on Jersey by 11 April, a year-on-year increase of 1,090%. 'When we reach 266 queens, we will equal the total from 2024 – and that figure wasn't reached until 25 June,' said De Carteret. Ian Campbell, of the British Beekeepers Association, said: 'There's a strong risk of this year's numbers being at least as high as in 2023 and the potential to be even higher. It would be a surprise if numbers were not above the 2024 level.' The species is carnivorous, and a typical nest of between 2,000 and 3,000 Asian hornets can devour more than 11kg (about 24lb) of insects a season, according to Campbell – about the weight of 90,000 bees. The public is being urged to 'be vigilant everywhere' and learn how to identify and report Asian hornets, which have yellow legs and a distinctive orange band on the fourth segment of their abdomens – alongside entirely black velvety thoraxes, which distinguish them from the native European hornet. Like bees, their stings can cause painful and potentially deadly allergic reactions. Any 'sightings of concern' should be reported to the government's National Bee Unit via the Asian Hornet Watch app or online, using the UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (UKCEH) reporting tool. 'Yellow-legged hornets cause significant damage to native pollinators, including our much-loved honeybees,' said Kate Wilson, head of the National Bee Unit. 'Thanks to increasing reports to the app and online, it is not unexpected that sightings may occur earlier in the year. We encourage the public to remain vigilant and continue to report any potential sightings to us.' Such sightings can help people working to combat the spread of Asian hornets to understand the national picture. 'I collected one from a lady in her 80s after she captured it in a yogurt tub, while the youngest person who reported one was eight,' De Carteret said. Ecology professor Helen Roy of UKCEH and Exeter University said the hornets pose 'a major threat' to wildlife and biodiversity: 'There isn't a natural enemy that we're aware of that could control the Asian hornet.' It is thought that successive generations of the offspring of a single mated queen, which was accidentally introduced to France in a container of Chinese crockery in 2004, have now reached 15 European countries, including the UK. 'In some countries like Spain and Belgium, we've seen numbers increase from a handful of nests to 10,000 nests in four years,' said Campbell. France is believed to have more than a half a million nests, which researchers believe could be costing the French economy an estimated €30.8m a year in lost bee colonies and honey revenue, while the invaders have reduced honey production by 35% in Portugal and 50% in Liguria, Italy, in recent years. In March, the first large-scale study of the Asian hornet's diet, run by researchers at Exeter University, found 1,400 different species in their guts. Of the top 50 invertebrate prey species identified, 43 were known to visit flowers. These included Europe's three main crop pollinators: the European honeybee, the buff-tailed bumblebee and the red-tailed bumblebee. De Carteret, a retired police forensic officer, said hornets will typically 'butcher' this prey by biting off their heads, wings, legs and abdomens so that their thoraxes – a source of protein – can be fed to the queen's larvae. So far this year, there have been only two confirmed sightings of yellow-legged hornets in the UK, but 'now is the time for people to be on the lookout', Roy said. If the government had not destroyed the nests the public has been reporting since 2016, modelling by Exeter University suggests that the hornets would already be established in large areas of England and Wales, and entering Scotland. Campbell said it was important to try to take photos of suspected Asian hornets and their nests: last year, from more than 29,000 reports, only about 70 were deemed accurate enough to be confirmed sightings. 'To be successful with eradication, the National Bee Unit needs to get every single nest,' he said. New hornet queens are constantly buzzing into the UK from Europe to replace those that have been eradicated. 'The Asian hornet can arrive in a lot of different ways. It can come in on fresh produce or within someone's car, across any Channel crossing,' Roy said. 'Everyone needs to be vigilant, everywhere.'
