Turks and Caicos airline boosts regional connectivity
With its new enhanced winter timetable, interCaribbean Airways substantially boosts regional connectivity and convenience via its fast-growing hub at Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos Islands (TCI).
"Both the passenger's connecting experience at Providenciales, and the flight connecting schedules are now much improved," explained CEO, Trevor Sadler.
Connecting passengers will in the very near future, bypass immigration, proceeding directly through international security screening and into the departures lounge. This "via Provo" connection for transit passengers will be completely hassle-free following global best practices and avoiding major hubs.
"We can now focus on the needs of travelers in the region," said interCaribbean Chairman Lyndon Gardiner, adding that good air service is crucial and integral to business location decisions.
The Turks and Caicos Airports Authority CEO, John Smith, said, "We are pleased to partner with Immigration and interCaribbean in facilitating in-transit passengers at Providenciales."
Effective November 14, interCaribbean will operate these services to/from the Providenciales hub:
San Juan, Puerto Rico, 4x weekly
Santiago, Dominican Republic, 4x weekly
Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, 4x weekly
Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, 3x weekly
Port-au-Prince, Haiti, 4x weekly
Cap Haitian, Haiti, daily
Santiago, Cuba, 3x weekly
Havana, Cuba 2x weekly
Kingston, and Montego Bay, Jamaica, daily
Nassau, Bahamas, 6x weekly
Tortola, BVI, 4x weekly via San Juan onward to Antigua
Connections link the above cities via a typical 45-minute hassle-free transit in Providenciales.
The TCI isn't the first small territory to energetically position itself as a connecting hub, look at Antigua, Panama, Iceland, Dubai, Singapore and other such "mice that roared," noted Gardiner.
Inter-island travel difficulty has been documented and lamented by countless economists, executives, development experts, politicians, NGOs and others. Caribbean islands near each other have been mutually accessible only through extraordinarily circuitous and expensive airline routings via distant hubs.
"We are changing this, with huge passenger savings in time, comfort and trip expense," said Gardiner.
interCaribbean, founded 25 years ago, is based in the TCI. The company operates EMB 120, Twin Otter, BE99 aircraft connecting the TCI, Antigua, Tortola, Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Bahamas and Cuba; and domestic flights in Jamaica between Kingston and Montego Bay. The TCI as a UK territory applies rigorous airline regulatory standards.
Source-Carib News
Paris fights for businesses fleeing Brexit London
Paris is on a charm offensive, trying to win over businesses fleeing London's Brexit chaos.
The city launched a new initiative on Thursday, setting up a one stop shop for companies that want to relocate from London following the U.K.'s vote to leave the European Union.
It is designed to help foreign businesses with the bureaucracy, provide information and advice, and promote the region.
Many global businesses use London as a gateway to Europe's vast markets.
Under EU rules, they are allowed to operate across the block as long as they are based in one of the member countries.
If the U.K. leaves Europe's free trade area, businesses with headquarters in London, including many banks, could lose that right.
The Paris Region Developmental Agency is hoping it could provide a new home to some of them.
"I want France to appear as the natural choice for all those enterprises which are looking for a gateway into Europe," said Manuel Valls, the French Prime Minister.
La Defense, the Parisian finance district, launched its own campaign last month with a slogan "Tired of the fog? Try the Frogs!' It is hoping to convince banks to shift some of their operations there following Brexit.
One obvious choice could be the banks' clearing services. Much of the global trade in euros currently takes place in London, despite the U.K. opting out of the currency used by 19 members of the EU.
The city handles transactions worth trillions of euros -- currencies, shares, bonds and other financial contracts. These might have to move elsewhere within Europe after Brexit.
"I have been saying it for months, the Brexit is a deeply regrettable decision but it is an historical one which is transforming the face of Europe and in front of which we cannot be idle nor naive," said Valerie Pecresse, president of the regional council of Ile de France, the Paris region.
Paris will face stiff competition from other European cities that are also hoping to steal business from London. Frankfurt, where the European Central Bank is based, is hoping to attract the banks. Dublin, home to the European headquarters of Google (GOOGL, Tech30) and Facebook (FB, Tech30), eyes London's tech sector.
Source-CNNMoney
Drones may soon protect your homes.
A new startup wants to turn drones into guardian angels for our homes.
Sunflower Labs, with headquarters in Silicon Valley and Zurich, Switzerland announced a new security system on Thursday that detects possible threats and investigates them with a drone.
The drone streams video to your smartphone, so you can see and decide if your home is at risk or not.
Sunflower Labs, which is now accepting participant applications, will start beta tests in mid-2017. The startup sees itself as a complement to traditional alarms.
Here's how it works: The Sunflower Home Awareness System relies on the drone and a handful of in-ground smart lights to watch over your house. It detects motion, vibration and sound. By analyzing this data, the system can distinguish between a human, a car and animals. To do so, it uses artificial intelligence to identify the disturbance and determine if it's potentially dangerous. For example, trusted visitors such as mail delivery persons will be recognized by how they approach the home and how long they stand at the front door.
When a person approaches and lingers outside the back door, Sunflower Labs will send a push notification to your smartphone and ask if you'd like to investigate.
If you say yes, the drone will lift off from its perch — on a balcony, deck or patio — and fly autonomously to where the suspicious person is located. The drone — 30 feet up — hovers near the visitor until you tell it to return to its nest. The app includes an option for a home owner to notify local police.
False alarms are a common problem for home alarm systems. CEO Alex Pachikov expects sending the drone to investigate before calling the police will solve this issue. The system also has the benefit of keeping an eye on all of your property. Most alarm systems are set up to guard only the entries and exits to a home.
The propellers automatically shut off if they hit anything and are designed to be quiet due to its broad size.
"Our goal is to make it a hum, as opposed to [producing] an obnoxious buzz," Pachikov said.
The drone currently weighs almost two pounds, but the company wants to get it down to half a pound before it ships. It also features two cameras and only collects footage of a home owner's property to protect neighbors' privacy.
According to the author the drone is sure to raise safety, privacy, nuisance and regulatory concerns. New rules, which allow operators who have passed an aeronautical exam to fly drones under 55 pounds no higher than 400 feet, went into effect for commercial drones in August and autonomous flight isn't legal for commercial drones.
Source-CNN Money
F1: Williams snap up Canadian billionaire's son Lance Stroll
Move over Max Verstappen, there's a new kid on the grid -- and his Dad's a billionaire.
Lance Stroll -- who turned 18 at the end of October -- will drive alongside Valtteri Bottas for the Williams Formula One team in 2017, it was announced Thursday.
Just like Red Bull racer Verstappen, the Canadian teenager comes into F1 on a wave of hype and expectation.
Stroll has racing pedigree, impressively winning the 2016 Formula 3 European Championship with 14 race wins and 14 pole positions.
He was just 12 when he joined Ferrari's young driver academy before moving to a wider role in the Williams development program.
Off track he also has another magic ingredient for wannabe racers -- the support of his father Lawrence Stroll, who made his money in fashion retail and according to Forbes is worth $2.4 billion.
Stroll Sr. also collects vintage Ferraris and sparked his son's love of racing when he bought him a kart for his fifth birthday.
"I've enjoyed success in karting, F4, Toyota Racing Series and most recently F3 -- winning every category I've competed in -- so I believe I have earned a shot in F1," said Stroll Jr.
"To be racing in Formula One in 2017 is incredible, I can't thank Williams enough for showing faith in my ability. Racing in F1 was something I dreamed about as a young kid."
Stroll is now eligible to join the F1 grid after reaching his 18th birthday and doing enough on track to qualify for a mandatory super license.
The sport's governing body, the FIA, introduced a minimum age for F1 racers after Verstappen debuted at just 17 -- before he was old enough to drive a road car in his native Netherlands.
Source-CNN
Brathwaite stars as Windies end Test win drought
Skipper Jason Holder believes West Indies cricket could be set for a return to the glory days after upsetting Pakistan by five wickets in the third and final Test in Sharjah on Thursday.
West Indies achieved a 153-run target on the fifth and final morning to clinch their first win in 14 Tests, a remarkable comeback after Pakistan won the first two Tests.
Opener Kraigg Brathwaite, who carried his bat in the first innings with 142 not out, was again unbeaten on 60 while Shane Dowrich, who also finished with 60 not out, hit the winning boundary.
The victory is also the first for Holder -- whose 5-30 on Wednesday set up the win — in 12 Tests as captain.
The West Indies' last win came against England at Barbados in May last year.
Holder is confident that the struggling West Indies —indomitable in the 1980s with 27 consecutive Tests without a defeat — can return to the top.
"I have no doubt we will get back on the track to take West Indies cricket back to the top," said Holder, appointed captain in October last year.
West Indies cricket has been rocked by players' contract problems, sacking of World Twenty20 winning captain Darren Sammy and head coach Phil Simmons just days before the series against Pakistan.
They were routed 3-0 in the preceding Twenty20 and one-day series and lost the first two Tests -- by 56 runs in Dubai and 133 runs in Abu Dhabi.
But Holder believes his players showed character in adversity.
"I can only hope this is a very good win for guys," said Holder. "For us it is just a matter of consistency. We have no reason to be complacent with just one Test victory."
Holder urged fans back home to continue supporting the West Indies.
"Stay with us and keep supporting us. We have shown people that we can do it and we have what it takes and not a roll over team and been competitive," said Holder, who showered praise on Brathwaite.
"I think Brathwaite was outstanding," said Holder of the opener who finished the series with 328 runs.
"Kraigg is one of those people who has come up playing cricket his entire life and he has dominated in most of the matches."
Brathwaite, declared man-of-the-match, said he was happy to contribute to the win.
"Feels very good," said Brathwaite. "It is something that I always wanted to do even from the period I started to play and then coming to play for West Indies. It wasn't easy against Pakistan."
For Pakistan captain Misbah-ul-Haq it was disappointing to end his 49th Test as captain – the most by a Pakistani, beating the previous Pakistan record of 48 by Imran Khan.
"It was disappointing that we didn't win," said Misbah. "We probably didn't respect the opposition which is why we were troubled in early matches and now in this third Test we made a lot of mistakes.
"Overall we didn't play up to our standard and it was bad performance. West Indies played with disciplined and we went on making mistakes and lost it."
Misbah said he hoped his team could lift its performance for the next two series in New Zealand and Australia where they play five Tests.
"I think we will improve going into next two series, we know how tough these series will be. We also know we are capable and when we play at our full potential we can win anything anywhere in the world."
Pakistan start the New Zealand series with the first Test in Christchurch from November 17.
Source-AFP
Clinton, Trump Head to Must-Win States in Final Days of Campaign
Presidential candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are concentrating their efforts on North Carolina and Florida, two states seen by both campaigns as vital to winning the November 8 election.
Trump has four rallies scheduled along the East Coast Thursday, beginning in the northern Florida city of Jacksonville before heading to a stop in eastern Pennsylvania and finally finishing out the day with two stops in North Carolina.
Clinton, meanwhile, has two rallies scheduled in North Carolina, the first in Greenville, the second in nearby Raleigh. President Barack Obama will be campaigning on Clinton’s behalf in Florida, with an early morning stop planned for Miami and a later rally scheduled in Jacksonville – just 30 miles from Trump's event and at the same time.
Recent polling from both states shows the candidates in a virtual tie as the final week of the campaign comes to an end. The momentum seems to be in Trump’s favor, as he’s been able to close a four-point deficit in Florida and a three-point gap in North Carolina since the beginning of last week, according to a Real Clear Politics average of polls.
North Carolina and Florida are considered swing states because, unlike many other states, they could go for either political party during presidential elections.
For instance, North Carolina went for Obama in 2008 but switched in 2012 and supported Republican Mitt Romney. Florida voted twice for Republican George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004 but switched and went to Obama in 2008 and 2012, with the 2012 election decided by less than 0.9 percent of the vote.
The two states are seen as particularly valuable swing states because of their high number of electoral votes: 15 in North Carolina and 29 in Florida. Only Texas, a Republican stronghold, and California, a Democrat stronghold, offer more electoral votes than Florida, with 38 and 55, respectively.
For Trump, Florida is a virtual must-win, as his chances of winning the election drop to single digits should he lose the state. Clinton, though, could conceivably lose Florida and still have about a 40 percent chance of winning. If either candidate were to lose both states, their chances of winning would drop significantly.
Realizing this, Trump has been spending virtually all of his time in Florida over the past few days, holding three rallies across the state just on Wednesday.
During a rally in Pensacola on Wednesday, Trump hit both Clinton and Obama, who he said should stop campaigning for her and get back into the Oval Office to create jobs and keep watch on U.S. borders.
Trump said a Clinton presidency would create an "unprecedented and protracted constitutional crisis." He said her handling of emails while secretary of state would remain an issue throughout her potential administration.
FBI Director James Comey said last week he is reviving the email investigation after declaring in July that Clinton was "extremely careless" in her use of a private email server, but her actions showed no criminal intent.
The FBI found emails it says may be germane to the Clinton case while carrying out a separate investigation into former U.S. congressman Anthony Weiner's alleged sexual online relationship with a 15 year-old girl.
Clinton predicted authorities would reach the same conclusion they did in July. "There is no case here," she shouted during a campaign event earlier this week.
Source-VOA
UNICEF calls for more investment in violence prevention in Jamaica
UNICEF says it is greatly concerned about the ongoing epidemic of violence against children, and is urging Jamaica and its international development partners to put more investment in efforts that focus on violence prevention.
According to reports by the Ministry of National Security’s Jamaica Crime Observatory, during the period 2011-2015, males aged 11-17 were more likely than females to be murdered, robbed or shot. Females in the same age group were more at risk of being sexually assaulted.
Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) statistics for 2014 indicate that 44 children were murdered, 138 were victims of shootings and aggravated assault, and 447 girls were victims of rape.
UNICEF said in a release Wednesday, that in order to address the root causes of the violence affecting the country, including children and their families, there is an urgent need for more community-based interventions designed to prevent and stem violence.
UNICEF pointed to the success of the Violence Interruption Programme, being implemented by the Peace Management Initiative and the Ministry of National Security – in response to concerns about the country’s high homicide rates.
It said that in 2015, the Violence Interruption Programme, working along with other stakeholders, helped to reduce murders by seven per cent and four per cent respectively in St James and St Catherine, two of the country’s high crime parishes.
“The programme, modelled on the approach of the USA-based “Cure Violence” programme, treats violence as a public health issue. Over 60 trained Violence Interrupters, who are highly-respected community residents, identify and detect potentially violent situations and the persons likely to get involved in conflict. They also interrupt potential violence by mediating conflicts and preventing retaliation, and make continuous efforts to influence the behaviour of persons who are most likely to get involved in shootings or murders,” UNICEF said.
The organisation called on the Government and other international development partners to consider making greater investments to expand the Violence Interruption programme, and to support similar community-based prevention efforts.
UNICEF, in partnership with the Government of Jamaica, started a new five-year country programme of cooperation in January 2017.
During this period, UNICEF said it will put heavy emphasis on supporting and advocating for programmes, policies and laws that seek to improve safety and justice for children, with a greater focus on violence prevention.
PREMIER EWING HAS TALKS WITH UK OVERSEAS TERRITORIES MINISTER, BARONESS ANELAY
Premier, Dr. the Hon. Rufus Ewing yesterday met with Baroness Anelay, FCO Minister with responsibility for the Overseas Territories and had the opportunity to discuss a number of issues of importance to the Turks and Caicos Islands. Premier Ewing impressed upon Minister Anelay, the urgency of the state of affairs as it relates to illegal migration and the threat that it poses to the national security of the Turks and Caicos Islands for which the U.K. holds responsibility.
Premier Ewing advised the Minister that The Turks and Caicos is insisting upon greater support from the U.K. Government in the area of border security, defense and internal security. On the heels of the Premier's meeting with Minister Anelay the Premier requested of the Governor, Commissioner of Police, and Immigration Minister to execute a joint approach with regional assistance to combat illegal immigration and crime in the Turks and Caicos Islands. The Minister invited the Premier to apply to the newly created U.K. OTs Complex Stability and Security Fund to address the need presented for greater border security.
Premier Ewing also discussed the issue of the status of the Chief Financial Officer in the TCI for which the Minister responded that it was unfortunate that they were unable to execute the request of the Premier as discussed with her predecessor but that she has already committed to the process of the position of the CFO being removed from the TCI constitution by Order in Council and also stated that that process should be completed by the end of March 2017. And is quoted as saying, "a promise made and that promise would be kept as I am a woman to my word".
Premier Ewing further requested of the Minister, an indication of the progress being made with the amendments to the Crown Land Ordinance previously submitted by TCIG to the FCO. The Minister reassured the Premier that the review is progressing well and positively save for responses that were requested from the TCI AG Chambers that were yet to be submitted. It is anticipated that this bill would be one of the first bills that Premier will bring to the House of Assembly after the upcomming General Election.
Premier Ewing described the meeting as being productive and very encouraging.
Val Kilmer denies Michael Douglas's 'misinformed' cancer claim
US actor Val Kilmer has denied he has cancer, following Michael Douglas's claim that his former co-star is ill.
"I love Michael Douglas but he is misinformed," the Top Gun and Batman Forever star wrote in a Facebook post.
In a talk in London on Sunday, Douglas claimed that Kilmer was "dealing with" throat cancer - the same ailment that Douglas was diagnosed with in 2010.
Kilmer, however, said he was "rehabbing steadily" from "a swollen tongue" and had "no cancer whatsoever".
"The last time I spoke to [Douglas] was almost two years ago, when I asked him for a referral for a specialist to get a diagnosis for a lump in my throat," wrote the 56-year-old.
"I ended up using a team at UCLA [University of California, Los Angeles] and have no cancer whatsoever," he continued.
Kilmer is also known for his roles in films including The Doors, Heat and Tombstone.
Following Douglas's comments, it was reported that he had been reluctant to seek medical treatment due to his Christian Science faith.
Many Christian Scientists believe that diseases can be healed with prayer, although the Church does not forbid adherents seeking medical aid.
Source-BBC
Deputy Governor Extends Best Wishes To Miss H.J. Contestants
Deputy Governor Her Excellency Anya Williams on Tuesday, November 1st, 2016 met with the contestants of the 2016 Miss Helena Jones Robinson High School.
The pageant which is in its 3rd year, will take place on Saturday November 5th, 2016 and was launched as a part of the schools calendar of events. The theme of this year's pageant is "Our Heritage" and there are 8 contestants from Forms 3-5.
While addressing the group, the Deputy Governor reminded: "The road to success is paved with many obstacles, but the key is to remain determined and to persevere. As young ladies you are reminded to always carry yourself in such a manner that exudes poise and grace. Your high school and college years will later become a part of your legacy as such it is important that maximize every opportunity that is presented to you.
The purpose of your participation in this pageant is not to win a title or a trophy, but to have an opportunity to publicly display yourselves and your schools in a positive manner. I would hope that this pageant will help to motivate and to build confidence in your public speaking and leadership amongst other areas.
I commended the principal and staff of the school on ensuring the continuation of this event and am happy to have assisted in providing sponsorship for this years' trophies and awards. I encourage both students and members of the public to give their full support and wish the contestants and school much success.
In closing she added; "I would someday as well like to see a Mr. H.J. title being added to the slate of events as well."