Emirates planes outside Terminal 3 in Dubai International Airport.
Emirates planes outside Terminal 3 in Dubai International Airport.

Canada and Emirates Airline rift grows



Emirates Airline has hit back at Canadian officials and called their language "aggressive, often biased and deeply offensive", after a transport agency said the airline should be blocked from further access into the country because of unfair government support. The rebuke from Andrew Parker, the airline's top governmental affairs executive, was in response to a presentation by Transport Canada, the country's leading agency governing air travel. Transport Canada called Emirates and Etihad Airways "instruments of government policy". "The governments are helping finance massive wide-body aircraft orders and massive expansion of airport infrastructure," it said during the presentation at a private briefing to stakeholders. A copy of the presentation was obtained by the Toronto Star. The spat follows a campaign of nearly two years by Emirates to expand beyond its current allotment of three flights a week to the country of 32 million residents. It wants to service 21 flights a week through daily trips between Dubai and Toronto, Vancouver and Calgary. However, its efforts have so far have been blocked by the Canadian government to protect the country's ailing flag carrier, Air Canada, which depends on lucrative international traffic to India and elsewhere after facing stiff competition from a domestic rival, Jetstar. With new aircraft, government owners and the full support of the UAE's civil aviation authorities, Emirates and Etihad Airways have been dogged by claims of unfair support from rivals since the airlines were launched. The claims often revolve around subsidised fuel, low airport landing fees and financial assistance for aircraft purchases, although they have never been verified. Emirates and Etihad say the statements reveal fundamental misperceptions about the carriers. They say the airlines have raised billions of dollars from institutions, not their government backers, to finance their purchases. "Emirates does not receive any subsidies, guarantees, or any other financial support from the Government of Dubai," said Gary Chapman, the president of Emirates Group Services and Dnata. "To fund our aircraft purchases, Emirates has a robust and diversified financing strategy which utilises various instruments including bonds, financial and operating leases, Islamic structures and export credit-supported structures." An Etihad spokesman said yesterday the company had arranged loans from 25 institutions in Asia, Europe, the US and the Middle East. "Etihad Airways operates on a level commercial playing field and receive no subsidies, sovereign guarantees or fuel discounts. We have a genuine commercial mandate," he said. Emirates Airline's efforts in Canada gathered momentum in March last year when it enlisted the services of a local lobbying firm, Temple Scott Associates. Over a 16-month period, nine executives from the firm wrote letters and communicated with Canadian government officials to lobby on behalf of Emirates, according to documents provided by the Office of the Commissioner of Lobbying in Canada. The agencies included Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, Industry Canada, Transport Canada, the Canadian Tourism Commission and the Senate of Canada. The documents also show that Tim Clark, the president of Emirates, personally contacted members of the Canadian government on six occasions. igale@thenational.ae

The specs

Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6

Power: 400hp

Torque: 475Nm

Transmission: 9-speed automatic

Price: From Dh215,900

On sale: Now

The specs

Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors

Power: 480kW

Torque: 850Nm

Transmission: Single-speed automatic

Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)

On sale: Now

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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
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Business Insights
  • As per the document, there are six filing options, including choosing to report on a realisation basis and transitional rules for pre-tax period gains or losses. 
  • SMEs with revenue below Dh3 million per annum can opt for transitional relief until 2026, treating them as having no taxable income. 
  • Larger entities have specific provisions for asset and liability movements, business restructuring, and handling foreign permanent establishments.
What is blockchain?

Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.

The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.

Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.

However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.

Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.

From Zero

Artist: Linkin Park

Label: Warner Records

Number of tracks: 11

Rating: 4/5

Company%20Profile
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Cricket World Cup League 2

UAE squad

Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind

Fixtures

Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE

The specs
Engine: 2.7-litre 4-cylinder Turbomax
Power: 310hp
Torque: 583Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh192,500
On sale: Now
Company%20Profile
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Martin Sabbagh profile

Job: CEO JCDecaux Middle East

In the role: Since January 2015

Lives: In the UAE

Background: M&A, investment banking

Studied: Corporate finance

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre turbo 4-cyl

Transmission: eight-speed auto

Power: 190bhp

Torque: 300Nm

Price: Dh169,900

On sale: now 

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The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Power: 268bhp / 536bhp
Torque: 343Nm / 686Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
On sale: Later this year
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: Qyubic
Started: October 2023
Founder: Namrata Raina
Based: Dubai
Sector: E-commerce
Current number of staff: 10
Investment stage: Pre-seed
Initial investment: Undisclosed 

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UAE central contracts

Full time contracts

Rohan Mustafa, Ahmed Raza, Mohammed Usman, Chirag Suri, Mohammed Boota, Sultan Ahmed, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid

Part time contracts

Aryan Lakra, Ansh Tandon, Karthik Meiyappan, Rahul Bhatia, Alishan Sharafu, CP Rizwaan, Basil Hameed, Matiullah, Fahad Nawaz, Sanchit Sharma

COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale

Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni

Director: Amith Krishnan

Rating: 3.5/5

The Meg
Director: Jon Turteltaub
Starring:   
Two stars