People line up to get the AstraZeneca vaccine outside La Nuvola convention centre in Rome, Italy on Friday. EU member countries reintroduced the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in their inoculation campaigns. EPA
People line up to get the AstraZeneca vaccine outside La Nuvola convention centre in Rome, Italy on Friday. EU member countries reintroduced the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in their inoculation campaigns. EPA
People line up to get the AstraZeneca vaccine outside La Nuvola convention centre in Rome, Italy on Friday. EU member countries reintroduced the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in their inoculation campa
Warnings from the World Health Organisation on the perils of vaccine nationalism have failed to prevent the scourge spreading. The worst transgressor has been the EU, which has dropped any pretence that it is an idealistic player on the world stage.
In fact the EU is uniquely placed to do great damage to the vaccine rollout across the globe. There is every sign that it is willfully and knowingly doubling down on its threats to stop exports of the vaccine and its ingredients.
The US is celebrating 100 million shots into American arms. With a slightly larger population the EU is languishing in the low tens of millions. Just 9.5 per cent of German and French adults have been immunised. Other countries are vaccine super powers when measured by per capita, most notably the UAE.
Recently bolted from the EU, the UK has rolled out jabs for more than 26 million of its approximately 70 million population.
At one point during its transition out of the EU, the government of Boris Johnson came under fierce criticism for spurning participation in the EU's vaccine procurement system. Now it is racing ahead on its own while Brussels is straining to meet even the modest targets it has set for its distribution project. Britain can still look forward to the remarkable feat of vaccinating its adult population with at least one dose by the end of June.
The founding impulse behind the EU was to heal the wounds of division in the European continent. By coming together and erasing differences, the EU is an explicit project in seeking harmony and the elimination of conflict.
Its behaviour is having the opposite effect. The failings in the vaccine scheme are multiple and successive. The supposed strengths of Brussels' regulatory regime have been its primary weaknesses.
First the EU failed to order a front-loaded schedule of vaccines. We know that its contract with AstraZeneca/Oxford was weaker in crucial legal provisions than the UK version. Europe's medicines agency failed to use the emergency provisions processes for approving the new drugs. It fell weeks behind the UK and the seeds of resentment were sown.
This month's investigation into blood clots led to more than a dozen European countries suspending the AstraZeneca roll out. With all the big countries joining the ban, the populations affected was vast.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson receives his first dose of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine in London. Johnson was on Friday trying to ensure that shipments from the Pfizer facilities near Brussels to the UK continue. AFP
Some European leaders tried to paint the move as a prudent measure to maintain confidence in the vaccine process. The argument went that by suspending AstraZeneca, the authorities were demonstrating that reported issues were being taken seriously.
In other words, there could be no truth in conspiracy theories that posited officials were reckless or malicious in promoting dangerous treatments.
Even though some European countries have resumed AstraZeneca vaccinations following an all-clear from EU regulators and the WHO, the suspension has damaged faith in the product. Even Britain experienced cancellations of vaccination appointments from the publicity questioning its safety.
There was a perverse impact, too. Angered Europeans expressed frustration that the governments were yet again throwing up new roadblocks in the vaccination campaign. Some were demanding the restoration of the AstraZeneca access, demands satisfied by a resumption of the rollout by some authorities.
French President Emmanuel Macron at one stage called AstraZeneca 'quasi-ineffective' and gives every impression of wanting to undermine the product, presumably because it was developed in Oxford, not Orleans. Reuters
French President Emmanuel Macron at one stage called AstraZeneca "quasi-ineffective" and gives every impression of wanting to undermine the product, presumably because it was developed in Oxford, not Orleans.
The EU position to the UK – and the rest of the world – is you cannot have what we don’t really want.
Mr Johnson was on the phone to the Belgian prime minister on Friday trying to ensure that shipments from the Pfizer facilities near Brussels continue. If these are interrupted, second doses for those already accessing the vaccine will be interrupted.
The EU could be described accurately as an integrated supply chain masquerading as a geopolitical power bloc. Shutting that down has international impact.
The threat to suspend millions of doses going from Belgium, the Netherlands and elsewhere to the UK is a direct and immediate shadow on supplies. The threat to interrupt the supply chain is even more insidious.
Vaccines are brewed in a biological process that is dependent on chemical reactions between ingredients. Any interruption of one part is a disruption of all.
Vials with Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, and Moderna vaccine labels are seen in front of a US. Pfizer warned last week that US demand was curtailing production of other drugs. Reuters
Rarely has there been such a nakedly selfish set of behaviours put on display during a health emergency
Even in America, this is not a straightforward issue. Pfizer warned last week that US demand was curtailing production of other drugs. As 18 states joined the federal government in setting a May 1 deadline to triple the US vaccinated, the supply crunch will get even worse.
The mendacity of the European leadership in this situation grows ever harder to fathom. They are feeling the heat and want to provide political cover for their failings.
The legacy of this bitter period could take years to erase. Coming at time when there is nothing but friction with Britain over the post-Brexit arrangements, the strategic prospects for Europeans as a whole are calamitous.
This is to say little or nothing about the fact that the Europeans organised a global summit just 10 months ago to display their commitment to universal global access to the vaccine. Rarely has there been such a nakedly selfish set of behaviours put on display during a health emergency.
Vaccine nationalism is an evil. Leaders who aspire to be a global force for good cannot be absolved when they fall in its trawl.
Damien McElroy is the London bureau chief at The National
Saturday Crotone v Spezia (6pm), Torino v Udinese (9pm), Lazio v Verona (11.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Inter Milan (3.30pm), Atalanta v Fiorentina (6pm), Napoli v Sampdoria (6pm), Bologna v Roma (6pm), Genoa v Juventus (9pm), AC Milan v Parma (11.45pm)
Ten tax points to be aware of in 2026
1. Domestic VAT refund amendments: request your refund within five years
If a business does not apply for the refund on time, they lose their credit.
2. E-invoicing in the UAE
Businesses should continue preparing for the implementation of e-invoicing in the UAE, with 2026 a preparation and transition period ahead of phased mandatory adoption.
3. More tax audits
Tax authorities are increasingly using data already available across multiple filings to identify audit risks.
4. More beneficial VAT and excise tax penalty regime
Tax disputes are expected to become more frequent and more structured, with clearer administrative objection and appeal processes. The UAE has adopted a new penalty regime for VAT and excise disputes, which now mirrors the penalty regime for corporate tax.
5. Greater emphasis on statutory audit
There is a greater need for the accuracy of financial statements. The International Financial Reporting Standards standards need to be strictly adhered to and, as a result, the quality of the audits will need to increase.
6. Further transfer pricing enforcement
Transfer pricing enforcement, which refers to the practice of establishing prices for internal transactions between related entities, is expected to broaden in scope. The UAE will shortly open the possibility to negotiate advance pricing agreements, or essentially rulings for transfer pricing purposes.
7. Limited time periods for audits
Recent amendments also introduce a default five-year limitation period for tax audits and assessments, subject to specific statutory exceptions. While the standard audit and assessment period is five years, this may be extended to up to 15 years in cases involving fraud or tax evasion.
8. Pillar 2 implementation
Many multinational groups will begin to feel the practical effect of the Domestic Minimum Top-Up Tax (DMTT), the UAE's implementation of the OECD’s global minimum tax under Pillar 2. While the rules apply for financial years starting on or after January 1, 2025, it is 2026 that marks the transition to an operational phase.
9. Reduced compliance obligations for imported goods and services
Businesses that apply the reverse-charge mechanism for VAT purposes in the UAE may benefit from reduced compliance obligations.
10. Substance and CbC reporting focus
Tax authorities are expected to continue strengthening the enforcement of economic substance and Country-by-Country (CbC) reporting frameworks. In the UAE, these regimes are increasingly being used as risk-assessment tools, providing tax authorities with a comprehensive view of multinational groups’ global footprints and enabling them to assess whether profits are aligned with real economic activity.
Contributed by Thomas Vanhee and Hend Rashwan, Aurifer
Non-profit arts studio Tashkeel launched this annual initiative with the intention of supporting budding designers in the UAE. This year, three talents were chosen from hundreds of applicants to be a part of the sixth creative development programme. These are architect Abdulla Al Mulla, interior designer Lana El Samman and graphic designer Yara Habib.
The trio have been guided by experts from the industry over the course of nine months, as they developed their own products that merge their unique styles with traditional elements of Emirati design. This includes laboratory sessions, experimental and collaborative practice, investigation of new business models and evaluation.
It is led by British contemporary design project specialist Helen Voce and mentor Kevin Badni, and offers participants access to experts from across the world, including the likes of UK designer Gareth Neal and multidisciplinary designer and entrepreneur, Sheikh Salem Al Qassimi.
The final pieces are being revealed in a worldwide limited-edition release on the first day of Downtown Designs at Dubai Design Week 2019. Tashkeel will be at stand E31 at the exhibition.
Lisa Ball-Lechgar, deputy director of Tashkeel, said: “The diversity and calibre of the applicants this year … is reflective of the dynamic change that the UAE art and design industry is witnessing, with young creators resolute in making their bold design ideas a reality.”
hall of shame
SUNDERLAND 2002-03
No one has ended a Premier League season quite like Sunderland. They lost each of their final 15 games, taking no points after January. They ended up with 19 in total, sacking managers Peter Reid and Howard Wilkinson and losing 3-1 to Charlton when they scored three own goals in eight minutes.
SUNDERLAND 2005-06
Until Derby came along, Sunderland’s total of 15 points was the Premier League’s record low. They made it until May and their final home game before winning at the Stadium of Light while they lost a joint record 29 of their 38 league games.
HUDDERSFIELD 2018-19
Joined Derby as the only team to be relegated in March. No striker scored until January, while only two players got more assists than goalkeeper Jonas Lossl. The mid-season appointment Jan Siewert was to end his time as Huddersfield manager with a 5.3 per cent win rate.
ASTON VILLA 2015-16
Perhaps the most inexplicably bad season, considering they signed Idrissa Gueye and Adama Traore and still only got 17 points. Villa won their first league game, but none of the next 19. They ended an abominable campaign by taking one point from the last 39 available.
FULHAM 2018-19
Terrible in different ways. Fulham’s total of 26 points is not among the lowest ever but they contrived to get relegated after spending over £100 million (Dh457m) in the transfer market. Much of it went on defenders but they only kept two clean sheets in their first 33 games.
Just as McDonald’s has the Big Mac, Jollibee has Spicy Chickenjoy – a piece of fried chicken that’s crispy and spicy on the outside and comes with a side of spaghetti, all covered in tomato sauce and topped with sausage slices and ground beef. It sounds like a recipe that a child would come up with, but perhaps that’s the point – a flavourbomb combination of cheap comfort foods. Chickenjoy is Jollibee’s best-selling product in every country in which it has a presence.
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
