Britain’s prime minister Theresa May sprang a major surprise on Tuesday by calling a snap general election intended to remove parliamentary obstruction to her plans for implementing Brexit.
“The country is coming together but Westminster [the seat of the UK parliament] is not,” Mrs May declared outside her official residence, 10 Downing Street, referring to opposition attempts to frustrate her strategy for UK withdrawal from the European Union.
Any lingering doubt over Brexit, the process for which was formally triggered last month, would be removed by a victory for her Conservative party on June 8, the date chosen by the government as polling day.
It would also take advantage of disarray among the opposition by extending her own mandate to 2022.
Claiming the UK economy had triumphed over the gloomy prediction of “Remainers”, with upbeat news on consumer confidence, employment and growth, she said: “Britain is leaving the European Union and there can be no turning back.”
Last June’s referendum vote, the election of Donald Trump as US president and developments in some of Britain’s neighbouring European countries have shown western public opinion to be volatile, weakening the mainstream parties that have traditionally governed.
But Mrs May’s Conservatives are currently ahead of Labour, the main opposition party, by such a substantial margin — 18 per cent on recent polling — that they start the campaign as clear favourites to win comfortably.
Given the prime minister’s need to strengthen links with non-EU nations and minimise any impact of Brexit on trading with Europe, victory for her would ensure determined efforts to build on close relations with the Arabian Gulf.
Alistair Burt, a former Middle East minister who chairs the UAE All Party Parliamentary Group in the UK, wrote in The National this week that with more than 120,000 British nationals living in "and making a fantastic contribution to the success of the UAE, as well as a million tourists visiting the country last year", there were obvious reasons why the bond deserved to be fostered.
Mr Burt, like Mrs May, campaigned for Remain but accepts the referendum result as a binding expression of popular will.
The prime minister on Tuesday reaffirmed the need for such ties with “old friends” to be developed.
“We want a deep and special partnership between a strong and successful European Union and a UK that is free to chart its own way in the world,” she said. “That means we will regain control of our own money, our own laws and our own borders and be free to strike trade deals with old friends and new partners all around the world.”
On obstacles to a smooth divorce from the EU, she cited Labour threats to vote against the final agreement reached with the EU and the minority Liberal Democrats’ pledge “to grind the business of government to a standstill”.
“The Scottish National Party (SNP) say they will vote against the legislation that formally repeals Britain’s membership,” she said. “And unelected members of the House of Lords have vowed to fight us every step of the way.”
With the Conservatives currently governing with a slim working majority of 17 seats at most, Mrs May is also open to challenge from dissident members of her own party.
“Our opponents believe because the government’s majority is so small, that our resolve will weaken and that they can force us to change course,” she said. “They are wrong. They underestimate our determination to get the job done and I am not prepared to let them endanger the security of millions of working people.”
Without an election, she said, political “game-playing” would continue, putting the toughest phase of withdrawal negotiations on collision course with the next scheduled election in 2020.
“Division in Westminster will risk our ability to make a success of Brexit and cause damaging uncertainty and instability,” she said, accepting that bringing the date forward represented a change in her own view.
Mrs May said the choice facing Britain was between her own “strong leadership” and a “weak and unstable” government led by Labour’s embattled leader Jeremy Corbyn in coalition with two parties bitterly opposed to Brexit, the Liberal Democrats and the Scottish Nationalist Party.
Last June’s decision to leave the EU was carried by 51.9 per cent to 48.1, a margin of under 1.3 million voters. A sizeable proportion of those who wanted Britain to remain a member state continue to make their feelings known.
But Mr Corbyn has proved an unpopular Labour leader and was blamed by some Remain factions for being timid in opposing Brexit during the referendum campaign.
He welcomed Mrs May’s announcement, effectively ensuring that the necessary parliamentary majority for an interim election would be secured on Wednesday.
But one prominent pro-Labour political commentator, Kevin Maguire, said there was no chance of Mr Corbyn turning the snap election into a re-run of the referendum.
He also tweeted the view of one Labour source: “The silver lining is we’ll be shot of Corbyn earlier.”
foreign.desk@thenational.ae
Australia World Cup squad
Aaron Finch (capt), Usman Khawaja, David Warner, Steve Smith, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Alex Carey, Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, Jhye Richardson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Lyon, Adam Zampa
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Indoor cricket World Cup:
Insportz, Dubai, September 16-23
UAE fixtures:
Men
Saturday, September 16 – 1.45pm, v New Zealand
Sunday, September 17 – 10.30am, v Australia; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Monday, September 18 – 2pm, v England; 7.15pm, v India
Tuesday, September 19 – 12.15pm, v Singapore; 5.30pm, v Sri Lanka
Thursday, September 21 – 2pm v Malaysia
Friday, September 22 – 3.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 3pm, grand final
Women
Saturday, September 16 – 5.15pm, v Australia
Sunday, September 17 – 2pm, v South Africa; 7.15pm, v New Zealand
Monday, September 18 – 5.30pm, v England
Tuesday, September 19 – 10.30am, v New Zealand; 3.45pm, v South Africa
Thursday, September 21 – 12.15pm, v Australia
Friday, September 22 – 1.30pm, semi-final
Saturday, September 23 – 1pm, grand final
SPEC%20SHEET%3A%20APPLE%20M3%20MACBOOK%20AIR%20(13%22)
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Dubai World Cup Carnival card
6.30pm: Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group 1 (PA) US$75,000 (Dirt) 1,900m
7.05pm: Al Rashidiya Group 2 (TB) $250,000 (Turf) 1,800m
7.40pm: Meydan Cup Listed Handicap (TB) $175,000 (T) 2,810m
8.15pm: Handicap (TB) $175,000 (D) 1,600m
8.50pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 1,600m
9.25pm: Al Shindagha Sprint Group 3 (TB) $200,000 (D) 1,200m
10pm: Handicap (TB) $135,000 (T) 2,000m
The National selections:
6.30pm - Ziyadd; 7.05pm - Barney Roy; 7.40pm - Dee Ex Bee; 8.15pm - Dubai Legacy; 8.50pm - Good Fortune; 9.25pm - Drafted; 10pm - Simsir
The Brutalist
Director: Brady Corbet
Stars: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn
Rating: 3.5/5
Petrarch: Everywhere a Wanderer
Christopher Celenza,
Reaktion Books
England v South Africa schedule:
- First Test: At Lord's, England won by 219 runs
- Second Test: July 14-18, Trent Bridge, Nottingham, 2pm
- Third Test: The Oval, London, July 27-31, 2pm
- Fourth Test: Old Trafford, Manchester, August 4-8
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals
UAE v Ireland
1st ODI, UAE win by 6 wickets
2nd ODI, January 12
3rd ODI, January 14
4th ODI, January 16
Fitness problems in men's tennis
Andy Murray - hip
Novak Djokovic - elbow
Roger Federer - back
Stan Wawrinka - knee
Kei Nishikori - wrist
Marin Cilic - adductor
UAE v IRELAND
All matches start at 10am, and will be played in Abu Dhabi
1st ODI, Friday, January 8
2nd ODI, Sunday, January 10
3rd ODI, Tuesday, January 12
4th ODI, Thursday, January 14
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Kumulus Water
Started: 2021
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
Based: Tunisia
Sector: Water technology
Number of staff: 22
Investment raised: $4 million
What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
SERIES SCHEDULE
First Test, Galle International Stadium
July 26-30
Second Test, Sinhalese Sports Club Ground
August 3-7
Third Test, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
August 12-16
First ODI, Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium
August 20
Second ODI, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
August 24
Third ODI, Pallekele International Cricket Stadium
August 27
Fourth ODI, R Premadasa Stadium
August 31
Fifth ODI, R Premadasa Stadium
September 3
T20, R Premadasa Stadium
September 6
A State of Passion
Directors: Carol Mansour and Muna Khalidi
Stars: Dr Ghassan Abu-Sittah
Rating: 4/5
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
SPECS
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Tonight's Chat on The National
Tonight's Chat is a series of online conversations on The National. The series features a diverse range of celebrities, politicians and business leaders from around the Arab world.
Tonight’s Chat host Ricardo Karam is a renowned author and broadcaster with a decades-long career in TV. He has previously interviewed Bill Gates, Carlos Ghosn, Andre Agassi and the late Zaha Hadid, among others. Karam is also the founder of Takreem.
Intellectually curious and thought-provoking, Tonight’s Chat moves the conversation forward.
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UAE rugby in numbers
5 - Year sponsorship deal between Hesco and Jebel Ali Dragons
700 - Dubai Hurricanes had more than 700 playing members last season between their mini and youth, men's and women's teams
Dh600,000 - Dubai Exiles' budget for pitch and court hire next season, for their rugby, netball and cricket teams
Dh1.8m - Dubai Hurricanes' overall budget for next season
Dh2.8m - Dubai Exiles’ overall budget for next season
The%20Emperor%20and%20the%20Elephant
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAuthor%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESam%20Ottewill-Soulsby%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EPrinceton%20University%20Press%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EPages%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E392%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EAvailable%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EJuly%2011%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs: 2019 Infiniti QX50
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 268hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy: 6.7L / 100km (estimate)
