Britain has embarked on a new era of co-operation with Europe at a summit where there was broad unity on a drive to protect borders against the “criminal empire” of migration gangs.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer made the comments at the European Political Community meeting at Blenheim Palace, as he welcomed continental leaders to Britain.
After eight years of turmoil caused by the Brexit vote to leave the EU, Britain appears to have been welcomed back into the European fold with the election of a new Labour government.
There’s been a game-changer now. You have a British Government that wants to actively talk about a closer relationship with Europe
Simon Harris,
Irish PM
Whitehall sources have disclosed that Mr Starmer’s uncompromising defence of the European Convention on Human Rights – something that the Conservatives threatened to leave – has already made relations “much easier”.
A “tête-à-tête” dinner with President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday evening will also be the setting for a discussion on a new structure to tackle illegal immigrants crossing the English Channel.
Criminal empire
Addressing the opening meeting in which more than 40 countries were represented, Mr Starmer described Europe’s illegal immigration as a crisis.
“A criminal empire is at work in every country represented here today, profiting off human misery and desperation, prepared to send infants, babies, pregnant mothers, innocent people to their deaths,” he said.
The summit was an opportunity to “set a new path on illegal migration” and “to say together ‘no more’” to people smugglers.
But he also recognised that Europe needed to address the “root causes” that drove migrants from their homes, including extreme poverty, conflict and climate change.
In order to tackle the immigration problem at source, Mr Starmer announced £84 million ($108) million for skills and education projects across the Middle East and Africa.
“This is a vital part of gripping the migration crisis,” he told a press conference. “It shows how we are going to do business on world stage.”
The immigration problem demonstrated that the “world’s problems echo at home” and that Britain or Europe “could solve nothing by turning inward”.
The announcement came on the day of a migrant drowning and the rescue of 71 others in one failed crossing in which the asylum seekers were repatriated to France.
Soft Rwanda
The UK small boat issue has become intensely political with 45,000 crossing in 2022 followed by about 30,000 last year.
Former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Rwanda deportation scheme, which cost the taxpayer £270 million, was meant to act as a deterrent but was not introduced before he lost the election. The policy has since been dropped by Labour.
However, it is understood that Britain could be examining what observers call a “soft Rwanda” scheme, such as the one enacted between Italy and Albania.
Italy, which suffers some of the highest numbers of illegal migrants in Europe, has agreed with Albania on a scheme that will reportedly send 36,000 to a port north of the capital Tirana where migrant claims are processed. The majority so far have come from Bangladesh, Egypt, Ivory Coast and Tunisia.
Indications that this could evolve for Britain came after Mr Starmer held a meeting with the two countries’ prime ministers, Giorgia Meloni and Edi Rama.
There were also reports, denied by Labour, for an agreement for Britain to send back several small boat migrants in exchange for accepting some asylum seekers from Europe.
Royal welcome
The Italy-Albania meeting was among many that Mr Starmer held with Europe’s leaders who descended on Blenheim, outside Oxford.
British soft power diplomacy was to the fore as King Charles III hosted an hour-long reception for the leaders in the Baroque-style building where Winston Churchill was born and where his dynasty has held sway since the continental wars when the victorious commander John Churchill was made first Duke of Marlborough.
It is understood that the king recognised that the summit was “really important for the UK”, a source said, and that the monarch “personally has done a great deal on our relationships” with Europe.
Labour ‘game-changer’
The bonhomie was evident among the premiers, with even Hungary’s Viktor Orban warmly welcomed despite EU criticism of his recent trip to meet President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
The change in atmosphere was notably different from the inaugural EPC meeting in 2022 in the Czech Republic, a brainchild of President Macron in light of the Ukraine invasion when the former British leader Liz Truss was vague in her response on whether the Frenchman was “friend or foe”.
Ireland’s leader Simon Harris suggested that Mr Starmer’s election victory would be a “game-changer” for Britain’s relations with the EU in that he wanted a “closer relationship with Europe”.
Josep Borrell, the EU’s chief diplomat, said Brussels would discuss a new security and defence pact. “We welcome the new tone of the British government and we look forward to engaging with it,” he said.
Charles Michel, the President of the European Council, spoke of a “new chapter of co-operation” with Britain on migration and global threats.
Freewheeling chat
The summit was touted as “leaders only” event with few officials involved in talks where there were no country flags, with most of the discussion in English and around hexagonal tables.
It saw three working groups on migration, security and preserving democracy, including further strong signals of support for Ukraine with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also in attendance.
The EPC allowed Europe’s leaders to have “more freewheeling conversations”, a Whitehall source said, rather than the formality of other summits.
That talks led to such moments in the palace gardens in which the British, French, German and Ukrainian leaders discussed affairs unheard by officials.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh117,059
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
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Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
DEADPOOL & WOLVERINE
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Emma Corrin
Director: Shawn Levy
Rating: 3/5
Spider-Man: No Way Home
Director: Jon Watts
Stars: Tom Holland, Zendaya, Jacob Batalon
Rating:*****
The%20specs
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbo
Transmission: CVT
Power: 170bhp
Torque: 220Nm
Price: Dh98,900
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
2019 ASIAN CUP FINAL
Japan v Qatar
Friday, 6pm
Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi
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Starring: Kareena Kapoor Khan, Ash Tandon, Prabhleen Sandhu
Director: Hansal Mehta
Rating: 4 / 5
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
J%20Street%20Polling%20Results
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The candidates
Dr Ayham Ammora, scientist and business executive
Ali Azeem, business leader
Tony Booth, professor of education
Lord Browne, former BP chief executive
Dr Mohamed El-Erian, economist
Professor Wyn Evans, astrophysicist
Dr Mark Mann, scientist
Gina MIller, anti-Brexit campaigner
Lord Smith, former Cabinet minister
Sandi Toksvig, broadcaster
Dust and sand storms compared
Sand storm
- Particle size: Larger, heavier sand grains
- Visibility: Often dramatic with thick "walls" of sand
- Duration: Short-lived, typically localised
- Travel distance: Limited
- Source: Open desert areas with strong winds
Dust storm
- Particle size: Much finer, lightweight particles
- Visibility: Hazy skies but less intense
- Duration: Can linger for days
- Travel distance: Long-range, up to thousands of kilometres
- Source: Can be carried from distant regions
If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
The specs
Engine: Turbocharged four-cylinder 2.7-litre
Power: 325hp
Torque: 500Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh189,700
On sale: now
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The Prison Letters of Nelson Mandela
Edited by Sahm Venter
Published by Liveright
The specs: 2019 Haval H6
Price, base: Dh69,900
Engine: 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 197hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 315Nm @ 2,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 7.0L / 100km
