A welter of scandals around British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has demonstrated the powerful importance of acting for social good.
Mr Johnson has allowed the culture of his administration to develop independent of the society it serves. Despite being gravely threatened by Covid-19 himself almost two years ago, he permitted his closest team to disregard the safety measures imposed to slow the pandemic. In doing so, he has removed himself from the mainstream.
Belief in the importance of promoting social good applies not only among people you know but across the world.
One of the most significant trends is in the business world, where the profit motive is now surrounded by wider goals. These include the health of the planet, reduction in inequality and concerns over the impact of innovation. As the Davos Forum opens a series of virtual meetings this week, these themes can be expected to surface again and again.
Mr Johnson’s lockdown parties were not only contrary to the spirit of the lockdown regulations that his administration promoted. There is a selfishness in the idea that the government headquarters, protected by the police, could be a haven for behaviour that was banned just outside the gate. Restaurants along Whitehall, which houses UK government offices in London, were at the time closed but no one seems to have drawn a parallel with what was happening inside the institutions.
A survey out last week from the World Economic Forum highlighted the importance of doing the right thing. The Global Risks Report 2022 showed just how much the pandemic has set the world on a new course. Respondents really wanted to show that what was important in business was the impact that the enterprise made on the planet and the people on it. The priorities it set out were crafted not only by the threat to health over the past two years but also the clear and present danger posed to the Earth from the climate threat.
The Davos meeting this year will not be held face-to-face because of the pandemic. But it will take place virtually, with the agenda revolving around how to reflect on the concerns of systemic failure and the pressures those big issues present.
The most severe risks to the planet over the next decade were clearly set out in the survey. Biggest among them was a potential failure to take climate action and the associated weather and biodiversity threats. Plus infectious disease outbreaks, erosion of social cohesion and widespread livelihood breakdown. The outcomes of the Cop26 and the expectations around Cop27 in Egypt and Cop28 in the UAE were mentioned by the big business respondents in a year when only the climate competed with health as the universal top concerns.
As an outlier, there was also an interesting look at the increased innovation that is taking place in space exploration and how it could replicate or compound global inequalities.
The scale of the biggest issues resonates not just among cabinet ministers and corporate boards. In fact, there is a complementary popular sea change in attitudes as well. A powerful wave of how people judge their leaders based on environment and social tests has grown measurably stronger throughout the pandemic.
Late last year, the London-based polling firm Ipsos Mori pointed to fundamental tests from changing popular attitudes, particularly among the youngest. “The combination of financial and health worries is manifesting itself as a 'control crisis' – where individual lack of empowerment is coupled with perceptions that surrounding institutions are also 'out of control',” an accompanying analysis said.
Boris Johnson should have lived up to the discipline that the moment required
Tell that to Terry Smith, the money manager who controls more than $30 billion in funds, who was critical of the conglomerate Unilever for its environmental, social and corporate governance goals. Mr Smith complained last week that the focus by the management of the Magnum ice cream brand was hurting his returns. “Unilever seems to be labouring under the weight of a management, which is obsessed with publicly displaying sustainability credentials at the expense of focusing on the fundamentals of the business,” he wrote in a letter to investors.
Mr Smith comes from an old-school City of London background where taking care of the basics is prized. Mr Johnson’s style of politics is also all about pushing through the basics and connecting with people through this very simple prism. But as a maxim, "it’s my party and I’ll cry if I want to" is all very well when the consequences are nebulous – which isn't the case in the world we currently live in.
There seems to be little inclination from voters to turn a blind eye, though.
There are some suggestions that Mr Johnson’s team was powered by a saviour complex that justified its own behaviour behind closed doors. The truth is more simple: it was a hard time. But then, Mr Johnson should have lived up to the discipline that the moment required.
As a biographer of former British prime minister Winston Churchill, Mr Johnson was accused of transcribing his own traits to the war-time leader. What he did not recognise when he got the mantle of leadership himself was that every crisis is different.
The health threat is universal and personal, as are the climate dangers. Mr Johnson has been caught out by changing views.
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
'My Son'
Director: Christian Carion
Starring: James McAvoy, Claire Foy, Tom Cullen, Gary Lewis
Rating: 2/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile
Name: Carzaty
Founders: Marwan Chaar and Hassan Jaffar
Launched: 2017
Employees: 22
Based: Dubai and Muscat
Sector: Automobile retail
Funding to date: $5.5 million
The specs
Engine: Direct injection 4-cylinder 1.4-litre
Power: 150hp
Torque: 250Nm
Price: From Dh139,000
On sale: Now
Specs
Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric
Range: Up to 610km
Power: 905hp
Torque: 985Nm
Price: From Dh439,000
Available: Now
Company%20Profile
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Guide to intelligent investing
Investing success often hinges on discipline and perspective. As markets fluctuate, remember these guiding principles:
- Stay invested: Time in the market, not timing the market, is critical to long-term gains.
- Rational thinking: Breathe and avoid emotional decision-making; let logic and planning guide your actions.
- Strategic patience: Understand why you’re investing and allow time for your strategies to unfold.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
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RESULT
Aston Villa 1
Samatta (41')
Manchester City 2
Aguero (20')
Rodri (30')
In numbers: China in Dubai
The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000
Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000
Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000
Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent
MANDOOB
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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
Company%20Profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Ovasave%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20November%202022%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounders%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Majd%20Abu%20Zant%20and%20Torkia%20Mahloul%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Abu%20Dhabi%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Healthtech%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ENumber%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Three%20employees%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Pre-seed%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20%24400%2C000%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Company%20profile
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ECompany%20name%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EHakbah%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ENaif%20AbuSaida%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESaudi%20Arabia%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E22%20%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24200%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3Epre-Series%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EGlobal%20Ventures%20and%20Aditum%20Investment%20Management%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cbr%3E%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
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
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Expert advice
“Join in with a group like Cycle Safe Dubai or TrainYAS, where you’ll meet like-minded people and always have support on hand.”
Stewart Howison, co-founder of Cycle Safe Dubai and owner of Revolution Cycles
“When you sweat a lot, you lose a lot of salt and other electrolytes from your body. If your electrolytes drop enough, you will be at risk of cramping. To prevent salt deficiency, simply add an electrolyte mix to your water.”
Cornelia Gloor, head of RAK Hospital’s Rehabilitation and Physiotherapy Centre
“Don’t make the mistake of thinking you can ride as fast or as far during the summer as you do in cooler weather. The heat will make you expend more energy to maintain a speed that might normally be comfortable, so pace yourself when riding during the hotter parts of the day.”
Chandrashekar Nandi, physiotherapist at Burjeel Hospital in Dubai
How to help
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
Know before you go
- Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
- If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
- By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
- Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
- Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.
Company%20profile
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The%20specs
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What are the GCSE grade equivalents?
- Grade 9 = above an A*
- Grade 8 = between grades A* and A
- Grade 7 = grade A
- Grade 6 = just above a grade B
- Grade 5 = between grades B and C
- Grade 4 = grade C
- Grade 3 = between grades D and E
- Grade 2 = between grades E and F
- Grade 1 = between grades F and G