In October 1993, the Progressive Conservative party of Canada faced one of the worst routs in political history. In government since 1984, the party lost 154 of its seats in the 295-member House of Commons, and was left with only two MPs. So astounding was the defeat that there was widespread speculation about how other right-wing governments would fare if they faced the “Canada effect”. In the UK, I remember it turned out that only the then prime minister John Major and one other would have remained as Conservative MPs.
But those on the left, both then and now, would be unwise to gloat. For when mainstream conservative parties flail or implode, the effect is frequently to empower much more right-wing forces. That was what happened in Canada. The Progressive Conservatives lost their votes to the more socially conservative Reform Party and the pro-independence Bloc Quebecois.
France is another case in point. The inability of mainstream conservatives to impress the electorate has led to a dramatic increase in support for the National Front, or the National Rally as it has been known since 2018. Once considered a pariah party, its long-term leader Marine le Pen made it into the second round of the French presidential election in both 2017 and 2022. In the first instance, I warned in these pages about complacency over the result – Ms Le Pen had won 34 per cent to Emmanuel Macron’s 66 per cent. It was no great victory, I wrote. “Why didn’t he crush a contender whose party is treated with revulsion by much of the world?” And sure enough, by 2022 Ms Le Pen’s share of the vote had increased to 41.5 per cent.
Many will find that a discomfiting trend, relieved only (and perhaps temporarily) by the news this week that the far-right Vox party seems unlikely to enter government with the centre-right People’s Party, as had been expected, after the two parties combined failed to win a majority in the Spanish general election held last Sunday.
Mainstream conservative parties may never be loved by those opposed to the status quo – for which these parties naturally stand
In Malaysia, where I live, some are nervously eyeing parallels of sorts as the country prepares for elections in six of the country’s 13 states in mid-August. Much hinges on the performance of the United Malays National Organisation (Umno), the conservative Malay party that helmed all the country’s governments from 1957 to 2018.
It would be fair to say that for the past two decades that Umno was in power, the progressives who followed the current prime minister Anwar Ibrahim – particularly those who geographically or mentally were part of the so-called “Bangsar bubble”, named after an ultra-liberal area of Kuala Lumpur – weren’t just opposed to the party. They loathed Umno, and were delighted by its defeat in 2018.
Mr Anwar’s Pakatan Harapan coalition was only able to take power after last November’s election, however, with the support of the rump Umno has been reduced to. And the party’s former supporters have not gone over to Mr Anwar’s band of reformists and technocrats – but to the opposition, an alliance between an ultra-Malay chauvinist party, Bersatu, and the Islamist PAS, which is now the biggest party in parliament.
If, as some fear, Umno does disastrously in the state polls, it should not in theory affect Mr Anwar’s parliamentary majority. But he will be a very worried man if Umno does crash and burn. The multi-ethnic coalitions he has led have only managed to win general elections when they have had a conservative Malay party in their ranks, in order to reassure the country’s dominant ethnic group. Umno, in other words, is indispensable for their future success. And its humbling thus far has only empowered an opposition that may contain some prominent and serious politicians, but is far more right-wing, by any measure.
Some argue that being in government tempers far-right parties; that the realities and constraints of being in power make them hew more moderate. Giorgia Meloni, whose Brothers of Italy party has led the country’s most right-wing administration since the Second World War after last October’s election, is held up as an example. In France, the National Rally’s rebranding (from the National Front) was part of an attempt to reassure voters and move away from its far-right roots. For myself, I hope that is to some extent genuine, not just window-dressing, as I have a friend who is standing as a National Rally candidate for the French senate, and I would rather think of him as a “robust conservative” than an extremist.
Nevertheless, it is no wonder that many are alarmed at the position that has been gained by parties that had previously been considered beyond the pale. Just last Sunday Friedrich Merz, leader of Germany’s Christian Democratic Union, said that his conservative party would be willing to work with the far-right Alternative fur Deutschland at a local political level. Mr Merz had to contradict himself the very next day after a backlash, but by that point DW, the country’s state-owned international broadcaster, had published a commentary stating: “The 'firewall' to Germany's far right is crumbling.”
There may be many reasons for this trend in the countries where it is observable, but the decline of traditional mainstream conservative parties is definitely one of them. They may never be loved by radicals, youth impatient for change, dreamers, revolutionaries, and those opposed to the status quo – for which these parties naturally stand: the clue is in the name “conservative”. But their critics may miss them when they’re gone. It’s readily apparent who benefits from their weakening or destruction.
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Founders: Ines Mena, Claudia Ribas, Simona Agolini, Nourhan Hassan and Therese Hundt
Date started: January 2017, app launched November 2017
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Private/Retail/Leisure
Number of Employees: 18 employees, including full-time and flexible workers
Funding stage and size: Seed round completed Q4 2019 - $1m raised
Funders: Oman Technology Fund, 500 Startups, Vision Ventures, Seedstars, Mindshift Capital, Delta Partners Ventures, with support from the OQAL Angel Investor Network and UAE Business Angels
Step by step
2070km to run
38 days
273,600 calories consumed
28kg of fruit
40kg of vegetables
45 pairs of running shoes
1 yoga matt
1 oxygen chamber
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.
Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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Company profile
Name: Steppi
Founders: Joe Franklin and Milos Savic
Launched: February 2020
Size: 10,000 users by the end of July and a goal of 200,000 users by the end of the year
Employees: Five
Based: Jumeirah Lakes Towers, Dubai
Financing stage: Two seed rounds – the first sourced from angel investors and the founders' personal savings
Second round raised Dh720,000 from silent investors in June this year
more from Janine di Giovanni
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
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.
Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
TOURNAMENT INFO
Opening fixtures:
Friday, Oct 5
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Paktia Panthers
Saturday, Oct 6
4pm: Nangarhar Leopards v Kandahar Knights
8pm: Kabul Zwanan v Balkh Legends
Tickets
Tickets can be bought online at https://www.q-tickets.com/apl/eventlist and at the ticket office at the stadium.
TV info
The tournament will be broadcast live in the UAE on OSN Sports.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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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
More from Neighbourhood Watch
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
KILLING OF QASSEM SULEIMANI
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
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.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
SQUADS
South Africa:
JP Duminy (capt), Hashim Amla, Farhaan Behardien, Quinton de Kock (wkt), AB de Villiers, Robbie Frylinck, Beuran Hendricks, David Miller, Mangaliso Mosehle (wkt), Dane Paterson, Aaron Phangiso, Andile Phehlukwayo, Dwaine Pretorius, Tabraiz Shamsi
Bangladesh
Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Imrul Kayes, Liton Das (wkt), Mahmudullah, Mehidy Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mominul Haque, Mushfiqur Rahim (wkt), Nasir Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Sabbir Rahman, Shafiul Islam, Soumya Sarkar, Taskin Ahmed
Fixtures
Oct 26: Bloemfontein
Oct 29: Potchefstroom
Maestro
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India squad for fourth and fifth Tests
Kohli (c), Dhawan, Rahul, Shaw, Pujara, Rahane (vc), Karun, Karthik (wk), Pant (wk), Ashwin, Jadeja, Pandya, Ishant, Shami, Umesh, Bumrah, Thakur, Vihari
Jurassic%20Park
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The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
Bombshell
Director: Jay Roach
Stars: Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theron, Margot Robbie
Four out of five stars
DUBAI WORLD CUP RACE CARD
6.30pm Meydan Classic Trial US$100,000 (Turf) 1,400m
7.05pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
7.40pm UAE 2000 Guineas Group Three $250,000 (Dirt) 1,600m
8.15pm Dubai Sprint Listed Handicap $175,000 (T) 1,200m
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-2 Group Two $450,000 (D) 1,900m
9.25pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,800m
10pm Handicap $135,000 (T) 1,400m
The National selections
6.30pm Well Of Wisdom
7.05pm Summrghand
7.40pm Laser Show
8.15pm Angel Alexander
8.50pm Benbatl
9.25pm Art Du Val
10pm: Beyond Reason
New schools in Dubai
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Key changes
Commission caps
For life insurance products with a savings component, Peter Hodgins of Clyde & Co said different caps apply to the saving and protection elements:
• For the saving component, a cap of 4.5 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 90 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• On the protection component, there is a cap of 10 per cent of the annualised premium per year (which may not exceed 160 per cent of the annualised premium over the policy term).
• Indemnity commission, the amount of commission that can be advanced to a product salesperson, can be 50 per cent of the annualised premium for the first year or 50 per cent of the total commissions on the policy calculated.
• The remaining commission after deduction of the indemnity commission is paid equally over the premium payment term.
• For pure protection products, which only offer a life insurance component, the maximum commission will be 10 per cent of the annualised premium multiplied by the length of the policy in years.
Disclosure
Customers must now be provided with a full illustration of the product they are buying to ensure they understand the potential returns on savings products as well as the effects of any charges. There is also a “free-look” period of 30 days, where insurers must provide a full refund if the buyer wishes to cancel the policy.
“The illustration should provide for at least two scenarios to illustrate the performance of the product,” said Mr Hodgins. “All illustrations are required to be signed by the customer.”
Another illustration must outline surrender charges to ensure they understand the costs of exiting a fixed-term product early.
Illustrations must also be kept updatedand insurers must provide information on the top five investment funds available annually, including at least five years' performance data.
“This may be segregated based on the risk appetite of the customer (in which case, the top five funds for each segment must be provided),” said Mr Hodgins.
Product providers must also disclose the ratio of protection benefit to savings benefits. If a protection benefit ratio is less than 10 per cent "the product must carry a warning stating that it has limited or no protection benefit" Mr Hodgins added.
Other key dates
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Finals draw: December 2
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Finals (including semi-finals and third-placed game): June 5–9, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-off draw: November 22, 2019
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Euro 2020 play-offs: March 26–31, 2020
Oscars in the UAE
The 90th Academy Awards will be aired in the UAE from 3.30am on Monday, March 5 on OSN, with the ceremony starting at 5am
Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
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