When British Home Secretary Priti Patel launched an attack on social media influencers earlier this month, there was a suspicion that instant polling must have indicated that her lines would resonate.
Britain's beleaguered government has seen the country's total Covid-19 death toll double since November. With the public worried and frustrated, Mrs Patel, who is in charge of law and order, made the influencers – glossy creatures of the party scene – an instant target. This scapegoating quickly triggered a raft of newspaper columns and talk radio chatter condemning the influencer trend. Much wrong-headed commentary was set off. This deluge was about disguising the true issues that have seen infections soar and hospitals strain.
Influencers can easily be set up as fall guys, but doing so ignores the reality that this new breed of public figures cannot be wished away. Influencers' presence in Dubai was, in particular, singled out. Some of those in the spotlight said they had flown to the emirate to keep their own livelihoods going in the face of a bleak lockdown at home.
The blame game was a particularly fruitless exercise, given that the third wave of infections was already inevitable. When the UAE travel corridor with the UK came into being in November, it was permitted for UK residents to travel abroad for business but the authorities made no effort to stop people going abroad for leisure.
Likewise, the UK daily infection rate was on a downward trend. The idea that the country would be a significant exporter of Covid-19 could not be foreseen by the architects of the land corridor. The emergence of the UK variant, which now represents more than 90 per cent of infections, was a game changer. It was not detected until later in the year.
When Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on January 4 the country's latest lockdown to suppress the virus, he warned that the new variant was up to 70 per cent more contagious. “We now have a new variant of the virus. It has been both frustrating and alarming to see the speed with which the new variant is spreading,” he said in a televised address.
Ten days later as concerns grew within the UK and beyond, the French border post at London's St Pancras railway station stopped a group of travellers on a skiing trip to Switzerland. In a social media post, the train company warned that a ski holiday was not "essential travel". It wasn't until January 27 that the London government began making clear that under the stay-at-home regulations, it was illegal to leave home to travel abroad for leisure purposes.
Mrs Patel subsequently launched her blitz on influencers, implying cause and effect where none such exist. It is lucky that there is no finger-pointing in the other direction. Suddenly, UK officials are performing an intellectual helix that the images and messages on influencers social media accounts have in some way fed into the serious problems confronting the UK.
The assault on influencers is jarring, but it would be merely futile if it was also not a distraction.
When the 18th-century patrons of Lloyd's Coffee House in London were provided with a daily newspaper, they were at the beginning of a technology that was to change the world. The world of influencers may seem more frivolous. It may even raise eyebrows among many about how its members present themselves. But it is a new, clearly defined communication platform. Newspapers and pamphlets were once controversial, and they have always antagonised the establishment.
Dismissing the advent of the era of influencers is pointless. If that was part of the agenda, there is an inevitable failure down the track. Top outlets for advertising are always going to act as the dominant cultural form, and the revenues of the industry demonstrate that influencers have taken up a spot on the commercial spectrum.
Influencers could be blamed only at the margins for the progress of a pandemic. And holding up their behaviour to fair comment is a perfectly reasonable activity. But, like most things, the nature of that behaviour is conditioned by both public taste and the structures of the social media platforms.
the French border post at London’s St Pancras railway station stopped a group of travellers on a skiing trip to Switzerland. In a social media post, the train company warned that a ski holiday was not “essential travel”. Courtesy Lucy Orta
There is a tension in British public life between the basic assumption that behaviour has nothing to do with the government or that good regulation of activities of the population is merited. In which case, supervision of influencers is best left to the regulators.
The Advertising Standards Authority, the UK's regulator of advertising, took the first step down that road recently when it ruled that the use of filters in certain posts breached long-established codes on misleading advertising and exaggeration. The ASA ruled that in the future, the application of filters be limited to content promoting brands and the celebrities that promote beauty products. The ruling came after beauty artist Sasha Louise Pallari contacted the ASA with her Filterdrop campaign to push for stricter guidelines around how products are promoted.
That is evidence-based advocacy.
The British government is fond of saying that it is tackling the pandemic by following the science. That its top office holders often freelance on issues such as the impact of influencers is a damaging distraction from the real challenges.
Damien McElroy is the London bureau chief at The National
The results of the first round are as follows:
Qais Saied (Independent): 18.4 per cent
Nabil Karoui (Qalb Tounes): 15.58 per cent
Abdelfattah Mourou (Ennahdha party): 12.88 per cent
Abdelkarim Zbidi (two-time defence minister backed by Nidaa Tounes party): 10.7 per cent
Youssef Chahed (former prime minister, leader of Long Live Tunisia): 7.3 per cent
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE) Where: Allianz Arena, Munich Live: BeIN Sports HD Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
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.
Expo details
Expo 2020 Dubai will be the first World Expo to be held in the Middle East, Africa and South Asia
The world fair will run for six months from October 20, 2020 to April 10, 2021.
It is expected to attract 25 million visits
Some 70 per cent visitors are projected to come from outside the UAE, the largest proportion of international visitors in the 167-year history of World Expos.
More than 30,000 volunteers are required for Expo 2020
The site covers a total of 4.38 sqkm, including a 2 sqkm gated area
It is located adjacent to Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South
17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
Dh145 is the price of a ticket
No more lice
Defining head lice
Pediculus humanus capitis are tiny wingless insects that feed on blood from the human scalp. The adult head louse is up to 3mm long, has six legs, and is tan to greyish-white in colour. The female lives up to four weeks and, once mature, can lay up to 10 eggs per day. These tiny nits firmly attach to the base of the hair shaft, get incubated by body heat and hatch in eight days or so.
Identifying lice
Lice can be identified by itching or a tickling sensation of something moving within the hair. One can confirm that a person has lice by looking closely through the hair and scalp for nits, nymphs or lice. Head lice are most frequently located behind the ears and near the neckline.
Treating lice at home
Head lice must be treated as soon as they are spotted. Start by checking everyone in the family for them, then follow these steps. Remove and wash all clothing and bedding with hot water. Apply medicine according to the label instructions. If some live lice are still found eight to 12 hours after treatment, but are moving more slowly than before, do not re-treat. Comb dead and remaining live lice out of the hair using a fine-toothed comb.
After the initial treatment, check for, comb and remove nits and lice from hair every two to three days. Soak combs and brushes in hot water for 10 minutes.Vacuum the floor and furniture, particularly where the infested person sat or lay.
Courtesy Dr Vishal Rajmal Mehta, specialist paediatrics, RAK Hospital
Trees: 1,500 to be planted, replacing 300 felled ones, with veteran oaks protected
Lake: Brown's centrepiece to be cleaned of silt that makes it as shallow as 2.5cm
Biodiversity: Bat cave to be added and habitats designed for kingfishers and little grebes
Flood risk: Longer grass, deeper lake, restored ponds and absorbent paths all meant to siphon off water
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
The biog
Age: 23
Occupation: Founder of the Studio, formerly an analyst at Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi
Education: Bachelor of science in industrial engineering
Favourite hobby: playing the piano
Favourite quote: "There is a key to every door and a dawn to every dark night"
