An Englishman, an Indian and an American walk into a bar. “The usual, Mr Sunak?” asks the barman.
Rishi Sunak, until very recently a rising star in British politics, within touching distance of becoming Conservative leader and prime minister, is now a source of amusement.
His popularity has crashed, and there is speculation that such is the level of opprobrium he’s receiving that the Chancellor of the Exchequer may walk away from public life completely.
Certainly, in what may be a precursor, his wife Akshata Murty and their children have moved out of Downing Street. He’s staying to try to fight back, seeking a leak inquiry into how his tax affairs reached the media, but the damage is done.
It’s difficult to see how he can recover from this and if someone as ambitious as Sunak can’t reach the very top there seems little to sustain him. Being fined over ‘Partygate’ adds to the humiliation.
Sunak’s entire life from school (head boy) to university (president of the Oxford University Investment Society) to marriage (to the daughter of one of India’s richest men) to investment banking (Goldman Sachs) to hedge funds (Chris Hohn’s TCI) to MP (William Hague’s old seat in the Yorkshire Dales) to Cabinet (effectively No 2 in government) has been marked by ascendancy.
Along the way, he even earned the approving nod of the tabloid press with the nickname Dishy Rishi.
Not any more. It’s not his policies that have ruined him. They weren’t helping, but there was a sense that he was driven by world events outside his control, that he had no choice.
No, his reputation has been shattered, ironically, by things that were entirely within his grasp.
Strangely as well, he is a calculating and cautious character, someone who cares deeply about his image and how he is perceived. Sunak has his suits made by a London tailor, who I know. They cost about £2,000 ($2,600) each. The tailor cannot mention him in any promotional material (these days, given Sunak’s crash, he would probably choose not to anyway).
This is the same Sunak who, as chancellor, head of the Inland Revenue tax collection service, thought it was perfectly acceptable for his hugely wealthy wife to be a non-dom and to pay no UK tax on her worldwide earnings. He also assumed it was all right for him to possess a green card, conferring permanent residency in the US.
It’s the same Sunak who believed it was fine to donate £100,000 to his exclusive private school alma mater, Winchester College. And the Sunak who is building a gym and swimming pool complex at his constituency manor house, one of four homes he owns, including a £5.5 million penthouse in Santa Monica, California.
But he remains bothered about the source of his suits. Why?
That's because in the Sunaks’ cross-border, high-finance set, the privileged status of a non-domicile and holding a coveted US immigration visa are regarded as entirely usual.
They are also private arrangements, known only to him, his family, perhaps their closest friends and the relevant authorities, and he must have expected them to remain that way.
Likewise, Sunak and his milieu would view it as “giving back”, to hand a six-figure sum to the school by which he’d done so well. Lots of them do it, nothing special there.
As for the extension to his constituency residence, it requires planning permission, which means the plans are public for anyone to scrutinise, so they could not be hidden.
Where possible, however, the Sunaks go to great lengths to play down their riches and to seek common approval. Their young daughters go to a local primary school, their London home is a “mews” house (sounds tiny but it’s five bedrooms, four bathrooms and two receptions), in Yorkshire they hold barbecues and garden parties and throw themselves into charity fund-raising.
He puts petrol in a car and is photographed doing so, but it’s not one of his four luxury vehicles but a Kia borrowed from a member of the public. And there is not a sniff of where he gets his well-cut suits from.
[Sunak] failed to see why he could not do both: lead the global, super-rich lifestyle, albeit discreetly, and at the same time set Britain’s taxes
It's the hedgie in him that has proved his downfall. He failed to see why he could not do both — lead the global, super-rich lifestyle, albeit discreetly, and at the same time set Britain’s taxes. They’re non-compatible and in the present climate, amid the rising cost of living and soaring household energy bills, non-negotiable.
He did not see it like that and he is crushed. There were clues as to what was really in his head. Since becoming chancellor he has not once attacked tax havens or pledged to hunt down tax avoiders, unlike his predecessors. His previous hedge fund employers, TCI and subsequently Theleme Partners, both routed their earnings through the tax-free Cayman Islands — so presumably he approved of going to such lengths to avoid tax.
Likewise, his natural benchmarks are those of the world investment community, looking to fast-growing corporate powerhouses in the US, India and Brazil rather than companies in dear old Blighty.
He’s passionate about the potential for cryptocurrencies and how the UK can and should play a leading role. Again, music to global FinTech ears.
While the country was worrying about the coming economic storm and Sunak was planning to increase National Insurance payments, he found the time to introduce a new low-tax scheme aimed specifically at attracting overseas asset managers. One earns him wide criticism — he’s definitely Dishy no longer — while the other finds favour with his pals in international finance.
He has been quietly attempting to ride two horses. Not even the gilded Sunak could manage that; there was only ever going to be one result.
More on Quran memorisation:
MATCH INFO
Al Jazira 3 (O Abdulrahman 43', Kenno 82', Mabkhout 90 4')
Al Ain 1 (Laba 39')
Red cards: Bandar Al Ahbabi (Al Ain)
Emirates Cricket Board Women’s T10
ECB Hawks v ECB Falcons
Monday, April 6, 7.30pm, Sharjah Cricket Stadium
The match will be broadcast live on the My Sports Eye Facebook page
Hawks
Coach: Chaitrali Kalgutkar
Squad: Chaya Mughal (captain), Archara Supriya, Chamani Senevirathne, Chathurika Anand, Geethika Jyothis, Indhuja Nandakumar, Kashish Loungani, Khushi Sharma, Khushi Tanwar, Rinitha Rajith, Siddhi Pagarani, Siya Gokhale, Subha Srinivasan, Suraksha Kotte, Theertha Satish
Falcons
Coach: Najeeb Amar
Squad: Kavisha Kumari (captain), Almaseera Jahangir, Annika Shivpuri, Archisha Mukherjee, Judit Cleetus, Ishani Senavirathne, Lavanya Keny, Mahika Gaur, Malavika Unnithan, Rishitha Rajith, Rithika Rajith, Samaira Dharnidharka, Shashini Kaluarachchi, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi, Vaishnave Mahesh
Types of bank fraud
1) Phishing
Fraudsters send an unsolicited email that appears to be from a financial institution or online retailer. The hoax email requests that you provide sensitive information, often by clicking on to a link leading to a fake website.
2) Smishing
The SMS equivalent of phishing. Fraudsters falsify the telephone number through “text spoofing,” so that it appears to be a genuine text from the bank.
3) Vishing
The telephone equivalent of phishing and smishing. Fraudsters may pose as bank staff, police or government officials. They may persuade the consumer to transfer money or divulge personal information.
4) SIM swap
Fraudsters duplicate the SIM of your mobile number without your knowledge or authorisation, allowing them to conduct financial transactions with your bank.
5) Identity theft
Someone illegally obtains your confidential information, through various ways, such as theft of your wallet, bank and utility bill statements, computer intrusion and social networks.
6) Prize scams
Fraudsters claiming to be authorised representatives from well-known organisations (such as Etisalat, du, Dubai Shopping Festival, Expo2020, Lulu Hypermarket etc) contact victims to tell them they have won a cash prize and request them to share confidential banking details to transfer the prize money.
The biog
Favourite pet: cats. She has two: Eva and Bito
Favourite city: Cape Town, South Africa
Hobby: Running. "I like to think I’m artsy but I’m not".
Favourite move: Romantic comedies, specifically Return to me. "I cry every time".
Favourite spot in Abu Dhabi: Saadiyat beach
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Company%20Profile
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Virtuzone GCC Sixes
Date and venue Friday and Saturday, ICC Academy, Dubai Sports City
Time Matches start at 9am
Groups
A Blighty Ducks, Darjeeling Colts, Darjeeling Social, Dubai Wombats; B Darjeeling Veterans, Kuwait Casuals, Loose Cannons, Savannah Lions; C Awali Taverners, Darjeeling, Dromedary, Darjeeling Good Eggs
What is an FTO Designation?
FTO designations impose immigration restrictions on members of the organisation simply by virtue of their membership and triggers a criminal prohibition on knowingly providing material support or resources to the designated organisation as well as asset freezes.
It is a crime for a person in the United States or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States to knowingly provide “material support or resources” to or receive military-type training from or on behalf of a designated FTO.
Representatives and members of a designated FTO, if they are aliens, are inadmissible to and, in certain circumstances removable from, the United States.
Except as authorised by the Secretary of the Treasury, any US financial institution that becomes aware that it has possession of or control over funds in which an FTO or its agent has an interest must retain possession of or control over the funds and report the funds to the Treasury Department.
Source: US Department of State
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
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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The view from The National
MOUNTAINHEAD REVIEW
Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman
Director: Jesse Armstrong
Rating: 3.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Voice of Hind Rajab
Starring: Saja Kilani, Clara Khoury, Motaz Malhees
Director: Kaouther Ben Hania
Rating: 4/5
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.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Porsche Macan T: The Specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cyl turbo
Power: 265hp from 5,000-6,500rpm
Torque: 400Nm from 1,800-4,500rpm
Transmission: 7-speed dual-clutch auto
Speed: 0-100kph in 6.2sec
Top speed: 232kph
Fuel consumption: 10.7L/100km
On sale: May or June
Price: From Dh259,900
RESULTS
6.30pm Handicap (TB) US$65,000 (Dirt) 1,400m
Winner Golden Goal, Pat Dobbs (jockey), Doug Watson (trainer)
7.05pm Dubai Racing Club Classic Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (Turf) 2,410m
Winner: Walton Street, William Buick, Charlie Appleby.
7.40pm Dubai Stakes Group 3 (TB) $130,000 (D) 1,200m
Winner Switzerland, Tadhg O’Shea, Satish Seemar
8.15pm Singspiel Stakes Group 3 (TB) $163,000 (T) 1,800m
Winner Lord Giltters, Adrie de Vries, David O’Meara
8.50pm Al Maktoum Challenge Round-1 (TB) $228,000 (D) 1,600m
Winner Military Law, Antonio Fresu, Musabah Al Muhairi.
9.25pm Al Fahidi Fort Group 2 (TB) $163,000 (T) 1,400m
Winner Land Of Legends, Frankie Dettori, Saeed bin Suroor
10pm Dubai Dash Listed Handicap (TB) $88,000 (T) 1,000m
Winner Equilateral, Frankie Dettori, Charles Hills.
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
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