UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson promised to push his Brexit divorce deal through Parliament by December 25 as he unveiled his Conservative Party’s election policies on Sunday.
"We're now, as you know, less than three weeks away from the most critical election in modern memory," Mr Johnson said at a launch event in the West Midlands region of England.
"The choice has never been starker. Get Brexit done and we can restore confidence and certainty to businesses and families.
"Get Brexit done and we can focus our hearts and our minds on the priorities of the British people. It is time to unleash the potential of the whole country and to forge a new Britain."
Recent opinion polling puts the Conservatives ahead of main opposition party Labour by about 19 points, although large numbers of undecided voters mean the outcome is not certain.
Mr Johnson's policy package, Get Brexit Done, Unleash Britain's Potential, pledges to freeze income tax, value-added sales tax and social security payments.
He announced a £3 billion (Dh14.1bn) National Skills Fund to retrain workers and an extra £2bn to fill pot-holes in roads. He has also pledged to maintain the regulatory cap on energy bills.
In a surprise announcement, Mr Johnson committed to increasing the number of nurses by 50,000.
The policies are in stark contrast to those of Labour, which has promised to increase day-to-day spending by £83bn over the next four financial years, in comparison with the Conservatives’ £10bn.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn described the Conservative election pledges as the “billionaires’ manifesto”.
Mr Johnson spent a large part of his speech criticising his Labour rival’s approach to Brexit.
If elected, Mr Corbyn has promised to negotiate a new Brexit deal within three months, then put it to a second public vote with the option to remain in the EU.
Mr Johnson blasted him for his decision to stay neutral in his proposed second EU referendum.
But he was challenged by a journalist during a televised election debate about the name of the Conservative Party's Twitter account being temporarily changed to "factcheckUK".
Mr Johnson said the “Twittersphere is not really my province. I will apprise myself of the detail of this."
Outside of spending pledges, he said the Conservatives would end freedom of movement for EU citizens and introduce an Australian-style points-based system.
Immigration was seen as one of the main reasons the UK voted to leave the EU in the 2016 Brexit vote.
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
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
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Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week
The specs: 2018 Mercedes-AMG C63 S Cabriolet
Price, base: Dh429,090
Engine 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission Seven-speed automatic
Power 510hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque 700Nm @ 1,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 9.2L / 100km
MATCH INFO
Inter Milan 1 (Martinez 18' pen)
Juventus 2 (Dybala 4', Higuain 80')
More on Quran memorisation:
Result
UAE (S. Tagliabue 90 1') 1-2 Uzbekistan (Shokhruz Norkhonov 48', 86')
'Gehraiyaan'
Director:Shakun Batra
Stars:Deepika Padukone, Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa
Rating: 4/5
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Grubtech
Founders: Mohamed Al Fayed and Mohammed Hammedi
Launched: October 2019
Employees: 50
Financing stage: Seed round (raised $2 million)
Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
57%20Seconds
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How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
The specs
Engine: 8.0-litre, quad-turbo 16-cylinder
Transmission: 7-speed auto
0-100kmh 2.3 seconds
0-200kmh 5.5 seconds
0-300kmh 11.6 seconds
Power: 1500hp
Torque: 1600Nm
Price: Dh13,400,000
On sale: now
The biog
Name: Abeer Al Shahi
Emirate: Sharjah – Khor Fakkan
Education: Master’s degree in special education, preparing for a PhD in philosophy.
Favourite activities: Bungee jumping
Favourite quote: “My people and I will not settle for anything less than first place” – Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid.
