British Prime Minister Theresa May has said her Brexit withdrawal deal will lead to a skills-based immigration system where EU nationals are no longer prioritised over non-EU workers.
Mrs May was making the case for her deal at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) on Monday as speculation about an impending no confidence vote in her leadership raged.
Ahead of a visit to Brussels this week, the prime minister said the draft agreement would mean that EU workers could no longer “jump the queue ahead of engineers from Sydney or software developers from Delhi”.
"Instead of a system based on where a person is from, we will have one that is built around the talents and skills a person has to offer," she told business leaders.
The CBI’s president John Allan has endorsed the draft agreement, which he said was not perfect but would avoid the “wrecking ball” of no deal.
The 585-page document has led to deeper divisions in the Conservative Party with more than 20 MPs publicly backing a no-confidence vote in Mrs May.
Pro-Brexit politician Simon Clarke appealed to his colleagues in the party to rebel against the prime minister.
"It is quite clear to me that the captain is driving the ship at the rocks," Mr Clarke said on Monday.
Forty-eight MPs need to submit no-confidence letters to Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the 1922 committee to trigger such a vote.
British tabloid The Sun reported on Monday that the threshold had not yet been reached, with 42 politicians believed to have submitted letters.
Meanwhile during a meeting of EU ministers in Brussels, Spain threatened to reject the draft deal unless Madrid can negotiate the future of Gibraltar directly with Britain.
"The negotiations between Britain and the EU have a territorial scope that does not include Gibraltar, the negotiations on the future of Gibraltar are separate discussions," said Spain’s foreign minister Josep Borrell.
"This is what needs to made clear, and until it is clarified in the withdrawal agreement and in the political declaration on the future relationship, we cannot give our backing (to the deal)."
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Read more:
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Opinion: This lady should be for turning: stubbornness could be Theresa May's ultimate downfall
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Spain contests Britain’s sovereignty over the peninsula, which has a population of 30,000 people.
Madrid’s intervention on Monday is the first sign of division to the draft deal among the other 27-member states in the EU. The withdrawal agreement must be approved by qualified majority voting at an emergency EU summit on November 25.
Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator, said ministers had agreed “in principle” to a one-off extension of the transition period agreed in the draft text if more time is needed to finalise a trading deal.
Under the withdrawal agreement, Britain will remain follow EU rules until December 2020 to give both sides more time to make an agreement on trade.
Austrian European affairs minister Gernot Bluemel described the coming days as “a painful week” in European politics.
"We have the divorce papers on the table,” he said. “Forty-five years of difficult marriage are coming to an end."
BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
If you go...
Etihad Airways flies from Abu Dhabi to Kuala Lumpur, from about Dh3,600. Air Asia currently flies from Kuala Lumpur to Terengganu, with Berjaya Hotels & Resorts planning to launch direct chartered flights to Redang Island in the near future. Rooms at The Taaras Beach and Spa Resort start from 680RM (Dh597).
Frankenstein in Baghdad
Ahmed Saadawi
Penguin Press
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, Group B
Barcelona v Inter Milan
Camp Nou, Barcelona
Wednesday, 11pm (UAE)
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
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
The biog
Siblings: five brothers and one sister
Education: Bachelors in Political Science at the University of Minnesota
Interests: Swimming, tennis and the gym
Favourite place: UAE
Favourite packet food on the trip: pasta primavera
What he did to pass the time during the trip: listen to audio books
if you go
The flights
The closest international airport to the TMB trail is Geneva (just over an hour’s drive from the French ski town of Chamonix where most people start and end the walk). Direct flights from the UAE to Geneva are available with Etihad and Emirates from about Dh2,790 including taxes.
The trek
The Tour du Mont Blanc takes about 10 to 14 days to complete if walked in its entirety, but by using the services of a tour operator such as Raw Travel, a shorter “highlights” version allows you to complete the best of the route in a week, from Dh6,750 per person. The trails are blocked by snow from about late October to early May. Most people walk in July and August, but be warned that trails are often uncomfortably busy at this time and it can be very hot. The prime months are June and September.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
ULTRA PROCESSED FOODS
- Carbonated drinks, sweet or savoury packaged snacks, confectionery, mass-produced packaged breads and buns
- margarines and spreads; cookies, biscuits, pastries, cakes, and cake mixes, breakfast cereals, cereal and energy bars;
- energy drinks, milk drinks, fruit yoghurts and fruit drinks, cocoa drinks, meat and chicken extracts and instant sauces
- infant formulas and follow-on milks, health and slimming products such as powdered or fortified meal and dish substitutes,
- many ready-to-heat products including pre-prepared pies and pasta and pizza dishes, poultry and fish nuggets and sticks, sausages, burgers, hot dogs, and other reconstituted meat products, powdered and packaged instant soups, noodles and desserts.
MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League, semi-final result:
Liverpool 4-0 Barcelona
Liverpool win 4-3 on aggregate
Champions Legaue final: June 1, Madrid
Formula Middle East Calendar (Formula Regional and Formula 4)
Round 1: January 17-19, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 2: January 22-23, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 3: February 7-9, Dubai Autodrome – Dubai
Round 4: February 14-16, Yas Marina Circuit – Abu Dhabi
Round 5: February 25-27, Jeddah Corniche Circuit – Saudi Arabia
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ETHE%20SPECS%3C%2Fstrong%3E%0D%3Cbr%3EEngine%3A%203.5-litre%20V6%0D%3Cbr%3ETransmission%3A%209-speed%20automatc%0D%3Cbr%3EPower%3A%20279hp%0D%3Cbr%3ETorque%3A%20350Nm%0D%3Cbr%3EPrice%3A%20From%20Dh250%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3EOn%20sale%3A%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
'THE WORST THING YOU CAN EAT'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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