UK Prime Minister Liz Truss’s office said on Tuesday there was nothing unusual about her chief of staff failing to accompany her on a trip to New York, after he was linked to a bribery investigation by the FBI.
Mark Fullbrook stayed behind as Ms Truss travelled to the UN General Assembly, where she will meet leaders including US President Joe Biden on her first foreign trip since taking office.
The prime minister’s spokesman said Mr Fullbrook “has her full support” and put his absence down to the volume of government business, as day-to-day politics resumes after the royal mourning period.
“It's actually not unusual for the chiefs of staff to remain in Downing Street during these trips,” the spokesman said.
“There's a lot of government business taking place this week. If anything, it's more unusual for them to attend and not remain in Downing Street to oversee that work.”
The Sunday Times reported at the weekend that Mr Fullbrook had been interviewed by detectives in connection with a political scandal in Puerto Rico, a US territory. He denies any wrongdoing.
The island’s former governor Wanda Vazquez Garced was charged last month with accepting a bribery offer from bankers during an election campaign in 2020.
Prosecutors allege that the scheme involved paying the political consultancy CT Group, where Mr Fullbrook was a senior executive, to support Ms Vasquez Garced’s re-election bid.
US detectives spoke to Mr Fullbrook and agreed that his testimony would not be used against him, according to The Sunday Times, which said he was co-operating as a witness.
Liz Truss's political career — in pictures
A spokesman for Mr Fullbrook told the newspaper that he was “committed to and complies with all laws and regulations in any jurisdiction in which he works and is confident he has done so in this matter”.
Mr Fullbrook, who left CT Group to start his own company in April, was named Downing Street chief of staff two weeks ago when Ms Truss was appointed prime minister.
The prime minister's spokesman said on Tuesday that Ms Truss stood 100 per cent behind her appointment of Mr Fullbrook.
A veteran of Conservative election campaigns, Mr Fullbrook ran Boris Johnson’s winning leadership bid in 2019 and has worked with prominent Australian adviser Sir Lynton Crosby.
He is rumoured to have ordered a strict dress code for aides after unprofessional behaviour at Downing Street contributed to Mr Johnson’s downfall. Ms Truss has promised to restore trust after a series of scandals.
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
F1 The Movie
Starring: Brad Pitt, Damson Idris, Kerry Condon, Javier Bardem
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Rating: 4/5
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ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE results
Lost to Oman by eight runs
Beat Namibia by three wickets
Lost to Oman by 12 runs
Beat Namibia by 43 runs
UAE fixtures
Free admission. All fixtures broadcast live on icc.tv
Tuesday March 15, v PNG at Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Friday March 18, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium
Saturday March 19, v PNG at Dubai International Stadium
Monday March 21, v Nepal at Dubai International Stadium
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
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Abandon
Sangeeta Bandyopadhyay
Translated by Arunava Sinha
Tilted Axis Press
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
Ain Dubai in numbers
126: The length in metres of the legs supporting the structure
1 football pitch: The length of each permanent spoke is longer than a professional soccer pitch
16 A380 Airbuses: The equivalent weight of the wheel rim.
9,000 tonnes: The amount of steel used to construct the project.
5 tonnes: The weight of each permanent spoke that is holding the wheel rim in place
192: The amount of cable wires used to create the wheel. They measure a distance of 2,4000km in total, the equivalent of the distance between Dubai and Cairo.
Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
Indoor Cricket World Cup Dubai 2017
Venue Insportz, Dubai; Admission Free
Day 1 fixtures (Saturday)
Men 1.45pm, Malaysia v Australia (Court 1); Singapore v India (Court 2); UAE v New Zealand (Court 3); South Africa v Sri Lanka (Court 4)
Women Noon, New Zealand v South Africa (Court 3); England v UAE (Court 4); 5.15pm, Australia v UAE (Court 3); England v New Zealand (Court 4)
Company profile
Name: Dukkantek
Started: January 2021
Founders: Sanad Yaghi, Ali Al Sayegh and Shadi Joulani
Based: UAE
Number of employees: 140
Sector: B2B Vertical SaaS(software as a service)
Investment: $5.2 million
Funding stage: Seed round
Investors: Global Founders Capital, Colle Capital Partners, Wamda Capital, Plug and Play, Comma Capital, Nowais Capital, Annex Investments and AMK Investment Office
The specs
Engine: 77.4kW all-wheel-drive dual motor
Power: 320bhp
Torque: 605Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh219,000
On sale: Now
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
