Amid the turmoil of the Conservative Party conference, senior ministers are signalling that they will refuse budget reductions to their departments to fund controversial tax cuts.
Among the most strident has been Ben Wallace, Britain’s defence secretary, who has demanded that a promise for a substantial increase in spending is kept.
He laid down this marker at a fringe event watched by The National in which he declared if Britain wanted to defend itself against Russia as well as becoming an influential international force, it required defence spending to be 3 per cent of GDP, the equivalent of a 60 per cent rise by 2030.
He also made a damning criticism of previous defence cuts that had ripped out essential stockpiles, stating that the Ukraine invasion was the ‘emperor has no clothes” moment for western militaries.
People also had to accept “attrition” both to their equipment and personnel in any future conflict.
The war itself had also taught Nato powers some vital tactical lessons that western armies had to urgently adapt if they were to survive in the new “broadband” warfare, he told the Policy Exchange event.
Conflict anxiety
The British government’s commitment means that it will spend an additional £157 billion on defence over the next eight years, which Mr Wallace insisted was necessary in an increasingly unstable world.
“This is not a question of whether you should spend 3 per cent of GDP by 2030, it’s that you can't afford not to spend 3 per cent of GDP by 2030,” he said.
“The world every year is getting more unstable, more insecure and more anxious. Our constituents are more anxious than ever before.”
He said that if Britain was to support its US, Australian and Japanese allies in the Pacific, particularly with the potential of conflict with China over Taiwan, then the increase was crucial.
“The tensions in that Pacific region means that if I want to be in two places at once the defence budget of the UK has to grow,” he said.
“It simply can't pretend it can do two things for the price of one. It has to be genuinely able to be ready, resilient, employable and able to address the new lessons that Ukraine is teaching us.”
Accept attrition
Among those lessons was that western countries had to accept “attrition” in terms of losing both personnel and equipment in high numbers.
“Attrition is something that's been lost in our vocabulary and the acceptance of attrition,” he said.
For too long Nato militaries have spent billions on exceptional equipment that it was too afraid to use in conflict because of its immense cost.
“We spend our life buying exquisite military hardware which no one can afford to ever lose, never mind the poor person in them,” he said.
“Everyone's terrified of deploying them. Well attrition is a fact of war that has been conveniently moved aside. We need to get back to understanding how we're going to deal with that, especially against the threats such as Russia.”
No free lunch
The discussion focused on the government’s new look at the Integrated Review that was originally published in March last year before the Russian invasion.
Mr Wallace conceded that policymakers could “draw their conclusions” but was forthright in that whatever they produced needed proper financing as “there’s no such thing as a free lunch”.
“If the ambition of the government collectively is to do more in the Pacific or the High North then that's great, but it's got to come with a cheque attached. I believe that 2.5 per cent of GDP by 2025 [then 3 per cent by 2030] is the direction of travel and we will be able to deliver something very important.”
Emperor’s clothes
In the decades following the end of the Cold War, western countries have attempted to get away with spending much less than 2 per cent of GDP on their defence budgets.
But this failure had been graphically “exposed” when they came perilously close to creating a failure in Ukraine after Nato’s armouries had dried up.
“I think the war has exposed us, the emperor has been clothed and the boy in the crowd has called out,” he said.
Conservative Party conference – in pictures
Nato under-spending on defence had “hollowed out” defence structures that looked good on the surface, “but underneath, we didn't have the readiness, we didn't have the ammunition stocks, we didn't have the boring things that are so key to keeping the armed forces going”.
It was neglecting such things as dry docks for ships or maintenance that serving soldiers only discovered when “you're in a hollowed out unit, as my experience was”, said the former Scots Guards officer. “You discover when the savings came, they fell on the rather unglamorous out-of-sight, out-of-mind, part of the defence budget.”
Supply chains had “dried up” because “we're all living on minimal stocks and ammunition, we didn't replace them”.
After speaking to a fellow Nato defence chief it was clear there was now a “scramble to resupply”.
Broadband warfare
The Ukraine-wide introduction of Starlink broadband by Elon Musk at the start of the conflict had been a major contributing factor to its success, Mr Wallace said, allowing the country to fly drones and use other technology without Russian interference.
But it had also highlighted the fact that “hiding and finding is really important in the future of battlefield”.
The ability to fly “cheap drones” over Russian positions aligned with the advances in artillery ranges had led to “the proliferation of precision changes on the battlefield”.
“The ability for a 155mm shell to travel 40, 50, 60 kilometres above what we used to get, of about 25km, is a slight game changer,” he said.
“Couple that with a cheap UAV that can spot it right on to a target in a way that means your artillery is more efficient means that we really have to be good at hiding or moving pretty quickly.”
The key to winning future battles was “who can detect the enemy and who can do something about it quicker than your opponent”.
Company%C2%A0profile
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Profile of RentSher
Started: October 2015 in India, November 2016 in UAE
Founders: Harsh Dhand; Vaibhav and Purvashi Doshi
Based: Bangalore, India and Dubai, UAE
Sector: Online rental marketplace
Size: 40 employees
Investment: $2 million
The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
The specs: Macan Turbo
Engine: Dual synchronous electric motors
Power: 639hp
Torque: 1,130Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Touring range: 591km
Price: From Dh412,500
On sale: Deliveries start in October
The specs
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Power: 650hp at 6,750rpm
Torque: 800Nm from 2,500-4,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Fuel consumption: 11.12L/100km
Price: From Dh796,600
On sale: now
South Africa squad
: Faf du Plessis (captain), Hashim Amla, Temba Bavuma, Quinton de Kock (wkt), Theunis de Bruyn, AB de Villiers, Dean Elgar, Heinrich Klaasen (wkt), Keshav Maharaj, Aiden Markram, Morne Morkel, Chris Morris, Wiaan Mulder, Lungi Ngidi, Duanne Olivier, Vernon Philander and Kagiso Rabada.
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.
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
THE 12 BREAKAWAY CLUBS
England
Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur
Italy
AC Milan, Inter Milan, Juventus
Spain
Atletico Madrid, Barcelona, Real Madrid
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder MHEV
Power: 360bhp
Torque: 500Nm
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Price: from Dh282,870
On sale: now
Our legal consultants
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
Company%20profile
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The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
How Filipinos in the UAE invest
A recent survey of 10,000 Filipino expatriates in the UAE found that 82 per cent have plans to invest, primarily in property. This is significantly higher than the 2014 poll showing only two out of 10 Filipinos planned to invest.
Fifty-five percent said they plan to invest in property, according to the poll conducted by the New Perspective Media Group, organiser of the Philippine Property and Investment Exhibition. Acquiring a franchised business or starting up a small business was preferred by 25 per cent and 15 per cent said they will invest in mutual funds. The rest said they are keen to invest in insurance (3 per cent) and gold (2 per cent).
Of the 5,500 respondents who preferred property as their primary investment, 54 per cent said they plan to make the purchase within the next year. Manila was the top location, preferred by 53 per cent.
Should late investors consider cryptocurrencies?
Wealth managers recommend late investors to have a balanced portfolio that typically includes traditional assets such as cash, government and corporate bonds, equities, commodities and commercial property.
They do not usually recommend investing in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies due to the risk and volatility associated with them.
“It has produced eye-watering returns for some, whereas others have lost substantially as this has all depended purely on timing and when the buy-in was. If someone still has about 20 to 25 years until retirement, there isn’t any need to take such risks,” Rupert Connor of Abacus Financial Consultant says.
He adds that if a person is interested in owning a business or growing a property portfolio to increase their retirement income, this can be encouraged provided they keep in mind the overall risk profile of these assets.
Tightening the screw on rogue recruiters
The UAE overhauled the procedure to recruit housemaids and domestic workers with a law in 2017 to protect low-income labour from being exploited.
Only recruitment companies authorised by the government are permitted as part of Tadbeer, a network of labour ministry-regulated centres.
A contract must be drawn up for domestic workers, the wages and job offer clearly stating the nature of work.
The contract stating the wages, work entailed and accommodation must be sent to the employee in their home country before they depart for the UAE.
The contract will be signed by the employer and employee when the domestic worker arrives in the UAE.
Only recruitment agencies registered with the ministry can undertake recruitment and employment applications for domestic workers.
Penalties for illegal recruitment in the UAE include fines of up to Dh100,000 and imprisonment
But agents not authorised by the government sidestep the law by illegally getting women into the country on visit visas.
Emergency phone numbers in the UAE
Estijaba – 8001717 – number to call to request coronavirus testing
Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111
Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre
Emirates airline – 600555555
Etihad Airways – 600555666
Ambulance – 998
Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries
RESULT
Manchester United 2 Tottenham Hotspur 1
Man United: Sanchez (24' ), Herrera (62')
Spurs: Alli (11')
TICKETS
For tickets for the two-day Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League (MPBL) event, entitled Dubai Invasion 2019, on September 27 and 28 go to www.meraticket.com.
Under 19 Cricket World Cup, Asia Qualifier
Fixtures
Friday, April 12, Malaysia v UAE
Saturday, April 13, UAE v Nepal
Monday, April 15, UAE v Kuwait
Tuesday, April 16, UAE v Singapore
Thursday, April 18, UAE v Oman
UAE squad
Aryan Lakra (captain), Aaron Benjamin, Akasha Mohammed, Alishan Sharafu, Anand Kumar, Ansh Tandon, Ashwanth Valthapa, Karthik Meiyappan, Mohammed Faraazuddin, Rishab Mukherjee, Niel Lobo, Osama Hassan, Vritya Aravind, Wasi Shah
The story in numbers
18
This is how many recognised sects Lebanon is home to, along with about four million citizens
450,000
More than this many Palestinian refugees are registered with UNRWA in Lebanon, with about 45 per cent of them living in the country’s 12 refugee camps
1.5 million
There are just under 1 million Syrian refugees registered with the UN, although the government puts the figure upwards of 1.5m
73
The percentage of stateless people in Lebanon, who are not of Palestinian origin, born to a Lebanese mother, according to a 2012-2013 study by human rights organisation Frontiers Ruwad Association
18,000
The number of marriages recorded between Lebanese women and foreigners between the years 1995 and 2008, according to a 2009 study backed by the UN Development Programme
77,400
The number of people believed to be affected by the current nationality law, according to the 2009 UN study
4,926
This is how many Lebanese-Palestinian households there were in Lebanon in 2016, according to a census by the Lebanese-Palestinian dialogue committee
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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The years Ramadan fell in May
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
The Africa Institute 101
Housed on the same site as the original Africa Hall, which first hosted an Arab-African Symposium in 1976, the newly renovated building will be home to a think tank and postgraduate studies hub (it will offer master’s and PhD programmes). The centre will focus on both the historical and contemporary links between Africa and the Gulf, and will serve as a meeting place for conferences, symposia, lectures, film screenings, plays, musical performances and more. In fact, today it is hosting a symposium – 5-plus-1: Rethinking Abstraction that will look at the six decades of Frank Bowling’s career, as well as those of his contemporaries that invested social, cultural and personal meaning into abstraction.
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
Top%2010%20most%20competitive%20economies
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Sholto Byrnes on Myanmar politics
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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