New British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the two priorities fighting for his attention are inflation and the migrant crisis that has seen a record number of people arrive in the country.
Mr Sunak said that while people cannot expect the state to “fix everyone's problems” inflation is his “number one enemy”.
He is also looking to earn the public’s trust after two prime ministers were forced from office, and as the country faces the cost of living price rises, war in Ukraine and warnings of a looming recession.
In an interview with The Times, he said that the financial misery and the migrant crisis were the two issues preoccupying him over the preceding 48 hours.
He defended under-fire Home Secretary Suella Braverman's controversial claim that the south coast was facing an “invasion” of migrants — but he did not use the word himself.
“What Suella was doing was conveying a sense of scale of the challenge we face, which is serious and unprecedented.
“There is no easy overnight fix to that challenge. But people should know that I'm very committed to addressing it,” he said.
Mr Sunak has vowed to rebuild trust in the government following Liz Truss's short tenure. Boris Johnson was also forced to step down earlier in the year.
He said he recognised people's anxiety about soaring mortgage repayments and said he would do “absolutely everything” he could to “grip this problem”.
“It's right we're honest about the trade-offs we face — everyone now talks about borrowing, everyone appreciates that the government cannot do everything,” he said.
Mr Sunak declined to comment on whether he stood by the Tory manifesto pledge not to raise income tax, VAT or national insurance, according to the report. “I'm not going to talk about any tax policy at all,” he said.
On Thursday, the Bank of England warned the country is facing the longest recession in a century as it hiked base rates by 0.75 percentage points to 3 per cent — their highest level in 15 years.
With many families now facing crippling rises in their monthly mortgage bills, Mr Sunak, a multimillionaire businessman, said he understood their concerns as they worried how to make ends meet.
“I absolutely recognise the anxiety that people have about mortgages. It's one of the biggest bills people have,” he said.
“So what I want to say to people is that I'm going to do absolutely everything I can to grip this problem, to limit the rise in those mortgage rates.
“I think inflation is the number one enemy, as Margaret Thatcher rightly said. Inflation has the biggest impact on those with the lowest incomes. I want to get a grip of inflation.”
With the UK facing an estimated £50 billion black hole in the public finances, Mr Sunak said it was important the government was honest with voters about the “trade-offs” the country faced in Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's forthcoming autumn statement.
Mr Sunak acknowledged that after the turmoil of Ms Truss's premiership, the Conservatives urgently needed to rebuild the trust of the public.
He pointed to his own record as chancellor — when he introduced the Covid furlough scheme — as to why people should trust him when it comes to running the economy.
“I completely acknowledge that trust has been damaged over the past few weeks and months. I realise that trust is not given, trust is earned. My job is to regain people's trust,” he said.
“The only thing that people will take away from the summer — hopefully from my track record as chancellor — I'm someone they can trust understands the economy.
“I'm someone they can have confidence in, who will manage us through what will be a difficult economic time. I've got a track record in doing it.”
Mr Sunak also spoke of the significance of becoming the first British Asian, and the first Hindu, to become Prime Minister of the UK.
“It meant a lot of things to a lot of people. As chancellor I was able to light my Diwali Diya's on the steps of Downing Street. It said something wonderful about our country that that was possible, but also that it wasn't a big deal,” he said.
“It was in a sense gosh, this is great but also that's just Britain. That's what you would expect from Britain. Hopefully it's a source of collective pride across the country.”
Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
More from Neighbourhood Watch:
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
if you go
The flights Fly Dubai, Air Arabia, Emirates, Etihad, and Royal Jordanian all offer direct, three-and-a-half-hour flights from the UAE to the Jordanian capital Amman. Alternatively, from June Fly Dubai will offer a new direct service from Dubai to Aqaba in the south of the country. See the airlines’ respective sites for varying prices or search on reliable price-comparison site Skyscanner.
The trip
Jamie Lafferty was a guest of the Jordan Tourist Board. For more information on adventure tourism in Jordan see Visit Jordan. A number of new and established tour companies offer the chance to go caving, rock-climbing, canyoning, and mountaineering in Jordan. Prices vary depending on how many activities you want to do and how many days you plan to stay in the country. Among the leaders are Terhaal, who offer a two-day canyoning trip from Dh845 per person. If you really want to push your limits, contact the Stronger Team. For a more trek-focused trip, KE Adventure offers an eight-day trip from Dh5,300 per person.
Company%20profile
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Islamophobia definition
A widely accepted definition was made by the All Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims in 2019: “Islamophobia is rooted in racism and is a type of racism that targets expressions of Muslimness or perceived Muslimness.” It further defines it as “inciting hatred or violence against Muslims”.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
Mental%20health%20support%20in%20the%20UAE
%3Cp%3E%E2%97%8F%20Estijaba%20helpline%3A%208001717%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Ministry%20of%20Health%20and%20Prevention%20hotline%3A%20045192519%3Cbr%3E%E2%97%8F%20UAE%20Mental%20health%20support%20line%3A%20800%204673%20(Hope)%3Cbr%3EMore%20information%20at%20hope.hw.gov.ae%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Wicked
Director: Jon M Chu
Stars: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey
What is blockchain?
Blockchain is a form of distributed ledger technology, a digital system in which data is recorded across multiple places at the same time. Unlike traditional databases, DLTs have no central administrator or centralised data storage. They are transparent because the data is visible and, because they are automatically replicated and impossible to be tampered with, they are secure.
The main difference between blockchain and other forms of DLT is the way data is stored as ‘blocks’ – new transactions are added to the existing ‘chain’ of past transactions, hence the name ‘blockchain’. It is impossible to delete or modify information on the chain due to the replication of blocks across various locations.
Blockchain is mostly associated with cryptocurrency Bitcoin. Due to the inability to tamper with transactions, advocates say this makes the currency more secure and safer than traditional systems. It is maintained by a network of people referred to as ‘miners’, who receive rewards for solving complex mathematical equations that enable transactions to go through.
However, one of the major problems that has come to light has been the presence of illicit material buried in the Bitcoin blockchain, linking it to the dark web.
Other blockchain platforms can offer things like smart contracts, which are automatically implemented when specific conditions from all interested parties are reached, cutting the time involved and the risk of mistakes. Another use could be storing medical records, as patients can be confident their information cannot be changed. The technology can also be used in supply chains, voting and has the potential to used for storing property records.
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 specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 178hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 280Nm at 1,350-4,200rpm
Transmission: seven-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh209,000
On sale: now
Porsche Taycan Turbo specs
Engine: Two permanent-magnet synchronous AC motors
Transmission: two-speed
Power: 671hp
Torque: 1050Nm
Range: 450km
Price: Dh601,800
On sale: now
