Sound chap, Tony Blair, always thought so. Voted for him in 1997, and bliss it was that dawn to be alive.
Even met him a few times, the last being in (of all places) Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, a couple of years ago when the former British prime minister was speaking at that benighted country’s economic forum. Shook his hand briskly that day.
Oh, and there was that time earlier this year, at the Dead Sea Resort in Jordan. I didn’t get to meet him then, but I was in the same room with him, the US secretary of state John Kerry, and a couple of thousand other people. No handshake that day, security was too tight.
Mr Blair was announcing a new plan to bring peace to the Palestinian Territories with US$4 billion worth of backing. Details were sparse, and I never had the opportunity to quiz him, despite many attempts via his global office in London.
But I may get the chance again next month, when TB (as his aides call him) will be in Dubai addressing yet another forum. He just loves the region, apparently, and can’t get enough of it.
Either that, or he’s just getting extremely well paid for his expert views on Middle East matters.
The word from sources close to the upcoming forum is that TB will walk away with a cool $250,000. An official spokesman, after many unacknowledged emails, eventually says: “This is a speaking event arranged through his agency in Washington. We do not comment.”
***
Flipping of property is back in Dubai, I can well and truly confirm.
I guess this isn't news to anybody who attended Cityscape this month, and witnessed the chaotic scenes as "investors" fought to get their hands on off-plan properties at one of the much sought-after Emaar developments.
But personal experience over the past couple of months had reinforced the idea we’re in a real estate bull market. It turns out that my apartment has had three owners in a few months, and could be sold several times again in the next few.
I call it “my” apartment, but of course it never was. For four of the five years I’ve lived in the 44th floor flat overlooking Dubai Marina, it belonged to a true paragon of globalisation: a native Indian, with Swedish nationality, who lived in Manchester, England.
He was easy-going and amenable to deal with. At the start of this year, I was paying about the same as I had been in early 2009, when I first moved in.
That all changed a few months ago, when he told us he was going to sell. A stream of callers asked if they could view the apartment, and we got used to the steady flow of people through the place, before a Saudi gentleman politely introduced himself one day as the new owner. All very civilised, and we promised to talk about lease renewal nearer the expiry time.
But within a month, that changed too. The Saudi had decided to sell, and a new string of callers began to arrange viewings.
When it got to four or five visits per day, it began to be obtrusive, and my wife complained to the agent. He offered her Dh500 per visit to ease the inconvenience, but she declined, unsure of the ethicality of the proposal.
The stream of viewers reduced, until one evening a Jordanian gentleman announced himself as the new owner. Again, all very polite and civilised.
We’ve more or less decided to move in February, when the lease is next up. But I wonder how many “owners” there will have been by then?
fkane@thenational.ae
UAE squad to face Ireland
Ahmed Raza (captain), Chirag Suri (vice-captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Boota, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmad, Zawar Farid, CP Rizwaan, Aryan Lakra, Karthik Meiyappan, Alishan Sharafu, Basil Hameed, Kashif Daud, Adithya Shetty, Vriitya Aravind
The Case For Trump
By Victor Davis Hanson
How the bonus system works
The two riders are among several riders in the UAE to receive the top payment of £10,000 under the Thank You Fund of £16 million (Dh80m), which was announced in conjunction with Deliveroo's £8 billion (Dh40bn) stock market listing earlier this year.
The £10,000 (Dh50,000) payment is made to those riders who have completed the highest number of orders in each market.
There are also riders who will receive payments of £1,000 (Dh5,000) and £500 (Dh2,500).
All riders who have worked with Deliveroo for at least one year and completed 2,000 orders will receive £200 (Dh1,000), the company said when it announced the scheme.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
Who was Alfred Nobel?
The Nobel Prize was created by wealthy Swedish chemist and entrepreneur Alfred Nobel.
- In his will he dictated that the bulk of his estate should be used to fund "prizes to those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind".
- Nobel is best known as the inventor of dynamite, but also wrote poetry and drama and could speak Russian, French, English and German by the age of 17. The five original prize categories reflect the interests closest to his heart.
- Nobel died in 1896 but it took until 1901, following a legal battle over his will, before the first prizes were awarded.
MATCH INFO
Chelsea 1 (Hudson-Odoi 90 1')
Manchester City 3 (Gundogan 18', Foden 21', De Bruyne 34')
Man of the match: Ilkay Gundogan (Man City)
Why it pays to compare
A comparison of sending Dh20,000 from the UAE using two different routes at the same time - the first direct from a UAE bank to a bank in Germany, and the second from the same UAE bank via an online platform to Germany - found key differences in cost and speed. The transfers were both initiated on January 30.
Route 1: bank transfer
The UAE bank charged Dh152.25 for the Dh20,000 transfer. On top of that, their exchange rate margin added a difference of around Dh415, compared with the mid-market rate.
Total cost: Dh567.25 - around 2.9 per cent of the total amount
Total received: €4,670.30
Route 2: online platform
The UAE bank’s charge for sending Dh20,000 to a UK dirham-denominated account was Dh2.10. The exchange rate margin cost was Dh60, plus a Dh12 fee.
Total cost: Dh74.10, around 0.4 per cent of the transaction
Total received: €4,756
The UAE bank transfer was far quicker – around two to three working days, while the online platform took around four to five days, but was considerably cheaper. In the online platform transfer, the funds were also exposed to currency risk during the period it took for them to arrive.
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
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
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
