It has become an almost daily pattern: another day, another set of negative headlines levelled at the Duke and Duchess of Sussex. In the last few weeks, the couple have clearly tried to take control, suing British tabloids for alleged "relentless" mistreatment and participating in a TV documentary, in which they speak about the scrutiny directly.
But more significantly, they have asked for care and support, which is extremely unusual for the British royal family.
Talking to TV journalist Tom Bradby in Harry and Meghan: An African Journey, the duchess said of the media pressure, "Especially as a woman it's really – it's a lot. So you add this on top of just trying to be a new mum and trying to be a newlywed."
When Bradby asked if she was OK, she replied, tears in her eyes, “Thank you for asking, because not many people will have asked if I'm OK … it's a very real thing to be going through behind the scenes."
There is no doubt the documentary offered shocking soundbites, when compared to the old royal mantra of "never explain, never complain". The line that grabbed the most attention, ironically perhaps, is when the duchess touched on the fact she was "warned" about the British press before going public with Prince Harry.
"When I first met my now-husband, my friends were really happy because I was so happy but my British friends said to me, ‘I’m sure he’s great but you shouldn’t do it because the British tabloids will destroy your life,’” Markle revealed.
Unsurprisingly, this didn't go down too well with tabloid press.
The Sun's Dan Wootton has been particularly critical of the couple, the Duchess in particular. His stories about British royals read, "Meghan's 'difficult' while Kate's 'compliant': Dan Wootton tells it straight" and "Meghan is desperate to be treated like a royal while acting like an entitled celeb – she can't have it both ways". So, it comes as no surprise that he hasn't responded warmly to the couple's comments.
“Meghan and Harry were welcomed with open arms by the British public,” he began a defensive statement on Instagram on Monday, October 21. “The media went totally gaga for [Meghan].[But] being a royal does not – and should not – guarantee you positive coverage at all times. TV broadcasters might operate as royal propaganda outlets, but newspapers quite rightly don't,” he went on to say. “Sunday night's ITV documentary showed an unhappy couple – looking for reasons to feel under attack and be victims. The reality is they are not."
But to me, it does feel like they are "under attack" much of the time. In the documentary, Bradby points out that with privilege and wealth comes scrutiny, to which she replied, "When people are saying things that are just untrue, and they are being told they are untrue but they are allowed to still say them, I don’t know anybody in the world who would feel that’s OK, and that is different from just scrutiny."
She also refers to the the arguably failing royal way of keeping quiet, by saying, "I think I really tried to adopt this British sensibility of a stiff upper lip … but I think what that does internally is probably really damaging."
Adding: "I never thought this would be easy but I thought it would be fair, and that is the part that is hard to reconcile."
This is an unprecedented level of frankness from a British royal, but for advocates of self-care and open conversations about mental health, such honesty from the royals is an essential step in the right direction.
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The winners
Fiction
- ‘Amreekiya’ by Lena Mahmoud
- ‘As Good As True’ by Cheryl Reid
The Evelyn Shakir Non-Fiction Award
- ‘Syrian and Lebanese Patricios in Sao Paulo’ by Oswaldo Truzzi; translated by Ramon J Stern
- ‘The Sound of Listening’ by Philip Metres
The George Ellenbogen Poetry Award
- ‘Footnotes in the Order of Disappearance’ by Fady Joudah
Children/Young Adult
- ‘I’ve Loved You Since Forever’ by Hoda Kotb
6 UNDERGROUND
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Adria Arjona, Dave Franco
2.5 / 5 stars
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
MATCH INFO
Tottenham 4 (Alli 51', Kane 50', 77'. Aurier 73')
Olympiakos 2 (El-Arabi 06', Semedo')
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Skoda Superb Specs
Engine: 2-litre TSI petrol
Power: 190hp
Torque: 320Nm
Price: From Dh147,000
Available: Now
The Ashes
Results
First Test, Brisbane: Australia won by 10 wickets
Second Test, Adelaide: Australia won by 120 runs
Third Test, Perth: Australia won by an innings and 41 runs
Fourth Test: Melbourne: Drawn
Fifth Test: Australia won by an innings and 123 runs
Defence review at a glance
• Increase defence spending to 2.5% of GDP by 2027 but given “turbulent times it may be necessary to go faster”
• Prioritise a shift towards working with AI and autonomous systems
• Invest in the resilience of military space systems.
• Number of active reserves should be increased by 20%
• More F-35 fighter jets required in the next decade
• New “hybrid Navy” with AUKUS submarines and autonomous vessels
