LONDON // British Prime Minister David Cameron said ties between politicians and the media had become "too close" as he began giving evidence on Thursday to a public inquiry into press ethics.
"It has been too close and I think we need to try and get it on a better footing," Mr Cameron said.
There should be "greater transparency, better regulation, having a little more distance" in the future, he added.
"I don't think the regulatory system we have at the moment works."
Mr Cameron was driven from Downing Street to the Royal Courts of Justice across central London to attend the inquiry.
Wearing a white shirt with a dark suit and blue tie, he gave a brief wave to waiting photographers as he walked inside.
Once inside Court 73, he was called to testify and held the Bible, swearing that the evidence he would give would be "the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth".
Sitting with his hands interlocked, he explained how he started out working at the Conservative Party's central office and worked as a special adviser and speechwriter at the Treasury.
Discussing how he forged relationships with journalists, he said: "You want people to understand your motivations, your character, your judgement, your views and why you hold them.
"Sometimes you strike up a good and strong relationship; sometimes you struggle."
And of the current media climate, he added: "The 24-hour news cycle has meant that newspapers have had to turn up the volume on everything.
"It feels like you're being shouted at rather than spoken to."
The prime minister is also likely to face questions on his own ties to Murdoch's media empire.
Mr Cameron set up the Leveson Inquiry in July last year after Rupert Murdoch's News of the World was shut down in the wake of a public outcry when it emerged the tabloid had hacked into the voicemails of a murdered schoolgirl.
His immediate predecessors Gordon Brown, Tony Blair and John Major have already given evidence to the inquiry, which is examining the culture, practices and ethics of the press.
It is due to produce a report, likely to include recommendations on the future of press regulation, in October.
It's up to you to go green
Nils El Accad, chief executive and owner of Organic Foods and Café, says going green is about “lifestyle and attitude” rather than a “money change”; people need to plan ahead to fill water bottles in advance and take their own bags to the supermarket, he says.
“People always want someone else to do the work; it doesn’t work like that,” he adds. “The first step: you have to consciously make that decision and change.”
When he gets a takeaway, says Mr El Accad, he takes his own glass jars instead of accepting disposable aluminium containers, paper napkins and plastic tubs, cutlery and bags from restaurants.
He also plants his own crops and herbs at home and at the Sheikh Zayed store, from basil and rosemary to beans, squashes and papayas. “If you’re going to water anything, better it be tomatoes and cucumbers, something edible, than grass,” he says.
“All this throwaway plastic - cups, bottles, forks - has to go first,” says Mr El Accad, who has banned all disposable straws, whether plastic or even paper, from the café chain.
One of the latest changes he has implemented at his stores is to offer refills of liquid laundry detergent, to save plastic. The two brands Organic Foods stocks, Organic Larder and Sonnett, are both “triple-certified - you could eat the product”.
The Organic Larder detergent will soon be delivered in 200-litre metal oil drums before being decanted into 20-litre containers in-store.
Customers can refill their bottles at least 30 times before they start to degrade, he says. Organic Larder costs Dh35.75 for one litre and Dh62 for 2.75 litres and refills will cost 15 to 20 per cent less, Mr El Accad says.
But while there are savings to be had, going green tends to come with upfront costs and extra work and planning. Are we ready to refill bottles rather than throw them away? “You have to change,” says Mr El Accad. “I can only make it available.”
Rashid & Rajab
Director: Mohammed Saeed Harib
Stars: Shadi Alfons, Marwan Abdullah, Doaa Mostafa Ragab
Two stars out of five
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
MO
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