Support for the ruling party of UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has slumped following days of controversy over a 420-kilometre journey made by his chief adviser while the country was in lockdown.
A poll for The Observer newspaper suggested that the party's lead over the opposition Labour party had fallen by eight points in a week, the largest drop since 2017.
Mr Johnson’s party had a 26-point lead two months ago, but a combination of criticism of the government’s handling of the Covid-19 crisis and a resurgence of the left-wing Labour party under a new leader have cut the lead to only four points, the newspaper said.
The political agenda has been dominated by the controversy over the trip from London to Durham made by Dominic Cummings, his wife and young son during the early days of the lockdown.
His refusal to apologise and Mr Johnson’s steadfast support for the adviser has been seized on by his political opponents, and some of his own MPs, to question his judgement.
The premier’s position is safe after securing a hefty 80-seat majority in national elections in December last year. He does not have to return to the polls until 2024.
But the poll by Opinium said that four out of five people questioned thought Mr Cummings had broken the rules. More than two-thirds of people thought he should resign or be fired.
The poll comes at the start of another potentially difficult week for the UK government as it prepares to ease lockdown measures.
From Monday, groups of up to six people will be allowed to meet and many schools will reopen. Daily deaths have slowed in the UK, which has recorded more than 38,000 from the pandemic, the second-highest number in the world behind the United States.
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Major honours
ARSENAL
BARCELONA
- La Liga - 2013
- Copa del Rey - 2012
- Fifa Club World Cup - 2011
CHELSEA
- Premier League - 2015, 2017
- FA Cup - 2018
- League Cup - 2015
SPAIN
- World Cup - 2010
- European Championship - 2008, 2012
Company profile
Company: Eighty6
Date started: October 2021
Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Hospitality
Size: 25 employees
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investment: $1 million
Investors: Seed funding, angel investors
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
SPECS
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Lexus LX700h specs
Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor
Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm
Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm
Transmission: 10-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh590,000
House-hunting
Top 10 locations for inquiries from US house hunters, according to Rightmove
- Edinburgh, Scotland
- Westminster, London
- Camden, London
- Glasgow, Scotland
- Islington, London
- Kensington and Chelsea, London
- Highlands, Scotland
- Argyll and Bute, Scotland
- Fife, Scotland
- Tower Hamlets, London
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
Tamkeen's offering
- Option 1: 70% in year 1, 50% in year 2, 30% in year 3
- Option 2: 50% across three years
- Option 3: 30% across five years
Company%20profile
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Prophets of Rage
(Fantasy Records)