Sajid Javid is greeted by Boris Johnson in 2019. EPA
Sajid Javid is greeted by Boris Johnson in 2019. EPA
Sajid Javid is greeted by Boris Johnson in 2019. EPA
Sajid Javid is greeted by Boris Johnson in 2019. EPA

Sajid Javid: the man stepping in to lead UK’s pandemic battle


Simon Rushton
  • English
  • Arabic

Conservative Party heavyweight Sajid Javid has been named as the UK's new Health Secretary after Matt Hancock was forced to quit the role for breaking Covid rules.

A former chancellor of the exchequer, Mr Javid steps in as the government tries to bring an end to coronavirus restrictions despite a rise in infections fuelled by the Delta variant of the virus.

He returns to the Cabinet more than a year after losing a power struggle with Prime Minister Boris Johnson's former adviser Dominic Cummings, who criticised the government recently.

  • British Prime Minister Boris Johnson looks through a microscope during a visit to a lab at The National Institute for Biological Standards in South Mimms. Getty Images
    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson looks through a microscope during a visit to a lab at The National Institute for Biological Standards in South Mimms. Getty Images
  • People queue outside a mass vaccination centre for those aged 18 and over at the London Stadium. Reuters
    People queue outside a mass vaccination centre for those aged 18 and over at the London Stadium. Reuters
  • People inside the stone circle during Summer Solstice at Stonehenge. The prehistoric monument of ancient stones have been officially closed for the celebrations due to the coronavirus lockdown, but groups of people ignored the lockdown. AP Photo
    People inside the stone circle during Summer Solstice at Stonehenge. The prehistoric monument of ancient stones have been officially closed for the celebrations due to the coronavirus lockdown, but groups of people ignored the lockdown. AP Photo
  • Members of the public walk past shops in Kendal in Cumbria, where surge testing has been deployed following an outbreak of a coronavirus variant of concern. AFP
    Members of the public walk past shops in Kendal in Cumbria, where surge testing has been deployed following an outbreak of a coronavirus variant of concern. AFP
  • A person receives a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at a mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
    A person receives a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at a mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
  • First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon receives her second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine at the NHS Louisa Jordan vaccine centre in Glasgow. AP Photo
    First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon receives her second dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine at the NHS Louisa Jordan vaccine centre in Glasgow. AP Photo
  • Anti-vaccine protestors gather outside a mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
    Anti-vaccine protestors gather outside a mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
  • Members of the public queue to enter a temporary Covid-19 testing centre set up a car park in Kendal in Cumbria. AFP
    Members of the public queue to enter a temporary Covid-19 testing centre set up a car park in Kendal in Cumbria. AFP
  • Medical staff work inside the mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
    Medical staff work inside the mass vaccination centre at the London Stadium. Reuters
  • A person receives a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, in London. Reuters
    A person receives a dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, in London. Reuters
  • People enter a Covid-19 vaccination centre in London. EPA
    People enter a Covid-19 vaccination centre in London. EPA

Mr Javid was one of the contenders for the Conservative leadership in 2019. That contest  was eventually won by Mr Johnson.

He subsequently became chancellor, the UK equivalent of finance minister, but resigned last year after a clash with Mr Johnson over the hiring of departmental aides.

Mr Javid said he had no option but to resign after he was ordered to replace his political advisers.

"I was unable to accept those conditions. I don't believe any self-respecting minister would accept such conditions," he said.

It followed reports of clashes between Mr Javid and Mr Cummings, who was then Mr Johnson's top adviser.

Mr Cummings was himself ousted in November amid a power struggle in the Prime Minister's Downing Street office, which was rumoured to involve Mr Johnson's wife, Carrie Johnson.

Mr Cummings suggested on Saturday that Mrs Johnson was behind Mr Javid's return to the government.

He claimed that he had "tricked" Mr Johnson into removing Mr Javid, whom he described as "bog standard" and "awful" for the National Health Service.

Mr Javid said his top priority now was to bring about a "return to normal" in the UK.

"We are still in a pandemic and I want to see that come to an end as soon as possible," he said.

High-flying family 

Mr Javid’s Pakistani parents arrived in the UK in 1961, where his father worked as a bus driver in Rotherham, northern England before setting up his clothing business, Scallywags, in Bristol.

The middle sibling of five children, he acknowledges his Muslim heritage but does not practise a religion.

His brother Basit is deputy assistant commissioner at London’s Metropolitan Police; Atif is a property entrepreneur and Khalid is the founder of property finance firm Blackstone Financial Solutions.

The eldest brother Tariq, 52, was found dead in a Sussex hotel in 2018 having taken his own life. Tariq had been a successful retail entrepreneur.

Mr Javid has spoken of his personal memories of racial abuse as a child.

He graduated from the University of Exeter with a degree in economics and politics in 1991 as the first of his family to attend university.

He had a successful career in the upper echelons of the financial sector, starting with a spell at New York’s Chase Manhattan bank.

On his return to Britain, he worked at Deutsche Bank International, rising to the board of directors.

He was elected MP for Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, in 2010. He is married and has four children.

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Read part one: how cars came to the UAE

Election pledges on migration

CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections" 

SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom" 

BEACH SOCCER WORLD CUP

Group A

Paraguay
Japan
Switzerland
USA

Group B

Uruguay
Mexico
Italy
Tahiti

Group C

Belarus
UAE
Senegal
Russia

Group D

Brazil
Oman
Portugal
Nigeria

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

The Farewell

Director: Lulu Wang

Stars: Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Diana Lin, Tzi Ma

Four stars

Avatar: Fire and Ash

Director: James Cameron

Starring: Sam Worthington, Sigourney Weaver, Zoe Saldana

Rating: 4.5/5

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Results

Catchweight 60kg: Mohammed Al Katheeri (UAE) beat Mostafa El Hamy (EGY) TKO round 3

Light Heavyweight: Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) no contest Kevin Oumar (COM) Unintentional knee by Oumer

Catchweight 73kg:  Yazid Chouchane (ALG) beat Ahmad Al Boussairy (KUW) Unanimous decision

Featherweight: Faris Khaleel Asha (JOR) beat Yousef Al Housani (UAE) TKO in round 2 through foot injury

Welterweight: Omar Hussein (JOR) beat Yassin Najid (MAR); Split decision

Middleweight: Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) beat Sallah Eddine Dekhissi (MAR); Round-1 TKO

Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammed Ali Musalim (UAE) beat Medhat Hussein (EGY); Triangle choke submission

Welterweight: Abdulla Al Bousheiri (KUW) beat Sofiane Oudina (ALG); Triangle choke Round-1

Lightweight: Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Saleem Al Bakri (JOR); Unanimous decision

Bantamweight: Ali Taleb (IRQ) beat Nawras Abzakh (JOR); TKO round-2

Catchweight 63kg: Rany Saadeh (PAL) beat Abdel Ali Hariri (MAR); Unanimous decision

Key developments

All times UTC 4

Company Fact Box

Company name/date started: Abwaab Technologies / September 2019

Founders: Hamdi Tabbaa, co-founder and CEO. Hussein Alsarabi, co-founder and CTO

Based: Amman, Jordan

Sector: Education Technology

Size (employees/revenue): Total team size: 65. Full-time employees: 25. Revenue undisclosed

Stage: early-stage startup 

Investors: Adam Tech Ventures, Endure Capital, Equitrust, the World Bank-backed Innovative Startups SMEs Fund, a London investment fund, a number of former and current executives from Uber and Netflix, among others.

End of free parking

- paid-for parking will be rolled across Abu Dhabi island on August 18

- drivers will have three working weeks leeway before fines are issued

- areas that are currently free to park - around Sheikh Zayed Bridge, Maqta Bridge, Mussaffah Bridge and the Corniche - will now require a ticket

- villa residents will need a permit to park outside their home. One vehicle is Dh800 and a second is Dh1,200. 

- The penalty for failing to pay for a ticket after 10 minutes will be Dh200

- Parking on a patch of sand will incur a fine of Dh300

Who's who in Yemen conflict

Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government

Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council

Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south

Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory

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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EGuillermo%20del%20Toro%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Tim%20Blake%20Nelson%2C%20Sebastian%20Roche%2C%20Elpidia%20Carrillo%3Cbr%3ERating%3A%204%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
FIXTURES

Saturday
5.30pm: Shabab Al Ahli v Al Wahda
5.30pm: Khorfakkan v Baniyas
8.15pm: Hatta v Ajman
8.15pm: Sharjah v Al Ain
Sunday
5.30pm: Kalba v Al Jazira
5.30pm: Fujairah v Al Dhafra
8.15pm: Al Nasr v Al Wasl

DUNE%3A%20PART%20TWO
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Denis%20Villeneuve%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Timothee%20Chamalet%2C%20Zendaya%2C%20Austin%20Butler%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Silent Hill f

Publisher: Konami

Platforms: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC

Rating: 4.5/5

Reading List

Practitioners of mindful eating recommend the following books to get you started:

Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Dr Lilian Cheung

How to Eat by Thich Nhat Hanh

The Mindful Diet by Dr Ruth Wolever

Mindful Eating by Dr Jan Bays

How to Raise a Mindful Eaterby Maryann Jacobsen

In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

FINAL SCORES

Fujairah 130 for 8 in 20 overs

(Sandy Sandeep 29, Hamdan Tahir 26 no, Umair Ali 2-15)

Sharjah 131 for 8 in 19.3 overs

(Kashif Daud 51, Umair Ali 20, Rohan Mustafa 2-17, Sabir Rao 2-26)

Jewel of the Expo 2020

252 projectors installed on Al Wasl dome

13.6km of steel used in the structure that makes it equal in length to 16 Burj Khalifas

550 tonnes of moulded steel were raised last year to cap the dome

724,000 cubic metres is the space it encloses

Stands taller than the leaning tower of Pisa

Steel trellis dome is one of the largest single structures on site

The size of 16 tennis courts and weighs as much as 500 elephants

Al Wasl means connection in Arabic

World’s largest 360-degree projection surface