Anti-vaccination protesters tried to storm the headquarters of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in London on Friday, with four police officers injured in the melee.
“A number of protesters have become violent towards police … This is unacceptable,” Scotland Yard tweeted in response to violence in the Canary Wharf area of the capital.
“The police have been here all week because we were expecting Extinction Rebellion, so most of the police and security's been outside the banks,” Canary Wharf councillor Andrew Wood said.
“So, whether the anti-vaxxers realised this or not, the police were ready for a protest. It's just that it was anti-vaxxers not Extinction Rebellion who turned up this afternoon.”
London police have been on high alert the past two weeks as Extinction Rebellion held a series of rolling protests demanding an end to the funding of fossil fuels, with protests taking place at Tower Bridge, Buckingham Palace and the Bank of England.
Video posted on social media showed anti-vaccination protesters reaching the doors of MHRA headquarters, with security guards on the other side.
Seconds later, police pushed their way through the crowd and formed a cordon outside the building's entrance and scuffled with protesters trying to enter.
The mask-free demonstrators shouted that they were there “to protect the next generation”.
They later moved towards central London and gathered outside the Science Museum, where they clashed with police, who proceeded to make arrests.
The latest protests, comprising dozens of demonstrators who massed at several sites throughout the afternoon, comes after anti-vaccination protesters stormed the offices of UK television news broadcaster ITN at the end of August.
Britain is continuing its successful mass vaccination drive, which has resulted in more than three quarters of adults becoming fully vaccinated against Covid-19.
On Friday, teenagers with underlying health conditions became eligible for the vaccine for the first time, but scientists have ruled out the necessity of injections for healthy children aged 12-15.
One of the next key hurdles is the back-to-school season in England, top epidemiologist Prof Neil Ferguson said, as it is likely to bring a “significant surge” in Covid-19 infections.
“Whether that’s going to require any rolling back of the relaxation of restrictions is too early to say. It really depends on the level of healthcare demand,” he said.
Vaccines have led to fewer hospital admissions, but a very high number of cases could still lead to pressure on the healthcare system, he added.
The UK government is also spending millions of pounds on air quality monitors in classrooms in an attempt to understand and limit classroom infections.
The view from The National
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
Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding
Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.
Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.
Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.
For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae
High profile Al Shabab attacks
- 2010: A restaurant attack in Kampala Uganda kills 74 people watching a Fifa World Cup final football match.
- 2013: The Westgate shopping mall attack, 62 civilians, five Kenyan soldiers and four gunmen are killed.
- 2014: A series of bombings and shootings across Kenya sees scores of civilians killed.
- 2015: Four gunmen attack Garissa University College in northeastern Kenya and take over 700 students hostage, killing those who identified as Christian; 148 die and 79 more are injured.
- 2016: An attack on a Kenyan military base in El Adde Somalia kills 180 soldiers.
- 2017: A suicide truck bombing outside the Safari Hotel in Mogadishu kills 587 people and destroys several city blocks, making it the deadliest attack by the group and the worst in Somalia’s history.
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.”
