A deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol could be delivered within “days, not weeks”, according to Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab.
Mr Raab, who is also the UK's Justice Secretary, said there had been “real progress” on the Protocol, which is an accord Britain reached with the EU as part of its 2020 leaving agreement.
The UK and the EU have been at loggerheads over Northern Ireland — the only part of the UK that shares a border with an EU member, the Republic of Ireland — since Britain's exit from the trade bloc became final in 2020.
When the UK left the EU, the two sides agreed to keep the Irish border free of customs posts and other checks because an open border is a key pillar of Northern Ireland’s peace process.
Under the agreement, there are checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK. That angers British unionist politicians, who insist that the new trade border undermines Northern Ireland's place in the UK.
Northern Ireland's power-sharing government has been non-functional since the Democratic Unionist party walked out a year ago over the Protocol.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said he is “giving it everything” this weekend to secure a new deal for Northern Ireland.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said an agreement over trade between Britain and Northern Ireland was “inching” towards a conclusion.
Asked whether a deal could be unveiled on Monday, Mr Raab told Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday programme: “I think there is real progress.
“We want to make sure all the pieces are in place.
“But I think, hopefully, there will be good news in a matter of days, not weeks.”
Mr Raab said the UK was looking for a more “light touch” approach from the EU when it comes to checks on goods trading between Northern Ireland and Britain.
He said: “If we can make some of those changes, which we've been pushing for, to get a shift away, for example, in trade in goods from GB, from Britain to Northern Ireland, to having checks and declarations on individual consigns towards a more intelligence-based approach to controls.
“If we can encourage the EU to rely more on market surveillance than those checks — market surveillance particularly in the Republic — to protect the EU single market, if we can get that kind of deal across the line, it would mark a paradigm shift in approach and would be very good news for the communities of Northern Ireland and for the Good Friday Agreement.”
He said MPs will get a chance to have a say on the deal.
He said: “Look, let me allow the government to set all the details in the proper way but I think, inevitably, Parliament will find a way to have its say.
“I want to give you a sense of the direction of travel. But, of course, we've got to get the deal at international level signed and agreed, and make sure that the arrangements that underpin it, and to the extent that they will require legislation, they would have to get through the House of Commons.
“We want to handle this properly and in the right way. I think one thing we've learnt with meaningful votes and various other things since 2016 and beyond is that you have to carry Parliament with you, and I'm confident we would be able to.”
However, senior Labour MP David Lammy said Prime Minister Rishi Sunak should not rush into holding a vote in Parliament on his revised Northern Ireland Protocol terms.
The shadow foreign secretary told Sky News' Sophy Ridge On Sunday that any deal should “ease any friction and minimise any sorts of customs checks”.
He added: “There was always more to build on, that's why we look forward to seeing the detail of this deal as it emerges.
“That's why it is important for all sides to consider that carefully.
“There should be no rush, I think, on any vote in Parliament. People are entitled to look at the small print in detail.
“I hope now that all of us can come together and vote through any deal, and get back to Stormont, underpinned by the Good Friday Agreement, and move on from this episode that has now gone on for many years indeed.”
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Top New Zealand cop on policing the virtual world
New Zealand police began closer scrutiny of social media and online communities after the attacks on two mosques in March, the country's top officer said.
The killing of 51 people in Christchurch and wounding of more than 40 others shocked the world. Brenton Tarrant, a suspected white supremacist, was accused of the killings. His trial is ongoing and he denies the charges.
Mike Bush, commissioner of New Zealand Police, said officers looked closely at how they monitored social media in the wake of the tragedy to see if lessons could be learned.
“We decided that it was fit for purpose but we need to deepen it in terms of community relationships, extending them not only with the traditional community but the virtual one as well," he told The National.
"We want to get ahead of attacks like we suffered in New Zealand so we have to challenge ourselves to be better."
More coverage from the Future Forum
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If you go
The flights
Emirates (www.emirates.com) and Etihad (www.etihad.com) both fly direct to Bengaluru, with return fares from Dh 1240. From Bengaluru airport, Coorg is a five-hour drive by car.
The hotels
The Tamara (www.thetamara.com) is located inside a working coffee plantation and offers individual villas with sprawling views of the hills (tariff from Dh1,300, including taxes and breakfast).
When to go
Coorg is an all-year destination, with the peak season for travel extending from the cooler months between October and March.
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.”
More from UAE Human Development Report:
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
