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The last hero of Telemark HOW TO BAG A BILLIONAIRE BILLIO AIRE Angela Merkel rkel heads for the exit OBITUARIES P 45 LAST W WORD P 56 MAIN STORIES P THE WEEK NOVEMBER 2018 | ISSUE 1200 | £3.80 THE BEST OF THE BRITISH AND INTERNATIONAL MEDIA Green’s disgrace The shaming of a tycoon Page 20 ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT EVERYTHING THAT MATTERS www.theweek.co.uk NEWS The main stories… What happened The giveaway Budget Philip Hammond declared this week that Britain’s era of austerity was “finally coming to an end”, as he unveiled the biggest giveaway Budget since the Tories came to power in 2010 Buoyed by a £13bn annual windfall from better-than-expected tax receipts and borrowing forecasts, the Chancellor announced plans to boost funding for strained public services, and to bring forward income tax cuts and increases in the national living wage But in a clear warning to Eurosceptics, Hammond insisted that these spending commitments were dependent on the UK securing a Brexit deal with the EU, a sentiment he later softened What the editorials said With this Budget, “Eeyore” transformed himself into “Feel-good Phil”, said the Daily Mail There were jokes and cash pledges aplenty, and some excellent new policies, including a tax on hard-to-recycle plastic packaging, higher duty on online gaming, an “end to ruinous PFI contracts” and a package of measures to help high streets The long-overdue levy on tech giants’ UK revenue, which will potentially raise £400m, was particularly welcome, said The Sun We would have preferred Hammond to have announced a few more radical low-tax measures “But that gripe aside, what was not to like?” All this extra spending was made possible by the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR), said The Independent, which offered The biggest beneficiary of the Budget is the Hammond a £13bn windfall by revising its Feel-good Phil: “a gamble”? NHS, which is set to receive £20.5bn a year of projections Hammond could have banked this extra funding Hammond also announced another £1.7bn money to reduce the deficit, but he chose to spend it instead a year to smooth the introduction of universal credit; extra He’s taking “an Augustinian stance”, said the FT: “Let me be cash for defence, roads and schools; and cuts to business rates virtuous but not quite yet.” The result will be yet more cash for smaller high street shops to help them cope with online for the health service, said The Daily Telegraph In 2000, the competition In addition, he unveiled some revenue-raising NHS accounted for 23% of public service spending; by 2024, measures, including a new “digital services tax” aimed at big that will have risen to 38% We must hope the new money tech platforms such as Google and Amazon (see page 49) is well spent, but past experience suggests it won’t be What happened Merkel’s long farewell What the editorials said Europe is going to miss Merkel, said the FT Under her leadership, the continent’s most powerful nation has been “a Angela Merkel has signalled the end of strong and stabilising influence” Indeed, the an era in German politics by announcing ten years since the financial crisis have shown she will not stand for chancellor at the that little can be achieved without Berlin’s next elections, in 2021 Merkel, who has consent or support Merkel has her critics, said led Germany for the past 13 years, also The New York Times Some think her refusal said she would be quitting as leader of the to cut Greece any slack when it was on the ruling Christian Democratic Union (CDU) ropes was excessive, and her decision to admit Her decision was prompted by the CDU’s more than a million migrants in 2015 proved disastrous performance in elections in the highly divisive But she is still “one of the most state of Hesse, where its share of the vote remarkable Western leaders” of her epoch It fell to 27.9%, down 11 points from the isn’t eloquence or charisma that marks her previous regional election, in 2013 Merkel out: it’s her calm attachment to stability At said the result was a “turning point”, and “Mutti”: calm attachment to stability a time when strident populism is on the rise, that it was time to “open a new chapter” “Mutti” Merkel exemplifies the sober values of her Lutheran background: “moderation” and “decency.” The Hesse election brought more bad news for Merkel’s coalition partner, the Social Democratic Party (SPD), which Merkel had to go, said Die Zeit After the electoral debacle recorded its worst showing since 1946, down 11 points to in Hesse, her position was untenable The result showed 19.8% from 2013 Many voters switched support to the how in recent years she has lost touch with ordinary CDU Greens or to the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), members, by sacrificing the party’s core conservative values which tripled its vote to 13% to political pragmatism Now she has paid the price It wasn’t all bad William Morris’s country home is to be saved from dilapidation by a £4.3m lottery grant Kelmscott Manor, a 16th century estate in the Cotswolds, was the designer‘s idyllic retreat from 1871 until his death in 1896 Its wild flowers and trees inspired his wallpaper designs; his novel News from Nowhere features a fictionalised version of it The grant will enable the owners, the Society of Antiquaries of London, to carry out repairs to the house and renovate the gardens The Galápagos Islands are not the remote wilderness many take them to be They contain 317 hotels and attract 245,000 visitors a year But now a crowdfunding campaign has ensured that a 568-acre site on San Cristóbal, the island where Charles Darwin first went ashore on his visit in 1835, will be saved from development The site was reportedly being eyed by hotel developers, but conservationists raised £1.35m online to create the new Galápagos Nature Reserve and help protect – among others – the endangered Galápagos petrel, the blue-footed booby (pictured) and the renowned giant tortoises Two teenagers from a south Wales valley have just bought the screen rights to a Stephen King story – for just $1 Alfie Evans, 16, and Cerys Cliff, 14, from Tredegar, are writing the script for, and filming, Stationary Bike; it will be shot in Tredegar and make use of local actors The teenagers are benefiting from a scheme devised by King, to let young people make films for festival release based on his work A previous beneficiary was Frank Darabont, director of The Shawshank Redemption: he began his career by adapting a King story when he was 24 COVER CARTOON: HOWARD MCWILLIAM THE WEEK November 2018 …and how they were covered NEWS What the commentators said What next? The Chancellor had three tasks in this week’s Budget, said Francis Elliott in The Times He needed to “add credibility to Theresa May’s promise that austerity is over; to buy support for a Brexit deal; and to hose down the fiercest fires licking at the Government’s slender majority” By and large, he pulled it off Unlike most recent Budgets, which have started falling apart within hours of delivery, Hammond’s Budget has so far “stayed pretty ravelled”, said John Rentoul in The Independent The plethora of spending announcements closed off every line of attack for Labour, which was reduced to complaining that “it’s not enough” The UK will benefit from a “double dividend” if a deal is agreed with Brussels next spring, Hammond told MPs Not only will the economy benefit from a boost to confidence, he said, but he’ll be free to spend the £15bn set aside as a “fiscal buffer” against a no-deal exit The Budget may win May some “short-term political advantage”, said Peter Oborne in the Daily Mail But by undermining the Tories’ reputation for fiscal responsibility and encouraging an ill-advised “spending arms race with Labour”, it could exact a heavy price in the longer term The promise of an end to austerity is certainly “a hostage to fortune”, said Alex Massie in The Spectator Once you strip out the boost for the NHS – which is set to account for £84bn of the extra £103bn spending between now and 2023 – the reality is that most departments will still be left “having to more with less” The extra money for defence won’t make up for earlier cuts Nor, “almost certainly”, will the new money for universal credit be enough The NHS pledge aside, the sums on offer are “hilariously small”, said Jonn Elledge in the New Statesman The £400m set aside for schools, for instance, amounts to only £10,000 per primary school and £50,000 per secondary That’s not going to make much difference at a time when many cash-strapped schools have been forced to close on Friday afternoons Nor will the £420m for patching up potholes go far In spending terms, these pledges are “more like thimbles than pots”, agreed Jane Merrick in The Independent But with Brexit looming on the horizon, Hammond lacks the freedom to engage in much more than “tokenistic” gestures As he suggested at the weekend, he’ll be forced to return with an emergency Budget in the spring if the UK crashes out of the EU without a deal Britain, for now, is stuck in a “holding pattern” The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) warned that Hammond had taken “a bit of a gamble” with the public finances The independent think tank pointed out that the OBR could revise its forecasts downwards next year, upsetting Hammond’s calculations The IFS reckons there’s a one-in-three chance of the forecasts for the public finances deteriorating significantly over the next year, even with a Brexit deal What the commentators said What next? Merkel’s announcement has “shocked political Berlin”, but it should come as no surprise, said Matthew Karnitschnig on Politico Until now her record at the polls – she has won four successive elections – has silenced her enemies inside the CDU, who fret over the party’s perceived drift to the Left and its liberal line on immigration But the clamour for change has been growing ever since the party’s drubbing in last year’s federal election: the issue had become not whether she’d step down, but when German voters have reason to be exasperated with her, said Ines Pohl in Deutsche Welle The coalition has spent much of the last year on “navel-gazing” and internal squabbling, rather than addressing such urgent issues as the rise of the nationalist Right Now we see that even in prosperous regions such as Hesse, voters have had enough A recent poll indicates that the CDU, and its sister party, the CSU, now enjoy just 24% support nationwide The public wants “renewal” and they don’t trust Merkel to deliver it Deep divisions may emerge when the CDU chooses Merkel’s successor as party leader in December Her own preferred candidate is Annegret KrampKarrenbauer, the CDU’s general secretary But she is likely to face a challenge from 38-year-old health minister Jens Spahn, who has openly attacked Merkel’s liberal line on some key policies, notably immigration The big question now is whether Merkel can survive as chancellor until 2021 After their humiliation in Hesse, her SPD allies won’t want to trigger a new federal election by pulling out of the coalition, said Oliver Moody in The Times But their calculations could very well change: better to be in opposition than face further defeats tied to an unpopular government The resulting uncertainty is bad news for Europe as well as Germany, said Jon Henley in The Guardian It was Merkel’s blend of “principle and pragmatism” that guided the EU through the 2008 financial crisis, the migration crisis and Russian aggression in Ukraine Now the bloc faces a slew of new problems – from Brexit and the Italian budget crisis to the likelihood of big gains for populist parties in next year’s elections to the European Parliament What’s more, Britain was hoping Merkel might have fixed a favourable last-minute Brexit deal But now, “hugely weakened” by admitting to her imminent departure, she is in no position to help THE WEEK A few years ago, roads teeming with autonomous cars seemed wildly implausible – but there again, so did mobile phones a few years before that It’s pretty clear the revolution is under way This week, Waymo, the self-driving unit of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, was given the green light to test fully autonomous vehicles (with no human behind the wheel) on public roads in California We know that Uber can’t wait to make use of all the route data it has acquired, and get rid of its drivers, with all their irksome demands for toilet breaks and paid holiday The taxi firm Addison Lee declared last week that it will have self-driving cabs on the streets of London by 2021 The question is, what will this new world look like? Will there be more traffic – as cars become comfortable mobile offices and entertainment spaces – or less, owing to automated vehicles reacting more efficiently? And who will lose out? Not just drivers, but also driving instructors, traffic wardens and perhaps traffic cops Then there is the big issue: safety Decisions being made by software engineers, about how cars behave on the road, will have life and death consequences in the future (see page 19) Human drivers go through rigorous training, and they kill more than a million people each year Driverless cars will have to show they are safer, but there will still be accidents, and when there are, who will take the blame? I foresee more work for lawyers in the Caroline Law new world – provided they too haven’t lost their jobs to algorithms by then Subscriptions: 0330-333 9494; subscriptions@theweek.co.uk The Week is licensed to The Week Limited by Dennis Publishing Limited The Week is a registered trademark of Felix Dennis According to the Brussels grapevine, Merkel was in line for a senior job in the EU However, she has indicated that she plans to leave politics altogether after quitting as chancellor Editor-in-chief: Jeremy O’Grady Editor: Caroline Law Executive editor: Theo Tait Deputy editor: Harry Nicolle City editor: Jane Lewis Editorial assistant: Asya Likhtman Contributing editors: Daniel Cohen, Charity Crewe, Thomas Hodgkinson, Simon Wilson, Rob McLuhan, Anthony Gardner, William Underhill, Digby Warde-Aldam, Tom Yarwood Editorial staff: Anoushka Petit, Tigger Ridgwell, William Skidelsky, Claudia Williams Picture editor: Xandie Nutting Art director: Nathalie Fowler Sub-editor: Laurie Tuffrey Production editor: Alanna O’Connell Founder and editorial director: Jolyon Connell Production Manager: Ebony Besagni Senior Production Executive: Maaya Mistry Newstrade Director: David Barker Direct Marketing Director: Abi Spooner Inserts: Joe Teal Classified: Henry Haselock, Henry Pickford, Rebecca Seetanah Account Directors: Scott Hayter, John Hipkiss, Jocelyn Sital-Singh, Chris Watters Digital Director: John Perry UK Advertsing Director: Caroline Fenner Executive Director – Head of Advertising: David Weeks Chief Executive, The Week: Kerin O’Connor Group CFO/COO: Brett Reynolds Chief executive: James Tye Dennis Publishing founder: Felix Dennis THE WEEK Ltd, a subsidiary of Dennis Publishing Ltd, 31-32 Alfred Place, London WC1E 7DP Tel: 020-3890 3890 Editorial: The Week Ltd, 2nd Floor, 32 Queensway, London W2 3RX Tel: 020-3890 3787 email: editorialadmin@theweek.co.uk November 2018 THE WEEK Politics NEWS Controversy of the week Brazil finds its Trump “Jair Bolsonaro is a right-wing Brazilian who holds repulsive views,” said The New York Times “He has said that if he had a homosexual son, he’d prefer him dead; that a female colleague in the parliament was too ugly to rape; that AfroBrazilians are lazy and fat; that global warming amounts to ‘greenhouse fables’.” A former army captain, he has frequently expressed his admiration for the military dictatorship that ran Brazil between 1964 and 1985 And last Sunday, he was elected president of the world’s fourth largest democracy, beating his leftist rival, Fernando Haddad of the Workers’ Party, by 55% to 45% Brazil is emerging from its worst-ever recession; a corruption scandal has engulfed much of its ruling class; and crime is sky-high, with 175 homicides per day Bolsonaro: is he a fascist? last year Bolsonaro, an evangelical Christian who “preaches a blend of social conservatism and economic liberalism”, has promised to clean out the stables “Sound familiar?” He is the latest in a line of populists who have ridden a wave of discontent and frustration all the way to the highest office Not surprisingly, he is often described as Brazil’s Trump Trump has nothing on Bolsonaro, who is probably “the most extremist elected leader in the world”, said Benjamin Fogel in The Independent He openly speaks of killing or banishing his political opponents, whom he depicts as “some sort of combination between the Sinaloa Cartel and Stalin’s Soviet Union” Bolsonaro regards torture as legitimate, and he has promised to give police “carte blanche to kill” (in a country where they already kill more than 5,000 people a year) In short, “fascism has arrived in Brazil” The election result also spells environmental disaster for the world at large, said Daphne Leprince-Ringuet on Wired Bolsonaro has threatened to pull out of the climate change accords He thinks that Brazil’s Forest Code – which limits the deforestation of the Amazon – is harming agriculture, and he has a personal vendetta against the agency that enforces it (he was once caught fishing illegally in a reserve and fined $2,700) The reservation of land for indigenous minorities is also under threat “Minorities,” he said recently, “have to bend down to the majority.” To his critics, Bolsonaro is a fascist, said the FT To many Brazilians, though, he “was simply the lesser evil at Sunday’s ballot box” The Workers’ Party was “unelectable”: it had presided over the “Car Wash” corruption scandal – for which its ex-leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was imprisoned – and economic meltdown Much of South America has recently swung to the right, without turning to dictatorship Brazil badly needs economic reform, and the markets are hopeful that Bolsonaro – who has appointed a respected liberal economist, Paulo Guedes, as his finance minister – may bring it If the new president discards his “gratuitously offensive election talk”, said The Times, and makes clear he will not bring back military rule, then “he can bring urgent and positive change” Spirit of the age The head of Southampton’s student union came under fire last week for vowing to take down a “mural of white men” in the university senate room, “even if I have to paint over it myself”, on Twitter Emily Dawes had apparently not realised that the mural, painted by Sir William Rothenstein in 1916, is a memorial to students killed in the First World War who were unable to complete their degrees She has since apologised British pet owners will spend £1.7bn this year on pets, and it is millennials who are fuelling the boom According to research group Mintel, more than half of 19- to 38year-olds say they’d rather cut back on spending on themselves than their pets; two out of five would spend as much on a Christmas gift for their pet as for a friend THE WEEK November 2018 Good week for: Ruth Davidson, who is celebrating the birth of a baby boy: Finn Paul Davidson, weighing in at 10lb 1.5oz The head of the Scottish Conservatives is the first British party leader to give birth while in office “Ruth did brilliantly,” said her fiancée, Jen Wilson, “and Finn clearly has his mother’s lungs on him” Slough, which has achieved the distinction of being judged the best town in Britain to work in – for the second year running Belying its undeserved reputation for dreariness (it was where the sitcom, The Office, was set) it came top in a survey of 25 towns compiled by job search website Glassdoor that, among other things, measured overall job satisfaction and ease of getting a job Equality, after the government announced that all roles in the British Armed Forces, including in the Royal Marines and the front-line infantry, will now be open to women Bad week for: Christmas glitter, after several big retailers, including John Lewis, Next and Paperchase, announced they’d be cutting back severely on its use on their Christmas items They are deglittering their stock due to concern for the environment: glitter contributes to the tide of microplastics polluting the world’s oceans; and glitter-covered products cannot be recycled Martin Amis, after a film of his classic novel London Fields, starring Amber Heard, had the second-worst opening weekend since records began The 613 US cinemas it was shown in made only £205 from ticket sales on average Critics described it as “aggressively awful”, among other jibes New civil service head Mark Sedwill, the UK National Security Adviser, has been appointed Cabinet Secretary and head of the civil service He replaces Sir Jeremy Heywood, who, owing to ill health, is stepping down from the role he held for six years Sedwill, a veteran of the Foreign Office, has worked closely with Theresa May since 2013, when she made him her permanent secretary at the Home Office As Cabinet Secretary, he will be her principal adviser His appointment is unusual in so far as every other cabinet secretary since WWII has had a background in the Treasury Fracking halted Fracking at the UK’s only active shale gas site was halted this week, following the largest earth tremor since work began two weeks ago The earthquake on Monday, which measured 1.1 on the Richter scale, prompted the firm Cuadrilla to halt work at the Lancashire site for 18 hours – the third such pause in four days The firm was forced to stop fracking entirely in 2011 following a series of tremors in the area; under its current licence, it must halt work in the event of a tremor of 0.5-magnitude or more None of the earthquakes so far have been powerful enough to be felt at ground level (see page 47) Poll watch 59% of Britons support the full legalisation of cannabis – up from 43% in May – while 31% oppose it 15% of people have used cannabis in the past year 76% would be willing to consume it if prescribed by a doctor Populus/The Independent 51% of UK adults sleep for six hours or fewer a night A mere 17% get the recommended eight hours Censuswide/The Times 43% of Britons think Islam is incompatible with Western liberal society 40% would be concerned if a family member married a Muslim and 43% would worry if a mosque were built in their neighbourhood 58% think Islamophobia is a problem in Britain; 47% believe the country is becoming less tolerant of Muslims ComRes/The Sunday Times Europe at a glance Oldenburg, Germany Hospital killings: At the opening of the trial of the most prolific serial killer in German history, the accused has admitted to the murder of 100 patients Niels Högel, 41, a former nurse, had already been jailed on six counts of murder and attempted murder, but has now confessed to further killings, prompting a new investigation Prosecutors at his latest trial say that in each case he administered a drug that caused cardiac arrest, and then tried to revive the patient, hoping to be seen as a hero – but in most cases he failed The victims’ ages ranged from 34 to 96, and investigators say he may have killed more than 200 people NEWS Venice, Italy Worst flooding for ten years: An exceptionally high tide, driven by ferocious winds, left three-quarters of Venice flooded on Monday, as the water level rose by more than five feet Even the raised walkways erected to deal with the emergency were submerged, and water reached the centre of St Mark’s Basilica for only the fifth time in its 900-year history The disaster has fuelled controversy over the Mose Project, a multibillion-euro system of underwater barriers designed to protect the city in extreme weather conditions: originally scheduled to open in 2014, but still unfinished, it has been dogged by rising costs and corruption “If ever there was one day it would have been useful, it was yesterday,” said Il Gazzettino newspaper High winds and heavy rain also wrought havoc in other parts of Italy, with 11 deaths reported In Rome, both the Forum and the Colosseum were closed on safety grounds Budapest University to emigrate: A university founded by George Soros, and regarded as one of the best in eastern Europe, says it will quit Budapest and move most of its teaching to Vienna if Viktor Orbán’s government refuses to recognise its right to exist Hungary’s ruling Fidesz Party, which regards the Budapest-born philanthropist as an enemy of the state, passed a law last year stating that a foreign university could operate in Hungary only if it had a campus in its own country, which the US-accredited Central European University did not Michael Ignatieff, the CEU’s president, says it has opened a campus in New York state, but is still threatened with closure A government spokesman said the threat to depart was “a Soros-style political ploy” Rome Citizens’ anger: Thousands of Romans protested outside city hall on Saturday over the dilapidated state of the Italian capital, and the failure of the Five Star Movement mayor, Virginia Raggi, to clean it up Under the slogan Roma dice basta (“Rome says enough”), residents showed their anger over potholed roads, uncollected rubbish and the wild boars spotted foraging in rubbish heaps across the city More than 20 buses have caught fire on Rome’s streets this year (pictured), largely as a result of inadequate maintenance, and last week an escalator sped out of control at a metro station, injuring 24 Russian football fans Istanbul, Turkey Khashoggi fallout: Turkey and Saudi Arabia were at loggerheads this week over the continuing investigation into Jamal Khashoggi’s murder Saudi Arabia’s most senior prosecutor, Saud al-Mojeb, visited the Istanbul consulate where the journalist is believed to have been killed, but was denied access to the full dossier of evidence compiled by the Turkish authorities The refusal was apparently designed to increase pressure on the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, who is suspected of authorising the murder: Turkey’s President Erdogan told reporters that it made “no sense to try to save certain people” The Saudi foreign minister, Adel al-Jubeir, said that the global outcry over Khashoggi’s death had become “hysterical” Khashoggi’s fiancée, Hatice Cengiz, has called on President Trump to ensure that justice is done and not to “pave the way for a cover-up” Dublin Green light for blasphemy: In a decisive 65% to 35% vote in last week’s referendum, Ireland has decided to abolish its constitutional ban on blasphemy (see page 21) The vote is the latest in a series of plebiscites that have approved major social changes, including gay marriage and abortion, in a society once known for its domination by the Catholic Church In a separate vote, Ireland re-elected its president, Michael D Higgins – only the second time a sitting president has been challenged for the largely ceremonial post The race was notable for the presence of three panellists from Ireland’s version of the TV show Dragons’ Den on the ballot paper One, Peter Casey, finished in second place He surged from 2% in opinion polls to take 23% of the vote after giving an interview slamming the status of Irish Travellers as an official ethnic minority, insisting they were just “basically people camping in someone else’s land” Paris Blow to Airbnb: A court in Paris has dealt a potentially devastating blow to the market for short-term holiday lets in Paris by evicting the long-term tenant of a flat in the French capital, and ordering her to pay her landlord all of the s46,000 she had earned over the past seven years by subletting it to tourists on Airbnb The flat’s owner took her tenant to court after seeing it listed, without her permission, on the site last year France is Airbnb’s biggest national market after the US and, like other world cities, Paris has taken steps to limit holiday rentals due to their impact on the housing market (pushing up prices for locals) and hotel industry Paris requires residents who let out their homes short term to register, and limits them to a maximum of 120 days of letting a year So far this year, the city authorities have issued s1.38m in fines for breaching the rules, an average fine of s12,000 Catch up with daily news at www.theweek.co.uk November 2018 THE WEEK NEWS The world at a glance Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Synagogue massacre: Eleven people were killed at Pittsburgh’s Tree of Life synagogue last Saturday, when a gunman stormed the building shouting “all Jews must die” It is believed to have been the deadliest antiSemitic attack ever perpetrated in the US; Pittsburgh’s mayor called it the “darkest day” in the city’s history The suspect, Robert Bowers, 46, was overpowered by police 20 minutes into his attack An avowed white supremacist, he is believed to have been behind a slew of anti-Semitic posts on Gab, a social media site used by white nationalists, one of which accuses Jews of bringing “evil Muslims” to the US President Trump condemned the attack, but was criticised for joking at a convention, hours later, that standing in the rain talking to journalists about the atrocity had left him with a “bad hair day” The massacre took place three days after a white man shot dead two black people in a supermarket in Kentucky, having first tried and failed to get into a predominantly African-American church near by “Whites don’t shoot whites,” Gregory Bush, 51, is reported to have said to a bystander, moments after he allegedly gunned down his victims Plantation, Florida Pipe bomb suspect: The bodybuilder suspected of sending crude pipe bombs to 13 of President Trump’s most prominent critics and political opponents appeared in court this week, to hear the charges against him If convicted, Cesar Sayoc, 56, faces up to 48 years in jail He is believed to have put 15 packages containing explosives into the mail and is reported to have had a list of 100 targets (see page 21) On his arrest in Plantation, Florida, he allegedly admitted sending the packages, but claimed the pipe bombs would never have gone off However, the director of the FBI, Christopher Wray, insisted that “these are not hoax devices” An obsessive Trump supporter, Sayoc was well known to the police, having been arrested several times on suspicion of a range of crimes, including grand theft and drug possession Menlo Park, California Google payoff: Google gave a $90m exit package to Andy Rubin, the creator of its operating system Android – while concealing the misconduct allegation that had led to him being asked to leave, The New York Times has reported According to the paper, an employee with whom Rubin had been having an affair accused him of putting pressure on her to perform a sex act on him in a hotel in 2013 Google investigated, found the accusations credible and asked for Rubin’s resignation; he left in 2014 Rubin has denied the claims Reportedly, he is one of two senior executives to have left the firm with large pay-offs after being accused of harassment In a memo to staff last week, Google insisted it was “dead serious” about workplace harassment and that it had fired 48 people for sexual harassment without giving them payouts Oaxaca state, Mexico Caravan still coming: With thousands of migrants still making their way up through southern Mexico, President Trump this week ordered that 5,200 troops be deployed to the US border Last week, he claimed, without evidence, on Twitter that there were “unknown Middle Easterners” in the caravan; on Monday, he tweeted that “Many Gang Members and some very bad people” were among the migrants and warned them that “our Military is waiting for you” Most members of the caravan are escaping brutal gang violence and grinding poverty in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador (see page 17) This week, as a second, smaller wave of migrants headed north, a Honduran man was killed during a violent confrontation with Mexican police on the Mexico-Guatemala border Bruceton Mills, West Virginia Gangster killed: The notorious Boston mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger was found dead this week in a prison in West Virginia Bulger, 89, who was serving a life term, was reported to have been killed by a fellow inmate with Mafia ties He’d only been transferred to the jail, in Bruceton Mills, a day earlier Born into an Irish-American family, Bulger was involved in crime from his teens and ended up running the powerful Winter Hill gang in the 1970s, while his activities were covered up by corrupt FBI agents On the run for 16 years, he was arrested in 2011, and convicted two years later of racketeering and of involvement in 11 murders THE WEEK November 2018 Buenos Aires Falklands claim: Argentina will take advantage of Brexit to push its claim for sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, the country’s foreign minister has said The islands are recognised as a British overseas territory under the EU’s 2009 Lisbon Treaty; this means that while the UK is in the EU, other members are obliged, by the bloc’s duty of sincere cooperation, to support its claim to the territory In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, Jorge Faurie said that, post-Brexit, Buenos Aires would ask for its claim to be recognised Italy and Spain are believed to be sympathetic to Argentina’s position Theresa May is due to hold talks with Argentina’s centre-right president, Mauricio Macri, at the G20 summit this month The world at a glance Karachi, Pakistan Taliban leader released: Officials in Pakistan have confirmed that they have released from prison a co-founder and former head of the Taliban, who was arrested in Karachi eight years ago following a joint US-Pakistani intelligence operation Quietly freed from jail last week, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar is now believed to be back in Afghanistan His release, along with that of two other imprisoned senior Taliban, is believed to be the outcome of the tentative dialogue currently under way between the Taliban and the US – and to reflect Pakistan’s efforts to retain influence over any moves towards peace US diplomats held a second round of talks at the Taliban’s political office in Qatar on 12 October At the time of his capture, Baradar had been interested in exploring peace negotiations Damascus Museum reopens: Syria’s National Museum, in the heart of Damascus, reopened last week, six years after its antiquities and artefacts were put into storage as a result of the encroaching civil war The reopening was hailed by Syrian officials as a landmark moment in the return to normal life in the capital It is “a genuine message that Syria is still here and her heritage will not be affected by terrorism,” said the Syrian culture minister Mohammad al-Ahmad Separately, the leaders of Russia, Turkey, France and Germany met in Istanbul to discuss a postwar constitution for Syria and the path to peace in Idlib, the last rebel-held province France’s President Macron praised the ceasefire negotiated by Russia and Turkey, but said that all sides must remain “vigilant” NEWS Colombo Return of Rajapaksa: Sri Lanka was plunged into crisis last Friday when the country’s president, Maithripala Sirisena, announced live on TV that he had dismissed the elected prime minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, and appointed in his place the “strongman” ruler who he himself replaced Mahinda Rajapaksa (pictured) was president of Sri Lanka from 2005 to 2015 His government was accused of corruption and human rights abuses, especially against the Tamil minority, and of forging excessively close ties to China This week both Wickremesinghe, 69, and Rajapaksa, 72, were insisting that they were the legitimate PM Rajapaksa was sworn in, took control of the PM’s office and began appointing a cabinet But Wickremesinghe continued to occupy his official residence, in Colombo, and on Tuesday, tens of thousands of his supporters gathered outside to protest against what some are calling a “constitutional coup” He argues he can only be dismissed if he loses the support of parliament; but Sirisena has suspended parliament until 16 November The speaker of the parliament has warned that if MPs are not able to resolve the issue swiftly, there will be a “bloodbath” on the streets Beijing New era for old foes? Japan’s PM, Shinzo Abe, received an unusually warm welcome when he made a rare trip to Beijing this week When he last met President Xi, in 2014, relations were decidedly frosty But this time, as the pair sealed trade deals worth $18bn, Abe pledged a “new era” for Japan and China, while Xi said that they must move together in a “new direction” at a time when “instability and uncertainties” are growing (interpreted as a reference to Donald Trump’s leadership) Addis Ababa Gender landmark: Ethiopian MPs have elected the country’s first female president The position is largely ceremonial, but carries symbolic weight and influence Sahle-Work Zewde, a 68-year-old diplomat who becomes Africa’s only female head of state, promised to work for greater gender equality A week earlier, the prime minister, Abiy Ahmed, had filled half his new cabinet with women On Twitter, his chief of staff said having a female head of state “normalises women as decision-makers in public life” Jakarta Deadly crash: A Boeing 737-Max passenger plane crashed into the sea shortly after take-off from the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, on Monday – killing all 189 people on board Lion Air flight JT610 had been airborne for 13 minutes when it plunged into the sea The pilot had asked to return to Jakarta airport before the disaster, suggesting a massive technical failure might have been the cause of the crash However, the single-aisle jet – Boeing’s bestselling commercial aircraft – was almost brand new: it had only been in operation since 15 August November 2018 THE WEEK People NEWS A groundbreaking kiss The first black actor to have won an Oscar, an Emmy and a Tony, Viola Davis has been in some 75 films – but it’s only now, at 53, that she has been given a lead role in a major movie, says Benjamin Lee in The Guardian An adaptation of Lynda La Plante’s 1983 miniseries, Steve McQueen’s Widows opens with her lying in bed, kissing her on-screen husband, Liam Neeson A married couple kissing is not remarkable, but for Davis, the scene is groundbreaking “This is something you’ll not see this year, last year, the year before that,” she says “That is, a dark-skinned woman of colour, at 53 years old, kissing Liam Neeson Not just kissing a white man,” she adds, “Liam Neeson, a hunk And kissing him sexually, romantically.” Widows is about the wives of a group of career criminals who continue their husbands’ work after the men are killed The cast is racially diverse, but their race is incidental – which, she says, is another thing that makes the film unusual “I always say that one thing missing in cinema is that regular black woman Not anyone didactic, or whose sole purpose in the narrative is to illustrate some social abnormality There’s no meaning behind it, other than she is just there.” Davis says she’d like to play the sort of roles Jane Fonda and Meryl Streep have been offered “I would love to have a black female Kramer, or Annie Hall But who’s gonna write it, who’s gonna produce it, who’s gonna see it, again and again and again?” Grisham’s racist past John Grisham is a Democrat and a liberal, but as the son of a Mississippi cotton farmer he was brought up to be a racist “It was terrible,” he told Jim White in The Mail on Sunday “Lynching was still common Through church, school and what was said at home, we were taught that the black man would always be kept in his place.” His school was the last in the US to desegregate: black children weren’t admitted until 1970 – and even then it was fiercely resisted “It was almost done at federal gunpoint: there was tremendous tension and violence I remember seeing black kids being bussed under armed guard All our lives we were taught this would never happen It had: suddenly and forcibly Yet I recall sitting in the locker room a few months later with the black guys on the football team thinking: ‘Why was this so difficult?’” Grisham, 63, can’t understand why some people are nostalgic for the South of that era: all he wanted to was to get away He practised law; then, to boost his income, he began writing Huge sellers, his books are plot-driven and fast-paced “With Ian McEwan or John le Carré, I’ll read a paragraph and think, that’s beautiful I’m so envious of writers who have such a command of language But I know I can’t match it.” Oddly, it was “bad writers who inspired me I thought: surely I can beat that.” Castaway of the week This week’s edition of Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs featured businesswoman and CEO of Ann Summers, Jacqueline Gold Girls Just Want to Have Fun by Robert Hazard, performed by Cyndi Lauper I Feel Love by Donna Summer, Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, performed by Donna Summer I Was Made for Lovin’ You by Paul Stanley, Vini Poncia and Desmond Child, performed by Kiss Tell It to My Heart by Seth Swirsky and Ernie Gold, performed by Taylor Dayne My Love Is Your Love by Wyclef Jean and Jerry Duplessis, performed by Whitney Houston Groovejet (If This Ain’t Love) by Cristiano Spiller, Sophie Ellis-Bextor and Rob Davis, performed by Spiller and Sophie Ellis-Bextor 7* Wishing on a Star by Billie Rae Calvin, performed by Rose Royce Uptown Funk! by Mark Ronson, Jeff Bhasker, Bruno Mars, Philip Lawrence, Devon Gallaspy and Nicholaus Williams, performed by Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars Book: The Secret by Rhonda Byrne Luxury: a feather pillow THE WEEK November 2018 * Choice if allowed only one record In his days as an international cricketer, Andrew “Freddie” Flintoff always seemed irrepressible, says Decca Aitkenhead in The Sunday Times In reality, he was a bulimic depressive who felt he was being idolised for qualities he didn’t have; even when England won The Ashes, he struggled with praise “It’s exhausting, because you’re trying to live up to this idea people have of you With cricket, that feeling of euphoria was always short-lived I found it all a bit embarrassing.” Alcohol provided an escape from the awkwardness he’d felt ever since his schooldays: teased at his comprehensive for liking cricket, he felt out of his depth playing with boys from posher backgrounds; picked by Lancashire while still an adolescent, he hated sharing a dressing room with grown men It was only when he made a documentary about sportsmen and their demons that he accepted that he had mental health problems of his own Flintoff, 40, now takes antidepressants and sees a therapist, but he never knows what will trigger his black mood “It can be just a word: it’s never anything big You know it’s happening and there’s very little you can It’s like the shutters are coming down: you see the world going on around you and you just can’t get involved Then people will come round and have the most trivial conversation – and I’ll think they’re geniuses, because I can’t get a thought in my head.” Viewpoint: No pianos please “The actor Mark Gatiss posted a video of someone playing music in public last week and remarked that pianos in railway stations – including St Pancras, Leeds and Dundee – are ‘such a simple, life-enhancing joy’ I’m afraid I can’t get on board with it Such performances are fundamentally attention-seeking, like extravagant public marriage proposals Worst of all, there’s the inherent whimsy of it all, making me feel I’m trapped inside a John Lewis Christmas advert Richard Curtis is the one I blame the most He popularised the idea that we uptight Brits have an inner performer aching to escape Can we please return to playing pianos in private?” Sathnam Sanghera in The Times Farewell Wanda Ferragamo, entrepreneur who grew her family shoe firm into a global brand, died 19 October, aged 96 Aubrey Manning, zoologist, lecturer and broadcaster who campaigned for human population control, died 20 October, aged 88 Alexander McLeish, RAF pilot who flew during WWII, died 26 August, aged 98 Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, businessman and owner of Leicester City FC, died 27 October, aged 60 It’s our big anniversary weekend You know we like a beach view Show me hotels on Messenger? Like 91% of consumers, Phil is more likely to shop with brands who remember him.* A conversation on Messenger means your business can be more personalised fb.me/messengerbusiness Say Hello to the Age of Conversation © 2018 Facebook, Inc The Messenger logo is a trademark of Facebook All Rights Reserved * “Making it Personal” by Accenture Interactive (survey of 8,000 consumers in CA, DE, ES, FR, GB, IT, SE and the US), Nov 2017 Briefing 10 NEWS Brexit: the choices we face Brexit, as Danny Dyer put it, is a mad riddle no one really understands; but there are four main models over which British politics is tearing itself apart If a deal can be made, it will be some variant of any of the first three If not, it’s no deal The clock is ticking 29 March 2019 That is the date – exactly two years after a letter was sent to European Council president Donald Tusk (right), notifying him of Britain’s intention to withdraw – on which the UK is set to leave the European Union The assumption has been that by that date, Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, would have negotiated a withdrawal agreement with the UK That would then need to be signed off by the European Parliament and a supermajority (72% of the 27 states) in the European Council (made up of the leaders of EU member states) negotiations on Britain’s future relationship with the EU could begin In December 2017, that point was reached: the first two issues were settled, and differences over the Northern Ireland issue were smoothed over when Britain accepted a compromise – the “backstop” (see box) This March, the two sides also agreed a transition period, running from March 2019 until the end of 2020, during which Britain’s relationship with the EU would remain effectively unchanged A withdrawal agreement would, however, only be the first step The EU has always insisted that three issues – the rights of British and EU citizens after Brexit; the UK’s “divorce bill” from Brussels; and the situation of Northern Ireland – had to be settled before Since then, progress has been painfully slow The Irish border remains a stubborn sticking point The only deal anywhere near the table – the Chequers plan – is unpopular in Westminster and in Brussels Every option, from staying in the EU to “no deal”, is still up for grabs Option The Norway model Option The Chequers plan What does it involve? This is the option that preserves the closest possible trading relationship with the EU without being part of its political union It’s modelled on the compromise Norway made in 1994 after its bitter referendum on EU membership, in which 52% voted “out” and 48% “in” So rather than join the EU, Norway remained a member memb of the newly created European Economic Area (EEA), (EEA and thereby of the EU’s single market but not its customs union (see box) It has left Norway free to decide its home affairs, farm and fisheries policies, and an to negotiate trade deals with non-EU nations Under Un this model, Britain would be able to sell most goods go and services to EU states without paying import impo taxes (tariffs) But it would have to conform to EU regulations re on goods and services, and to its four freedoms fr (on ( the he movement of goods, services, capital and people) What does it involve? A fudge concocted by May and agreed by her Cabinet on a hot Friday in July at the PM’s official country residence, the Chequers plan means going one step further than the Norway model It would end the free movement of EU citizens, and have Britain leave the EU customs union and the single market for services – but keep it in a single market for goods That would entail accepting Brussels’ rules and standards for all goods and agricultural products It would enable us to make our own trade deals with countries outside the EU, but to so, a complicated new customs system would be required: UK customs would apply domestic tariffs for goods intended for the UK, but charge EU tariffs for goods passing through Britain to the EU Pros and cons of the Norway option It carries the least risk of economic upheaval, giving us almost the same level of uninterrupted trade with the EU as today – notably in the crucial services sector But it would also mean the UK having to pay into the EU budget and accepting swathes of EU rules on which it had no say Like Norway, we’d also have to accept EU migration; the EEA agreement does allow some latitude in this area, but the extent is contested Besides, the Norway tag conceals two very different options Barnier has expressed support for “Norway plus”, which means “being part of the single market plus a customs union”: that would ensure frictionless EU borders, but would stop us from trading freely with the rest of the world Conversely, “Norway minus” – leaving the customs union – would mean trouble at the borders, particularly the Irish border Who supports this option? Not Theresa May, whose Lancaster House speech last year stated that the UK would leave the single market and the customs union Many Brexiteers dismiss it as “Brino” (Brexit in name only) But some veteran Eurosceptics support it, arguing that at least it offers a plan for freeing the UK from the EU; it has also been mooted as a temporary solution while a trade deal is concluded Whether Brussels or indeed the EEA would accept that is less clear THE WEEK November 2018 Pros and cons of Chequers It would give us some degree of independence, while preserving frictionless trade – a major concern for British business, from retailers importing fresh food, to car manufacturers who rely on the timely delivery of parts using supply chains that stretch across Europe But like “Norway”, it involves indefinitely accepting EU regulations – albeit only those covering goods – while having no say in Brussels The EU, for its part, has flatly rejected the plan: to accept a single market membership for goods, but not services, capital or people, it says, would undermine the single market and encourage EU members to “cherry pick” rights and obligations; it is all or nothing Barnier also thinks the customs bureaucracy involved would be “insane” Nor is he convinced it can achieve one of its main objectives – obviating ng the need for a hard border in Ireland Who supports it? “It’s not perfect, but business can work with this,” says the CBI, the UK voice of business But to Brussels and the Eurosceptic wing of the Tory party, it is unacceptable Boris Johnson, who along with David Davis resigned over the mili io for fo this plan, has called it “a moral and intellectual humiliation country” But if – a big if – Brussels were to agree to a version that didn’t involve too many further concessions, May might get it through Parliament with the backing of Labour rebels HIS STORY MADE HISTORY YOU CAN MAKE SURE IT WILL NEVER BE FORGOTTEN After 100 years, stories fade But they don’t have to We all have a lot to thank the First World War generation for and with our Thank You Leather Lapel Pin, their memories can last forever Get yours today at poppyshop.org.uk Registered charity number 219279 CITY Companies in the news and how they were assessed 47 WPP: decline and fall? Sir Martin Sorrell, the former boss of WPP, has called the ongoing meltdown at the ad conglomerate “a car crash in slow motion”, said The Observer After last week’s deep share slump, his successor, Mark Read, “could be forgiven for thinking it feels more like a train wreck” The City had been expecting to see revenue growth in the third quarter News of “a huge miss” wiped 14%, or almost £3bn, off shares, taking them “to their lowest level since 2012” WPP has now formally “lost its mantle” as the world’s most valuable advertising group to its US rival Omnicom “Signs of trouble were evident long before Read took over.” But with eight major account losses recently – including Ford – “WPP has to stop the contagion spreading” New bosses often “throw out the bad stuff before properly getting their feet under the table”, said Jon Yeomans in The Daily Telegraph And Read (pictured) has done just that But the City has been underestimating “the extent to which WPP’s model is broken” Under the system pioneered by Sorrell, “it had two bites of the cherry”: it took money off clients for creating their ads and then charged them again for placing them But the media-buying side of the business has “slumped” as clients go direct to the likes of Facebook and Google “Read has his work cut out halting the decline, let alone turning the tanker around.” Deutsche Bank/Commerzbank: merger rumours Germany’s two biggest lenders have been holding on-off talks about a tie-up for at least two years Given the continued disarray at Deutsche Bank – scarily, still the biggest holder of derivatives worldwide – is that now becoming inevitable? Disappointing results last week, in which shares in the once mighty eurozone bank crashed to a new “record low”, certainly “add urgency to a potential merger”, said Steven Arons on Bloomberg Indeed, six months into his mission to turn the bank around within a year, CEO Christian Sewing “was forced to plead with investors for patience”, said Stephen Morris in the Financial Times He showed less restraint to members of his own team, upbraiding top managers for using the tie-up rumour as “an excuse” for failure When one manager said the stories were affecting morale and business, Sewing lost his temper and replied: “Bullshit, bullshit.” Speculation about a merger gained ground when the US private equity group Cerberus revealed minority stakes in both Deutsche and Commerzbank, and was then hired as an adviser by Sewing But for now, Sewing is playing it down, arguing that it makes no sense to think about a deal “until Deutsche had its shop in order” Dyson: Singapore sling Sir James Dyson has been slammed “for refusing to put his money where his mouth is”, said Ravender Sembhy in the Daily Mirror The “Brexit-backing” entrepreneur has decided to build Dyson’s new electric car factory in Singapore, ending hopes it would create more jobs in the UK As one Labour MP observed: “It’s hardly a vote of confidence in global Britain” when “even someone who claims there will be a resurgence in British manufacturing after Brexit” decides to sling their hook Singapore has four big advantages for Dyson over Britain, said Jeremy Warner in The Sunday Telegraph: he already has production facilities there; it’s low tax and tariff-free; it’s close to supply chains; and, “most important of all”, it’s near the firm’s biggest markets “Mass shipping of vehicles all the way from Britain to Southeast Asia and China is unlikely to be economic.” In commercial terms, there’s no contest “I’m no apologist for Dyson”, but he is a businessman; “if ‘Global Britain’ means anything, it means behaving like one” Cuadrilla: tremors In 2011, the energy company Cuadrilla was forced to stop fracking for shale gas in Lancashire “after a series of tremors measuring up to 2.3 on the Richter scale”, said Peter Campbell in the FT Now, after a seven-year hiatus, its attempts to “revolutionise” Britain’s energy supplies may be stalling again Cuadrilla had to halt its operations near Blackpool last week after registering two tremors “undetectable at ground level”, but greater than the 0.5-magnitude quake that requires companies to stop fracking Having pledged to resume as soon as possible, a third, larger tremor on Monday has put another spanner in the works, said Adam Vaughan in The Guardian Since Cuadrilla began fracking a fortnight ago, “a total of 27 minor earthquakes” have occurred near the site The “stop-start” nature of operations is hitting Cuadrilla financially – every day of delay costs the company £94,000 Music to the ears of environmental protesters, no doubt Seven days in the Square Mile Further steep falls in global markets reignited fears that the long bull market may have come to a halt Wall Street led the moves downwards, as Amazon and Google shares were both clobbered when the companies undershot analyst forecasts The Nasdaq tech index overall is set for its worst monthly loss since November 2008 Traders blamed a confluence of factors, from higher interest rates to trade conflicts and fears of a further downward lurch in the Chinese economy But many professed to be mystified as to the “smoking gun” behind the sell-off The “Faang” tech stocks rallied on Wednesday, buoyed by strong results from Facebook and a broader Wall Street rally Chancellor Philip Hammond delivered the last Budget before Brexit, signalling a retreat from austerity with giveaways including personal tax cuts – helped by a £13bn windfall from higher-thanexpected tax receipts Brazil’s Bovespa stock index reached a record high following the election of the far-right politician Jair Bolsonaro as president Sports Direct‘s Mike Ashley bought Evans Cycles out of administration and is set to close dozens of stores amid fears of big job losses The finance boss of Patisserie Valerie, Chris Marsh, resigned in the wake of a discovery of a black hole in its accounts The bakery chain faces calls for a boardroom clean-out and potential buyers are circling The Swiss bank UBS reported that the world’s richest people made more money in 2017 than in any year in history; British billionaires saw their wealth grow by a quarter Indigestible? It’s a tough time for “casual dining” on the high street, says John-Paul Ford Rojas on Sky News But some still have big appetites The Restaurant Group (TRG) – which already owns Frankie & Benny’s and Chiquito – has pitched in to buy the Asian food chain Wagamama in a £559m deal, much of it financed by debt TRG reckons the move will prove “transformative”, but its takeover of Wagamama, which has nearly 200 outlets, appears to have given investors dyspepsia: shares fell 17% In recent years, TRG has been in such dire straits that it was issuing profit warnings and closing outlets The fear now is that it may have bitten off more than it can chew November 2018 THE WEEK Wines to get you in the festive spirit Everybody knows by now that the UK is blessed with a plethora of international options when it comes to the world of wine Only recently, I was recommending Chardonnay from Western India, not to mention superb pudding wines that are coming from places as far part as Sweden and Canada However, it is well to remember what treasures are still to be drunk from the tried and tested locations in Europe and the New World his selection of half-a-dozen wines from Lea & Sandeman comes solely from France and New Zealand – and there is an abundance of exciting bottles here Bordeaux has had to focus more on quality in recent years and it is a joy to be reminded of how satisfying a straightforward classical wine can be from that great region And, of course, in the 19th century, the Fronsac region of Bordeaux was more famous than other right bank wines such as St Emilion and Pomerol In the 21st century, may I suggest that we stop calling wines from the Antipodes “New World”? hese wines have been produced there for nearly two centuries When it comes to Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, New Zealand ofers amazing value Indeed, future vintages will only improve as the vines planted in the past couple of decades mature Enjoy Bruce Palling Wine Editor — he Week Wines from just £10.25 per bottle Canterbury Pinot Noir The Château Beaumont Les Rippon Sauvignon Blanc Crater Rim, Canterbury New Pierrières 2017 Blaye, Bordeaux Central Otago, New Zealand £11.95 Zealand 13.5% Gone are the 14% Blaye used to distil most of £10.25 14% 2016 This is not a wine I days when New Zealand Pinot its white grapes into Cognac, £14.95 have come across before but I £19.95 £12.90 tasted like computer copies of but there are still a couple of was seriously impressed with £16.90 Burgundy Located just outside hundred hectares that still its purity and intensity Christchurch, the grapes for make dry white wine, Winemaker Nick Mills spent this wine come from Waipara predominantly from Sauvignon some time working with and spend time in French Blanc with a splash of Semillon leading Burgundy producers barrels and are bottled without grapes This deliciously fresh and has made his wine 100% fining or filtration This has wine comes from a five-acre biodynamic which also means remarkable depth with a pleasant plot and is remarkably cheap because no pesticides or herbicides There is the mushroom undertow with elements of the vintner cleverly uses barrels distinctive grapefruit taste of a New bacon and dark cherry — in other destined for his red wine, which is Zealand Sauvignon Blanc but the extra words, a classically earthy Pinot that is bottled slightly later A perfect balance and minerality makes this stand seriously savoury introduction to the much-neglected dry out from the crowd Very high score white wine of Bordeaux from www.JancisRobinson.com Château Poitevin cru Bourgeois Médoc 2012 13% Located right at Château Carlmagnus, Fronsac Viré Clessé Quintaine £17.95 the northern tip of the Médoc, 2011 14% I have always been a Domaine Émilian Gillet £15 this Claret has all of the big fan of Fronsac, the Burgundy 2015 14% This £19.95 £22.50 characteristics that you’d hope to relatively unknown neighbour classification, originally part of £16.90 £18.90 find in straightforward wellof Right Bank classics such as Macon, is a mere 20 years old made Bordeaux This vineyard Saint Emilion and Pomerol I but the vines themselves are has been run by the same family have fond memories of cases considerably older These are since its creation in the Fifties purchased for £50 in the bright, full-bodied white and consists of 100 acres on the Nineties, which still give Burgundies that punch gravelly banks of the Gironde pleasure two decades later considerably above their River Predominantly Cabernet More robust than its weight with their heady Sauvignon, with additional Merlot and neighbours, it is a 100% Merlot wine honeyed flavour of pale stone fruits Cabernet Franc, it’s well rounded and with broad shoulders, which is why it Now under the control of Gautier harmonious without needing further excels in this relatively light vintage Thénevet, his father Jean was perhaps bottle age If you have neglected elsewhere in Bordeaux The perfect the most famous producer of these Bordeaux in favour of more exotic complement for any game birds or compelling wines, which are ready for destinations, this might be the wine to stews, it is a lively and great value consumption now but would happily remind you of what you are missing addition to any cellar keep for five years or so Order online at TheWeekWines.com/november INCLUDES FREE DELIVERY or call Lea & Sandeman direct on 020-7244 0522 and quote “The Week” Your details WINE Mixed Case Name Address Postcode Phone no Email Safe place to leave if out: n Please charge my debit/credit card: CARD NUMBER CVV NUMBER EXPIRY DATE Mixed Reds £179.20 £32.20 Mixed Whites £184.20 £33.40 2016 RIPPON Sauvignon Blanc £202.80 £36.60 2015 VIRÉ CLESSÉ Quintaine Domaine Émilian £226.80 £43.20 2017 CHÂTEAU BEAUMONT LES PIERRIÈRES Blaye £123.00 £20.40 £202.80 £36.60 2011 CHÂTEAU CARLMAGNUS Fronsac Payment method n Visa n MasterCard The Week price Saving £181.70 £32.80 2015 CANTERBURY Pinot Noir The Crater Rim £154.80 £24.60 2012 CHÂTEAU POITEVIN Cru Bourgeois Médoc £180.00 £35.40 Signature Date Alternatively, post your completed order form to Lea & Sandeman, 170 Fulham Road, London SW10 9PR THE WEEK Terms and conditions: Free delivery to UK mainland (below Perth) — does not include N.I., Scottish Isles or Isle of Wight Payment can be made by credit or debit card over the phone, online or by post All orders are subject to availability of stock For full terms and conditions, including Lea & Sandeman’s returns policy, please visit leaandsandeman.co.uk/content/terms.html Phone lines are open Monday to Saturday 10am - 8.00pm In partnership with Talking points CITY 49 Issue of the week: taxing times for tech giants The Chancellor’s decision to go after Big Tech is a high-risk gamble “I’m already looking forward to my call from the former leader of the Liberal Democrats,” joked the Chancellor as he whacked the likes of Facebook, Google and Amazon with a new “digital services” tax this week The discomfort caused to Nick Clegg – the “prefect-like British politician turned Facebook PR guy” – is “just a side benefit” of a much-needed crackdown, said Lex in the FT “Tech companies have been ingenious tax avoiders”, contributing “little financially” to many of the societies upon whose wealth and stability they depend Facebook paid only £7.4m in UK corporation tax last year after making a record £1.3bn in British sales; Amazon’s main UK subsidiary paid a mere £1.7m “Public anger is running high” and Philip Hammond is right to address it The question, though, is whether he has come up with “the wrong fix to the right problem” The measure proposed – a 2% charge on UK revenues – certainly won’t have the tech titans “trembling in fear”, said Nils Pratley in The Guardian For them, the total £400m that Hammond says the tax will raise annually “is a relative trifle” But they will be irritated by the UK’s “go-it-alone” approach Hammond has demonstrated that new digital taxes “can be invented unilaterally” – that “countries not have to wait for international agreement” – and “he deserves credit for finally taking the plunge” The EU’s equivalent proposal of a 3% tax on revenues is “currently bogged down in internal bickering and worries about a backlash from the US” If the Chancellor gets his way, Britain’s new tax will be up and running from 2020 “The companies cannot complain in good faith.” When tackled on tax they “usually bleat” that if politicians want a different system they should change the law “Now a UK Chancellor is proposing exactly such a reform.” Taxing revenues rather than profits “breaks new ground”, but the tech giants have brought this on themselves with their arrogant “lack of transparency of where profits are truly created” Hammond has stressed that “the best way to deal with this problem would be an international agreement on global rules”, said The Times But his announcement this week is “a high-stakes gamble that a direct assault on a US industry is the way to bring about necessary reform” It’s certainly questionable whether unilateral action by Britain “will encourage Washington to reach a deal” President Trump “may decide to retaliate against what he regards as an assault on his own tax base”, particularly if others follow suit (Spain, Italy, India, Mexico and South Korea are also considering going it alone) Hammond is bold to grasp the nettle on digital tax reform, but the clear danger is that “a free-for-all” could lead to “further fragmentation of the global economy” – and “another defeat for the global rules-based system” The Budget: the main points Philip Hammond used the biggest giveaway budget since 2010 to cut taxes and boost spending Here are the key points Personal tax boost Business matters The centrepiece of the Budget was a Hammond also “rejected calls to scrap surprise £3bn “income tax giveaway”, said entrepreneurs’ tax relief”, said the FT But Patrick Collinson in The Guardian Sadly, he has tightened the rules on companies that it will “leave low earners with little or no can qualify, and taken steps to “crack down gain” The Chancellor has brought forward on abuses” Some in the City expressed an existing pledge to increase the tax-free relief that Hammond’s move to ditch personal allowance to £12,500 and to raise further use of the discredited private finance the 40p higher-rate threshold to £50,000 initiative for government projects won’t He claims to have given 32 million people cover current projects About 2.4 million a tax cut, and to have taken 1.7 million workers will benefit from a rise in the Britons out of tax altogether since 2015 national living wage And there is to be a But the rises in personal allowances only new levy on non-recycled plastic packaging really “translate into significant tax cuts Hammond: income tax surprise further up the income scale” For someone On the high street on £12,500, the increase is worth £130 For those on £50,000, it There was some succour for the beleaguered high street, said is worth £860 a year – reduced to £520, once changes to national Christopher Hope in The Daily Telegraph: all retailers in England insurance are taken into account with a rateable value of £51,000 or less “will see their business rates bills fall by a third” According to the Treasury, this could Pension tax reliefs mean an annual saving of £8,000 “for as many as 90% of all “The wealthy will breathe a collective sigh of relief after this independent shops, pubs, restaurants and cafés” The Chancellor Budget,” said Claer Barrett in the FT The words many dreaded has also set aside £675m to create a “future high streets fund” – “pensions taxation” – were never mentioned, and the existing that councils can access An extra £420m is being made available pension savings thresholds (the amount that can be saved into to tackle potholes a pension before tax charges apply) were left untouched The lifetime allowance will rise from £1.03m to £1.055m from Any other business? next April Experts said the reprieve was likely to be temporary “Feel-good Phil” froze duties on most alcoholic drinks People with unused pensions relief from previous years should (champagne and wine were exceptions) “so we could all “endeavour to use the chance to catch up on contributions if celebrate” the end of austerity, said Lindsay Cook in the FT it is affordable”, said Christine Ross of Handelsbanken Wealth With Christmas approaching, he’s also allowing anyone to buy Management “Both the level of annual allowance and the rate Premium Bonds – “the country’s favourite form of gambling” – as of tax relief could change in the future.” gifts for children: at present, only parents and grandparents can November 2018 THE WEEK 50 CITY A disastrous tax on highend property Alex Brummer Daily Mail A glimmer of Brexit cheer in the City Katherine Griffiths The Times The fight for survival at Debenhams Larry Elliott The Guardian America’s “big man” in Africa Editorial The Economist THE WEEK November 2018 Commentators Among the more telling stats to emerge from Philip Hammond’s “feel-good” Budget were those showing that the 2014 hike in housing stamp duty has been an “unmitigated disaster”, says Alex Brummer The move to tap sales of Britain’s most expensive houses, introduced by Hammond’s predecessor George Osborne, has signally failed to raise the expected revenues: income from the tax is forecast to fall by about a billion, to £12.8bn, this year, and “to decline in each of the next five” Worse, this “prohibitively expensive tax” (which starts at an “eye-watering” 10% on sales of more than £937,000) has created “a huge blockage” in the market, preventing the country’s “strivers” from climbing the ladder The Osborne hike “flies in the face of a basic economic truth”: that “when marginal tax rates are too high, revenues will subside” Yet the Government is too scared to lower it for fear of being painted by Labour as the party of the rich Hammond should “stand up to the left-wing bullies” and abolish it – “before it does even more damage to the nation’s prosperity” If Britain crashes out of Brexit talks without a deal, the impact on the City will be particularly pronounced, says Katherine Griffiths Britain is by far and away the world’s “biggest net exporter of financial services”, exporting $88bn annually, compared with only $47bn for our nearest competitor, the US Fortunately, there is growing optimism that a services deal could be “on the horizon” Certainly, progress is being made British technocrats meeting their opposite numbers in Brussels a month ago reported that, despite “frosty” relations, at least “no one was cutting off dialogue about a financial services deal” The hope is that one could be put in place once the post-Brexit transition period ends in December 2020 “Some bankers take a negative view of what could be on the table”: there are still big concerns around the knotty issues of “clearing” and “equivalence” But these are not insurmountable given the political will to tackle them The PM maintains that Brexit negotiations are 95% there “As ever, the remaining slice contains some of the chewiest issues, but, for the City, after months of darkness, there are chinks of light.” “Conditions on the high street could hardly be tougher,” says Larry Elliott in The Guardian And Debenhams, which has been slow to adjust to the “bracing” new climate, has admitted that it is “battling to survive” Almost a third of the department chain’s stores are being axed, and landlords are being asked to reduce rents for those that remain The markets seem to approve of the decision “to throw the kitchen sink at things”; but a 75% fall in the share price over the past year “suggests investors think it is touch-and-go whether the company will survive” On the plus side, the chances of negotiating lower rents look good With “plenty of empty units on high streets already”, landlords have a choice: reduce rents or risk having empty premises on their hands But drastic cost-cutting alone won’t save Debenhams There is speculation that Sports Direct’s Mike Ashley might launch a takeover bid to merge the chain with his newly acquired House of Fraser For now, what’s needed is “a solid plan” This emergency package of measures “buys time” – but not all that much Donald Trump has “never set foot in Africa” and has seldom been polite about the continent either – once allegedly dismissing African states as “shitholes”, says The Economist That doesn’t appear to have stopped Africans embracing him According to a 25-nation survey by the pollster Pew, some 59% of Nigerians and 56% of Kenyans rate Trump as “a positive influence on world affairs” – way above the global median Pew speculates that Africans like Trump because they like America per se: US hip-hop, films and fast-food joints are very popular But there may be something about his style that appeals too “Trump’s boasts about his wealth, power and brains” grate less “on a continent that is used to bombastic presidents” And in Kenya – where people favour “an American-led world to one dominated by China by a ratio of two to one” – many praise the US president for being “tough enough” to stand up to Beijing Trump has been sounding more “conciliatory” about Africa of late But even when’s he not, many Africans prefer his “usual blunt talk” to “the insincere flattery of other Western leaders” City profiles Elon Musk Things are finally “looking up for Elon and his friends”, said Engadget.com Despite a series of “very public” gaffes and scandals at Tesla – mostly springing from the antics of its erratic founder – the electric carmaker has blown away expectations with a $312m quarterly profit (only the third in its history) Shares have bounced back strongly, trouncing the shortsellers betting on Tesla’s demise Musk himself might have “spun out of control”, but sales of the Model have been motoring, said The Guardian Having been stripped of the chairmanship by regulators, Musk, 47, has announced he no longer has a job title “I’m now the Nothing of Tesla,” he noted in a tweet He paid tribute to the firm’s unusually devoted customer base, whose loyalty, he said, “chokes me up, actually” Philip Jansen BT’s last boss was shown the door after losing the confidence of investors On first impressions, they don’t seem too keen on the new guy either, said The Daily Telegraph News of the appointment of Worldpay’s Philip Jansen was met with a 4% share fall Jansen, 51, arrives at a sticky time for BT, which is under pressure to hive off its unpopular Openreach infrastructure arm And he’s already under fire for his past membership of a “notorious” tax avoidance scheme, Ingenious Film Partners Clearly Jansen, who made a killing selling Worldpay to America’s Vantiv for £9.3bn, “is a sucker for punishment”, said Alistair Osborne in The Times After his “Worldpayday”, he certainly “doesn’t need to work again” Yet he has “signed up for one of the trickiest jobs in Britain” Shares CITY 53 Who’s tipping what The week’s best shares B&M European Value Retail Shares The “variety” discount chain has snapped up France’s Babou Stores – a useful way to grow its proven profitable model across the Channel Numis Securities names a 475p price target Buy 391.2p Carnival The Daily Telegraph This well-run cruise giant is benefiting from favourable demographic trends and cost advantages It’s immune to “Amazon-style attack” and has growing profits Yields 3.3% Buy £42.12 Gear4Music The Mail on Sunday The online musical instruments and equipment specialist is expanding into Europe and beyond, with 20 websites in 15 languages If it fulfils its huge potential, profits should rebound Buy 552p Informa Investors Chronicle A potentially transformative merger with UBM has boosted the publisher’s exposure to events, while £50m of “synergies” should boost margins Two “worldrenowned” academic publishing brands are another plus Buy 732.8p Zytronic The Daily Telegraph The profit warning for the touchscreen maker is an “unwelcome surprise” But it has skilled managers, a strong competitive position and “undimmed” potential, while yielding 6% Buy 385p Next 6,000 Chairman buys 5,571 5,750 5,500 5,250 May Jun Lloyds Banking Group The Times Although Lloyds has resolved the big problems of the past decade, it faces “huge headwind” from the final stages of Brexit negotiations Highly cash-generative, but with limited ways to boost growth Avoid 57.72p Aug Sep Oct Next is fighting back against rapid structural change in the retail industry The clothing and homewares retailer has reported a 1% profits rise, prompting Michael Roney, the chairman, to top up his stake with a £300,000 investment …and some to hold, avoid or sell Facebook The Times Shares in the social media group are priced to full potential Yet an executive exodus, privacy issues and a likely hit to revenues from stagnating user numbers spell trouble ahead Sell $154.39 Jul Form guide Mediclinic International The Daily Telegraph Disappointing patient numbers and a change to the Swiss regulatory regime have squeezed the private hospital group’s margins Trading remains mixed in South Africa and “quiet” in the Middle East Sell 371.1p Pendragon Investors Chronicle The motor retailer’s shares have fallen heavily on a profit warning Disruption to new car sales continues to blight the sector, and investment in the used-car business will hit profitability Sell 24p Metro Bank Investors Chronicle The challenger bank hasn’t grown as fast as forecast, and net interest margins have contracted as competition in the mortgage market increases The return on equity target looks unachievable Sell £22.58 Stobart Group The Times Stobart has some good businesses in the energy, aviation and rail sectors, as well as civil engineering But as long as “civil war” rages in the boardroom, it is “impossible to back” Avoid 218p Shares tipped 12 weeks ago Best tip BP The Mail on Sunday up 2.15% to 564.9p Worst tip Xaar The Daily Telegraph down 40.8% to 148p Market view “The stock market is now taking a little pause.” US President Donald Trump dismisses fears that we are now in a rolling bear market Quoted on Dealbreaker.com Market summary Key numbers numbers for investors Key investors FTSE 100 FTSE All-share UK Dow Jones NASDAQ Nikkei 225 Hang Seng Gold Brent Crude Oil DIVIDEND YIELD (FTSE 100) UK 10-year gilts yield US 10-year Treasuries UK ECONOMIC DATA Latest CPI (yoy) Latest RPI (yoy) Halifax house price (yoy) £1 STERLING 30 Oct 2018 7035.85 3854.68 24620.83 7113.30 21457.29 24585.53 1230.80 76.07 4.31% 1.25 3.10 2.4% (Sep) 3.3% (Sep) +2.5% (Sep) $1.274 E1.123 ¥144.130 Best shares Best and and worst performing shares Week before 6955.21 3809.97 24818.61 7307.69 22010.78 25346.55 1222.30 76.13 4.36% 1.33 3.12 2.7% (Aug) 3.5% (Aug) +3.7% (Aug) Change (%) 1.16% 1.17% –0.80% –2.66% –2.51% –3.00% 0.70% –0.08% WEEK’S CHANGE, FTSE 100 STOCKS RISES Price % change 2293.00 +9.66 CRH 840.60 +8.77 Ocado Group 307.60 +7.59 Rentokil Initial 933.50 +7.24 GVC Holdings 6680.00 +7.14 Paddy Power Betfair FALLS WPP Fresnillo Micro Focus Intl Randgold Resources BAE Systems Following the Footsie 7,900 7,800 7,700 7,600 7,500 7,400 879.80 867.60 1190.00 6144.00 508.00 –15.53 –11.22 –9.61 –5.97 –5.26 BEST AND WORST UK STOCKS OVERALL 12.75 +70.00 Tomco Energy 4.40 –80.00 Amer Group Holding Source: Datastream (not adjusted for dividends) Prices on 30 Oct (pm) 7,300 7,200 7,100 7,000 6,900 May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct 6-month movement in the FTSE 100 index November 2018 THE WEEK SOURCE: INVESTORS CHRONICLE Bloomsbury Investors Chronicle A spate of grown-up bestsellers has boosted revenues at the publisher, which normally relies on the enduring popularity of the Harry Potter books for momentum With Christmas ahead, the outlook’s good Buy 200p Directors’ dealings The Week Society is our way of saying thank you to our readers By registering online, you’ll get instant access to our hand-picked offers, events and 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order Terms & Conditions: Prices quoted not include delivery, discounted prices are valid until 31st December 2018 UK standard delivery: £2.99 or FREE on orders over £20 Visit www.theweek.co.uk/bookshop for more information The last word 56 How to bag a billionaire After years of searching, Anna Bey has found her perfect banker boyfriend Now, from her flat in Knightsbridge, she’s offering advice to other women who want to give up their mundane jobs and join the jet set Julia Llewellyn Smith went to meet her Self-styled JetsetBabe Anna Bey and I are sitting in the bar of the Connaught hotel in Mayfair, sipping glasses of Mâcon-Verzé chardonnay, which she – fresh from a wine-tasting course in Burgundy – has selected and is, very importantly, holding by the stem, as she describes some of her past exploits to me “So there was one time when I was partying with Paris Hilton on a billionaire’s private yacht – that was supercool,” she recalls “Or another time I was dating an extremely rich guy, travelling with him everywhere It was like being in a movie: there were always bodyguards; he’d give you cash in a bag and say, ‘Hey, go shopping’.” out with were so tight-lipped No one wanted to share their secrets.” Well, I say, those girls were her competitors “True,” Bey agrees “We are talking about many women fighting for 1% of all the men in the world If you look at the Forbes list of billionaires, almost all of them are married The chances of marrying one are very small.” To help these modern-day Becky Sharps avoid her mistakes, Bey has launched her School of Affluence, an “online finishing school for classy women”, with video tutorials on subjects such as how to behave on a yacht (you’ll have to take off your shoes, so plan your outfit accordingly), how to eat an oyster (no forks!) and how to dress (think Grace Kelly, not Kim Kardashian) “To succeed in the jet-set world you have to have elegance, but that came later for me,” Bey says “In the beginning, I wouldn’t say I was behaving trashily, but I could have been more refined I was using bad language I could be a bit aggressive I used to get drunk – that’s not classy I had to figure it out and I’ve always said I wished I had someone like me to help, because my journey would have gone so much faster But the other girls I was hanging THE WEEK November 2018 In Bey’s closed JetsetBabe group on Facebook, the 3,000-strong community mull over the pros and cons of JSB life, asking, “Is anyone going to be in Monaco next week?”, debating whether it’s a bad idea to confess to a potential sugar daddy who’s asked you skiing that you hate the sport, and the merits of Russian men “So many women say thank you for creating this community where they can discuss wanting the luxury life, because normally they don’t dare,” says Bey “People judge us They say it’s just a gold-diggers’ club, but it’s not They’ll say, ‘You’re an escort,’ ‘You’re a whore’ – I know, I’ve been called all those things.” In accordance with her “Dress Classy” principles, tonight Bey is wearing a black Roland Mouret top, flared black Zara trousers © THE TIMES MAGAZINE/NEWS LICENSING Since 2012, Bey’s been writing a surprisingly thoughtful blog, JetsetBabe.com, which features profiles of JetsetBabe (JSB) heroines These are mainly Russian women from humble backgrounds, who’ve married into the world of the super-rich, such as Elena Perminova, 32, from small-town Siberia, who Sweet, smiley, glamorous but not was 16 when she met her remotely brassy, Bey is 32 and billionaire husband, 58-year-old from a middle-class Swedish London Evening Standard owner family But today, she inhabits Alexander Lebedev, after he a flat “just beside Harrods”, helped get her released from the rent paid by her Lebanese jail, where she’d landed after banker boyfriend, who is her dodgy boyfriend used her as based in Geneva “I thought a drugs mule It’s illustrated by Knightsbridge would be a perfect aspirational shots filched from Bey: “I wished I had someone like me to help navigate the jetset” place to live,” she sighs in her Instagram of these women softly accented English “But actually it’s so touristy There are all breakfasting on hotel balconies in white bathrobes and drinking these Arabs driving their supercars making so much noise.” Bey’s champagne in Jacuzzis in the Hotel du Cap-Eden-Roc boyfriend’s support is allowing her to pursue what she believes is her mission in life – to help other women who are seeking, just as Women in mundane jobs, with what Bey calls “average Joe” she used to, “an affluent life”; the goal being to ditch the nine-toboyfriends, scroll through such images (the blog is especially five for a lifestyle of having their sunglasses polished by the crew popular with African-American women) and #DreamBig, but of a yacht moored at Porto Cervo, shopping in Dubai and seeing among established JSBs they can spark gossip about who is in the new year in Tulum “Rich paying for the Rolls-Royce men offer a fast track to having and the Céline bags “Everyone “I always say it’s like a video game: you one speculates, ‘How did she get an affluent life,” Bey says “It’s easy to think they can solve all level, which is dating a millionaire, then you that watch – was it from a your problems and there’s guy?’” Bey says “I always say it’s move on to the next – a multimillionaire” nothing wrong with wanting like a video game; you become that But there are some very obsessive about acquiring the nasty, evil people in the rich world It took me a while to navigate next thing You one level, which is dating a millionaire, then it and to be fine in it I want my girls to be clever about how you you move on to the next – a multimillionaire Then you want a position yourself, because that will become your protection.” billionaire It’s exhausting and never-ending.” The last word that elongate her legs, a white Chanel jacket and Louboutin stilettos I apologise for my muddy trainers “Don’t worry!” she reassures me “So many rich Arabs now wear sneakers.” She has thick blonde hair (“Of course I have extensions”), high Slavic cheekbones and luscious lips They’re natural, and her make-up is subtle – “Rich men don’t like a lot of makeup” – but she’s had a nose job and has regular Botox and fillers in her cheeks Later, she sends me photos of herself before her “transformation” – a key part of the JSB Cinderella ethos – where she’s pretty, but less groomed, slightly chubbier of face and frizzier of hair “I’m totally pro plastic surgery, if it’s going to improve your life quality, which it might It can help you attract a higher-quality partner JetsetBabe is all about ‘fake it until you make it’.” 57 I felt so scared and lost And there were other dark moments People are mean to you; they think you’re a prostitute and try to buy sex from you They treat you like garbage.” Many of her boyfriends were unfaithful “I’m sure there are billionaires who are super humble and generous and kind, but I think it’s rare,” she says with a laugh Fidelity is a recurring topic in Bey’s Facebook group, with many unfazed at the prospect, posting memes along the lines of “Je préfère pleurer dans une Ferrari que rire sur un vélo” (I’d rather cry in a Ferrari than laugh on a bicycle) Yet, no boyfriend comes with a guaranteed blank chequebook “Honestly, my girlfriends and I say to each other, ‘Some of the cheapest men are billionaires!’” Bey exclaims “Some of them don’t want to give you a thing.” Maybe they are looking for a woman who loves them That same philosophy runs through the blog’s JSB heroine Perminova, with Lebedev for their personality “Bleurgh!” Bey grimaces tips for “entering high society”, with its analyses “I don’t respect men who also want the woman of whether investing in a first-class air ticket improves your to provide.” Bey is adamant that men should pay for everything chances of meeting a billionaire (nope; better to hang out in because, in so many other areas, women bear the majority of the lobbies of five-star hotels) and advice on meeting the burdens “Feminism is really important for me, but women have a promoters who recruit beautiful women to visit their nightclubs lot of disadvantages in society, so let us have some fairness when (just be mindful that “the rich men you meet won’t be boyfriend it comes to money Don’t make us split things,” she declaims material”) and jobs to consider, such as working as a hotel concierge in Dubai If such information had been available when Today, Instagram is a shop window for wannabe JSBs to be I had a student overdraft, perhaps now I’d be WhatsApping my spotted by men who offer to fly them round the world and squad to see who’ll be at Art Basel in Miami, rather than “spoil” them, sometimes in return for sex Some members of Bey’s wondering if Tesco will be open later so I can pick up dog food Facebook group are escorts and she’s fine with that “What is the difference between them and a woman who marries a man for Bey was born in Estonia, then his money? I’ll always defend a part of the Soviet Union, but her woman who is looking for status “Men are allowed to get away with treating family emigrated to Stockholm and wealth in a partner Men when she was three Today, are allowed to get away with women like sex objects, but women aren’t her mother is a lawyer and her treating women like sex objects, allowed to treat men like a wallet” stepfather (she’s never met her but women aren’t allowed to father) works in IT “My parents treat men like a wallet.” built themselves up We weren’t poor, but there were times when we were struggling.” She was bullied at school, perhaps, Still, Bey makes it clear that the JSB target of trophy wifedom isn’t she thinks, because she was brought up in a “very Russian way” all “caviar, champagne and Chanel”, with a strong likelihood of (she is fluent in Russian) “I never fitted in to Swedish society,” being eventually traded in for a younger model You will also, as she says Obsessed with glossy magazines, she moved to Rome one thrice-married contributor to the blog warns, be bringing up on leaving school and started frequenting “elegant places”, where any children alone and always come second to your husband’s she met a rich kid who introduced her to fancy restaurants and work “He will like to influence you, in some cases control you designer shopping “I wasn’t actively seeking the affluent life, but A powerful man will be acting with power in his private life And subconsciously all those years at school when I wasn’t popular not in a sexy way,” she writes In any case, the “golden age” for made me want to seek out the best, because it was important I bagging such a man is tight: JSBs aged 30-plus are mocked in their was validated in a way I hadn’t been before And once you’ve circles as “used goods” For all these reasons, Bey urges followers had a taste of that affluent life, it’s very hard to go back.” not to abandon their careers “I don’t support the idea that women are totally dependent on men It’s too risky Everyone She moved on to Ibiza where she worked as a go-go dancer, then should have savings, work experience.” In any case, men don’t with her DJ boyfriend to Malta, where she worked in marketing want a woman “just waiting for them to come home That’s in the thriving online gambling industry that has made the island boring and it kills the relationship When I met my boyfriend he a hub for the super-rich When the relationship ended, she was like, ‘I’m happy to provide for you, but you need to occupy returned to Sweden where she was in a reality show, then went yourself with something you’re passionate about.’” travelling Six years ago, she arrived in London, broke and single “I had an office job, but I left because it made me unhappy She met him two years ago, after a period of soul-searching made Before that I’d been obsessed with the idea that women need her understand “there are more important things than a collection to pay 50/50, but I saw how the girls I was hanging out with – of Birkin bags I realised I just want a comfortable, upper-middlewho, like me, were from simple backgrounds – were living, not class lifestyle but to have a genuine love.” Now, she says, “For the working, with a boyfriend or as a mistress, so were financially first time I’ve found the right balance of a man who offers me the covered, and I started to change my mind I felt ready to request lifestyle I have always wanted but who is also very genuine.” The some levelling up from men I wasn’t a sugar baby, but if I was couple have just spent the summer in Ibiza, Bali and Rome, and dating somebody who could be of financial assistance to me I was Bey feels she’s on the point of retiring from JSB-dom Now “I just no longer ashamed to ask.” want to help the younger women Money may not always bring you happiness, but if you’re going to start looking for happiness Doubts about her chosen path came a year later, when her drink somewhere, then why not in the rich department?” was spiked during a trip to the Cannes Film Festival She woke alone in a mansion and when she went to ask for help, a burly A longer version of this article first appeared in The Times man grabbed her by the throat “Nobody was looking out for me © The Times/News Licensing November 2018 THE WEEK Crossword 59 THE WEEK CROSSWORD 1131 This week’s w winner will receive an Ettinger (ettinger.co.uk) Brogue Single Etting Travel Pass Case in nut, which retails at £100, £10 and two Connell Guides (conne (connellguides.com) An Ettinger travel pass case and two Connell Guides will be given to the sender of the first correct solution to the crossword and the clue of the week opened on Monday 12 November Send it to: The Week Crossword 1131, 2nd floor, 32 Queensway, London W2 3RX, or email the answers to crossword@theweek.co.uk Tim Moorey (timmoorey.info) ACROSS Rob’s up for a thankless task (4,4) Some Milanese rave about another northern Italian city (6) Rubbish last users (8) 10 Involved in difficulties, tense internally like some bishops (6) 12 Lots of time with broken nose (4) 13 Luxurious knitwear for an athlete (4,6) 15 Postman’s favourite haunt? (8,6) 19 Parts not on general view, magazine meets resistance from one in the Army (7,7) 23 Having similar taste in processed milk indeed (4-6) 25 Bar opening, tiny person’s longing for something (4) 28 IT cut in highest place for monastery (6) 29 IDS spent surprisingly making allowances for ministers (8) 30 Small bird caught finally after lead removed from hound (6) 31 With opening of sputnik chapter, one entered this (8) DOWN Stable job in China? (6) Bang on endlessly about African republic (5) Putting game in car (4) Rifle something from the drinks cabinet (7) Foreign aid Brussels grouping cheers (5) Parent travelling by river transport (9) City that’s awfully loaded importing gold (2,6) 11 Family rejected shocking tobacco (4) 14 Novel turned up in Oberammergau (4) 16 Instant idea following vacuous talk show (9) 17 Catholic excused from belief to try again (4) 18 Sort of order and disorder in bed! (5-3) 20 Mount stake the wrong way up (4) 21 Small part of flight for a dance (3-4) 22 Innocent pursued in speech (6) 24 Inventor of dotty characters (5) 26 Country sport on game shows (5) 27 Design detail sounding like smoked ham (4) 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 25 24 26 27 28 29 30 31 Name Address Clue of the week: I’ve no cash, and I threaten all in need of treatment? (8,6,7; first letters NA) Guardian, Paul Solution to Crossword 1129 ACROSS: German measles Lego Tender spot 10 Strain 11 Scratch 12 Lacerates 14 Bags 16 Erse 17 Goldenrod 20 Tickers 21 Lean-to 23 To cap it all 24 Dray 25 Service charge DOWN: Great Dane Rioja Antonia Minister of state Ameers Last train Sloth 13 Easy chair 15 Short wave 18 Delilah 19 Medici 20 Trots 22 Adder Clue of the week: Retro company needs restructuring to become this? 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The Week is available from RNIB Newsagent for the benefit of blind and partially sighted readers 0303-123 9999, rnib.org.uk/newsagent t this Chrristmas Treat a friend or family member to The Week ek this Christmas Itt makes the perfect gift, and with prices going up soon you’ll save sa up to £17 when you order now This Christmas I would like to give a gift subscription to The Week ek ek PLEASE COMPLETE IN BLOCK CAPITALS TITLE FORENAME SURNAME ADDRESS 6 4 2 8 9 7 Sudoku 675 (easy) POSTCODE Fill in all the squares so that each row, column and each of the 3x3 squares contains all the digits from to Solution to to Sudoku Sudoku 674 228 Solution 5 8 9 7 Puzzle supplied by 8 6 9 Charity of the week Synchronicity Earth is a registered charity with a simple yet demanding vision: an Earth in which all life is valued, celebrated and flourishing We work to help some of the world’s most interesting yet under-loved and overlooked animals, such as pangolins, freshwater eels, white-bellied herons and spider monkeys Our engagement team finds new ways to collaborate creatively with others to highlight the importance and wonder of wildlife and wild places Our research team identifies gaps in conservation action, building a picture of the regions, species and ecosystems where targeted funding and support will have the greatest impact We use this knowledge to develop programmes to address challenges with a long-term vision that ensures that our donors’ investments have the best possibility of success To find out more, visit synchronicityearth.org COUNTRY PHONE NO EMAIL YEAR OF BIRTH THEIR DETAILS TITLE FORENAME SURNAME ADDRESS POSTCODE COUNTRY PHONE NO GIFT SUBSCRIPTION PAYMENT DETAILS year N n UK £127.49 £109.95 (51 issues) N n Europe £139.99 £129.00 N n Rest of world £157.99 £147.00 months (26 issues) N n UK £65.99 £57.99 N n Europe £72.49 £66.99 N n Rest of world £82.49 £77.99 N n I enclose a Sterling cheque made payable to: The Week Ltd N n Please charge my: m Visa m MasterCard m AMEX m Debit/Maestro (issue No S st s tu ) CARD NO _ \ = = « « = _ « = _ =_ « = _ « = _ « = _= = « « = « = == « « = _ « \_ = \ _ = « = _ « \ = START DATE EXPIRY DATE = _ \ _ « = _ =_ « \ = = \_= « == «_\ SIGNED DATE We will use the information you have shared for carefully considered and specific purposes, where we believe we have a legitimate case to so, for example to send you communications about similar products and services we ofer.You can find out more about our legitimate interest activity in our privacy policy at www.dennis co.uk/privacy-policy/ If you wish to object to the use of your data in this way, please tick here ฀ or email us at privacy@dennis.co.uk ‘We’ includes The Week and other Dennis Publishing (UK) Ltd brands listed at http://www.dennis.co.uk/brands/ CALL 0330 333 9494, ORDER ONLINE AT www.dennismags.co.uk/theweek QUOTING OFFER CODE SHOWN OR RETURN THIS FORM TO: Freepost Plus RTXU-YAGZ-HUKH The Week Ltd, Rockwood House, 9–17 Perrymount Road, HAYWARDS HEATH, RH16 3DH Offer Code: P1200B SOURCES: A complete list of publications cited in The Week can be found at theweek.co.uk/sources For binders to hold 26 copies of The Week at £8.95 (modernbookbinders.com) Registered as a newspaper with the Royal Mail Printed by Wyndeham Bicester Distributed by Seymour Distribution Subscriptions: 0330-333 9494; 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subscriptions@theweek.co .uk The Week is licensed to The Week Limited... editorialadmin@theweek.co .uk November 2018 THE WEEK Politics NEWS Controversy of the week Brazil finds its Trump “Jair Bolsonaro is a right-wing Brazilian who holds repulsive views,” said The New York... this year, the city authorities have issued s1.38m in fines for breaching the rules, an average fine of s12,000 Catch up with daily news at www.theweek.co .uk November 2018 THE WEEK NEWS The world