Thứ Sáu, 31 tháng 5, 2013

The lowdown on smoking on World No Tobacco Day

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World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) is observed around the world every year on May 31. It aims to encourage a 24-hour period of abstinence from all forms of tobacco consumption across the globe.


Another intended purpose is to draw global attention to the widespread prevalence of tobacco use and to the negative health effects of using tobacco products, which currently lead to an estimated 5.4 million deaths worldwide annually.


The member states of the World Health Organisation (WHO) created World No Tobacco Day in 1987. In the past twenty years, the day has been met with both enthusiasm and resistance across the globe from governments, public health organizations, smokers, growers, and the tobacco industry.


Timeline


- In 1987, the UN’s World Health Organisation passed Resolution WHA40.38, calling for April 7, 1988 to be “a world no-smoking day”. April 7, 1988 was the 40th anniversary of the WHO. The objective of the day was to urge tobacco users worldwide to abstain from using tobacco products for 24 hours, an action they hoped would provide assistance for those trying to quit.


- In 1988, Resolution WHA42.19 was passed by the World Health Assembly, calling for the celebration of World No Tobacco Day, every year on May 31. Since then, the WHO has supported World No Tobacco Day every year, linking each year to a different tobacco-related theme.


- In 1998, the WHO established the Tobacco Free Initiative (TFI), an attempt to focus international resources and attention on the global health issue of tobacco. The initiative provides assistance for creating global public health policy, encourages mobilisation across societies, and supports the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC). The WHO FCTC is a global public health treaty adopted in 2003 by countries across the globe as an agreement to implement policies that work towards tobacco cessation.


- In 2008, on the eve of World No Tobacco Day, the WHO called for a worldwide ban on all tobacco advertising, promotion, and sponsorship. The theme of that year’s No Tobacco Day was a ‘Tobacco-free youth’; the initiative was especially meant to target advertising efforts aimed at young audiences. According to the WHO, the tobacco industry must replace older quitting or dying smokers with younger consumers to keep itself profitable. Because of this, marketing strategies were commonly observed in places that would make smoking attractive to young people, such as movies, the Internet, billboards, and magazines. Studies have shown that the more young people are exposed to tobacco advertising, the more likely they are to smoke.



Key facts


– Tobacco kills up to half of its users


- Tobacco kills nearly 6 million people each year, of whom more than 5 million are from direct tobacco use and more than 600 000 are nonsmokers exposed to second-hand smoke. Unless urgent action is taken, the annual death toll could rise to more than eight million by 2030


-Nearly 80% of the world’s one billion smokers live in low, and middle, income countries.


Consumption of tobacco products is increasing globally, though it is decreasing in some high-income and upper middle-income countries.

Source: WHO


According to the WHO , the tobacco epidemic is one of the biggest public health threats the world has ever faced. It kills nearly six million people a year, of whom more than five million are from direct tobacco use, while more than 600,000 of tobacco’s victims are non-smokers exposed to second-hand smoke. Approximately one person dies every six seconds due to tobacco and this accounts for one in 10 adult deaths. Up to half of current users will eventually die of a tobacco-related disease.


Nearly 80% of the more than one billion smokers worldwide live in low- and middle-income countries, where the burden of tobacco-related illness and death is heaviest.


Tobacco users who die prematurely deprive their families of income, raise the cost of health care and hinder economic development.


55207 600x840 2705 poster world no tobacco english


In some countries, children from poor households are frequently employed in tobacco farming to provide family income. These children are especially vulnerable to “green tobacco sickness”, which is caused by the nicotine that is absorbed through the skin from the handling of wet tobacco leaves.


Gradual killer


Because there is a time lag of several years between the moment people start using tobacco and the moment their health suffers as a consequence, the epidemic of tobacco-related disease and death has just begun.


Tobacco caused 100 million deaths in the 20th century. If current trends continue, it may cause about one billion deaths in the 21st century.


Unchecked, tobacco-related deaths will increase to more than eight million per year by 2030. More than 80% of those deaths will be in low- and middle-income countries.



Second-hand smoke kills


Second-hand smoke is the tobacco residue that fills restaurants, offices or other enclosed spaces when people burn tobacco products such as cigarettes, bidis and water pipes. There are more than 4,000 chemicals in tobacco smoke, of which at least 250 are known to be harmful and more than 50 are known to cause cancer.


There is no safe level of exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke.


- In adults, second-hand smoke causes serious cardiovascular and respiratory diseases, including coronary heart disease and lung cancer. In infants, it causes sudden death. In pregnant women, it causes low birth weight.


- Almost half of children regularly breathe air polluted by tobacco smoke in public places.


- Over 40% of children have at least one smoking parent.


- Second-hand smoke causes more than 600,000 premature deaths per year.


- In 2004, children accounted for 28% of the deaths attributable to second-hand smoke.


Every person should be able to breathe smoke-free air. Anti-smoking laws protect the health of non-smokers, are popular, do not harm business and encourage smokers to quit.


- Under 11% of the world’s population are protected by comprehensive national smoke-free laws.

-The number of people protected from second-hand smoke more than doubled to 739 million in 2010 from 354 million in 2008.


Tobacco users need help to quit


Studies show that few people understand the specific health risks of tobacco use. For example, a 2009 survey in China revealed that only 38% of smokers knew that smoking causes coronary heart disease and only 27% knew that it causes strokes.


Among smokers who are aware of the dangers of tobacco, most want to quit. Counseling and medication can more than double the chance that a smoker who tries to quit will succeed.


-National comprehensive health-care services supporting cessation are available in only 19 countries, representing 14% of the world’s population.


-There is no cessation assistance in 28% of low-income countries and 7% of middle-income countries.


Picture warnings work


Hard-hitting anti-tobacco advertisements and graphic pack warnings – especially those that include pictures – reduce the number of children who begin smoking and increase the number of smokers who quit.


55207 600x321 2705 anti tobacco messages
Photo illustration of new mandatory packaging for cigarettes sold in Australia November 2012. REUTERS/Tim Wimborne


Graphic warnings can persuade smokers to protect the health of non-smokers by smoking less inside the home and avoiding smoking near children. Studies carried out after the implementation of pictorial package warnings in Brazil, Canada, Singapore and Thailand consistently show that pictorial warnings significantly increase people’s awareness of the harms of tobacco use.


Mass media campaigns can also reduce tobacco consumption, by influencing people to protect non-smokers and convincing youths to stop using tobacco.


- Just 19 countries, representing 15% of the world’s population, meet the best practice for pictorial warnings, which includes the warnings in the local language and cover an average of at least half of the front and back of cigarette packs. No low-income country meets this best-practice level. Forty-two countries, representing 42% of the world’s population, mandate pictorial warnings.

-More than 1.9 billion people, representing 28% of the world’s population, live in the 23 countries that have implemented at least one strong anti-tobacco mass media campaign within the last two years.


55207 600x199 2705 anti tobacco messages2
Combination picture of new graphic cigarette packages, released by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Reuters


Ad bans lower consumption


Bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship can reduce tobacco consumption.


- A comprehensive ban on all tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship could decrease tobacco consumption by an average of about 7%, with some countries experiencing a decline in consumption of up to 16%. – Only 19 countries, representing 6% of the world’s population, have comprehensive national bans on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship. – Around 38% of countries have minimal or no restrictions at all on tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship.


Taxes discourage tobacco use


Tobacco taxes are the most effective way to reduce tobacco use, especially among young people and poor people. A tax increase that increases tobacco prices by 10% decreases tobacco consumption by about 4% in high-income countries and by up to 8% in low and middle-income countries.


Only 27 countries, representing less than 8% of the world’s population, have tobacco tax rates greater than 75% of the retail price.


Tobacco tax revenues are on average 154 times higher than spending on tobacco control, based on available data.


0495b 600x376 2705 death clock


*The “Death Clock”, a digital clock which is part of an anti-tobacco campaign, is seen on a billboard in Dhaka January 5, 2013. The “Death Clock”, which keeps a rolling tally of people dying of tobacco-related illnesses each day, was installed on a busy road near the Bangladeshi prime minister’s residence and on the way to the national parliament house in the capital Dhaka. Around 57,000 people die annually from tobacco-related diseases in Bangladesh, on average 156 people per day, said Sayed Badrul Karim from the Progga NGO, which is supported by the Washington-based Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids (CTFK). Picture taken on January 5, 2013. REUTERS/Stringer *


Source: World Health Organisation


More about: Smoking ban, Tobacco Industry, World No Tobacco Day

Copyright © 2013 euronews




The lowdown on smoking on World No Tobacco Day

Want an emotional experience? Come to the Lion City

Stroll through the Botanic Gardens and learn about the power of unfading, one-of-a-kind love embodied in a Risis Orchid. Meet your loved one under the dazzling kaleidoscope of lights at Gardens by the Bay. Such emotional experiences are part of the storied journey to the Lion City that the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) hopes Chinese tourists will take, following in the footsteps of Taiwanese actress Ariel Lin Yichen who stars in a new micro-movie where she rekindles her romance. — SCREENGRAB: YOUKU



Want an emotional experience? Come to the Lion City

Okram Ibobi Singh asks Manipuris in Myanmar to preserve culture

IMPHAL: Expressing his happiness after meeting Manipuris settled in Myanmar, chief minister Okram Ibobi Singh has requested them to preserve their culture and live as Manipuris.

During the Burmese invasion known as ‘Cahi Taret Khuntakpa’ (seven years of devastation from 1819-1826), a large number of Manipuris fled their erstwhile “nation” and settled in several parts of the northeast, Myanmar and Bangladesh.


According to U Htun Shwe aka Sunder Sharma, a prominent Meitei elder of Myanmar, about 20,000 Manipuri Meities are living in Mandalay and its surrounding areas.


After meeting Manipuris on Thursday, Okram said his government, with the approval of the Indian government, would send a Manipuri cultural troupe in the region to promote the state’s culture. Stating that a centre of Myanmar studie has been opened in Manipur University, Okram invited the Manipuris in Myanmar to study in the varsity in Imphal.


Okram, who is on his Myanmar tour to promote business links, said the Mandalay-Imphal Bus service would start by 2016 and visa on arrival facilities for Myanmarese nationals would be made available at Manipur’s border town Moreh.


During the meeting, Sunder Sharma, on behalf of the Manipuri community in Mandalay, said, “In 75 years, it was the first visit of a top Manipuri leader in Myanmar. Hijam Irabot of the Nikhil Manipuri Mahasabha paid a visit in 1933 under the patronage of Manipur King Churachand Singh.”


There are about 20,000 Manipur Meitieis living in Mandalay and its nearby areas, he added. They organize all Manipuri festivals such as Cheiraoba, Kang (Rath Yatra) and Jhulon, he said.


Manipuris in Myanmar are occupying various important posts in Myanmar. Some of them are doctors, engineer and army officials, while others are employed in foreign countries like Singapore, Malaysia, England and USA. “But we are lagging behind in language, literature and cultural aspects. Most of the youngsters cannot read, write and speak Manipuri language. Our identity is absorbed in other communities due to the policy of our country,” he lamented.


Stating that they are committed to helping the Indian people to do their business in Myanmar, Sharma expressed after meeting Okram Ibobi Singh and his delegation. Noted film maker Aribam Syam Sharma’s award winning Manipuri film ‘Ishanou’ (The Chosen One) was also screened at the historic occasion. The film was the country’s official selection for the Cannes Film Festival in 1991.



Okram Ibobi Singh asks Manipuris in Myanmar to preserve culture

LCS matures, new missile coming

WASHINGTON — Like a child entering adolescence, the Navy’s littoral combat ship program has entered an era in which some elements are trying to emulate fully mature combat systems, some are getting ready to try and others have much further to go.


The well-publicized cost growth of the program is nominally under control. “Ship production is stable, costs are going down, the contracts are a fixed price,” Sean Stackley, the Navy’s top acquisition official, told Congress on May 8. “There’s all goodness there.”


The first in class, the Lockheed Martin-designed Freedom, is three months into a planned 10-month demonstration deployment in the western Pacific. The ship has yet to show its stuff, although it was the star attraction at a recent naval exposition in Singapore. But mechanical problems dogged Freedom in March and April during its trans-Pacific voyage from California, and on May 22, only hours after leaving Singapore to begin exercises, the ship was forced to return to port with an engineering problem.


The second LCS — Independence, built by Austal USA — is finishing a scheduled overhaul in San Diego and nearly set to resume testing in June of the mine warfare package, the lead module in a series of mission packages under development for the ships.


The third ship, Fort Worth, the second ship of the Freedom class, is in drydock at San Diego, undergoing its post-shakedown availability (PSA). Unlike the first two ships, which were forced to split their PSAs in two due to congressional funding instability caused by continuing resolutions, Fort Worth’s PSA will be done all at once, in the normal manner.


Austal USA is several months behind schedule on Coronado, second ship of the Independence class, and the ship suffered two minor fires April 13 while on builder’s sea trials. The ship has been repaired — at Austal’s expense — and was back at sea by May 8, and all major tests have been completed. Navy acceptance trials will be run in mid-summer, with delivery to follow around the end of the season.


Mission module development lags ship construction, but different elements are moving forward. A critical design review was completed in early April, a month ahead of schedule, for the Knifefish, a surface-mine countermeasure unmanned undersea vehicle (SMCM UUV) under development by General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems. The UUV, described by GD as the first heavyweight-class mainstream mine countermeasure underwater vehicle, is needed to find and classify mines lying on the seafloor or buried in high-clutter environments. It is expected to be operational in 2017.


Reliability improvements are also being made to the Remote Minehunting System (RMS), said Rear Adm. Jim Murdoch, program executive officer for LCS at Naval Sea Systems Command.


“Testing is going particularly well with the large RMS vehicle,” Murdoch said during a recent interview. “I’ve been very happy with that. We’re in the second period of a planned three of reliability testing, and we’re nearly through the second period. We’ve gotten over 600 hours of operation on two different vehicles.


“My expectation,” he added, “is we won’t have to do the third phase. We might finish early, finish within our budget.”


Freedom, Independence


Murdoch ticked through a series of items the program is handling, starting with Freedom.


“[The crew] hit every port visit on schedule,” he said. “They did deal with a couple of short-duration events — in numbers of minutes — where they had loss of power in the ship,” an incident that took place while the ship was transiting the Pacific.


“The issue caused both operating diesel generators to trip offline,” Murdoch explained. “The ship recovered very quickly through both automatic systems and manual support from the crew.”


Power interruptions in ships do happen, he said, but “we’re working to improve the reliability of the plant. And we’re doing very well there, I think.”


Freedom underwent a planned maintenance period in April and May at the Changi naval base in Singapore, Murdoch said.


“They did over 540 maintenance checks and accomplished over 90 percent of the checks in less than a two-week period. We’ll continue to get better at that, but I want to get nearly 100 percent done in subsequent availabilities.”


Independence will resume testing shortly with the RMS, which is handled by the ship’s twin-boom extensible crane, a system that projects out the aft end of the trimaran to raise and lower vehicles. The crane has yet to perform satisfactorily, but Murdoch is hopeful a number of modifications will change that.


“We’re improving the [crane] and software,” he said. “The process of recovering aboard the ship ought to be routine for the sailor. Now it’s too complicated and takes too long. So we’re making good improvements to that.”


Independence will continue to be dedicated to mine warfare package testing. Murdoch expects progress, but looming budget reductions from sequestration will, he said, slow the program.


“We’re looking at a dress rehearsal [for the mine package] and technical evaluation next year,” he said. “But … sequestration challenges — this is impacting my schedule. I’ve lost roughly 8 percent of my budget, at least. That’s causing me to stretch things out.”


The schedule, he said, calls for the completion of operational evaluation by September 2014.


“I do not expect we’ll be able to meet that date because of the budget cuts I’ve taken,” Murdoch said.


“Much depends on what happens in the fall — if there’s another [continuing resolution], no resolution to sequestration, we’re probably looking at a delay of mid-fiscal 2015, third quarter. This is not due to technical or performance problems. The challenge I face is funding.”


Improvements are coming to both classes of LCS, Murdoch said. Responding to repeated pleas from sailors, bridge wings will be fitted this year to Independence to improve navigating in tight places, and the modification likely will be made to the rest of the class.


The small boat cutout all the way aft on Independence’s port side also will be expanded, Murdoch said, to allow 7-meter rigid hull inflatable boats to be used in the quick-response role. The cutout can handle only 5.4-meter boats.


Murdoch is a fan of the crew-developed camouflage paint scheme on Freedom.


“The current scheme that breaks up the ship’s lines and puts black paint around the diesel exhausts is good,” he said. “It has a lot to recommend it.” A decision on whether to apply the scheme, or similar schemes, to the rest of the class will wait until after Freedom completes its deployment.


No decisions on painting Independence class have been made, he added.


New Missile Competition


The Navy also wants to fix one of the LCS program’s glaring deficiencies — the absence of an effective surface-to-surface missile (SSM), brought on by the Army’s 2009 cancellation of the non-line-of-sight (NLOS) missile. The Navy had expected the Army-developed NLOS would give the LCS a weapon to counter enemy fast attack craft.


A year ago, the service had planned to test the Griffin, a small missile developed for Special Operations Command, on Freedom. But the missile is considered too lightweight for the LCS, and it was not installed. Instead, data is being gathered from testing aboard the coastal patrol vessel Monsoon.


“We really want to do a competition and award for an SSM that has a little longer range than the Griffin,” Murdoch said. “Ideally, what I’d like to have is autonomy — an autonomous seeker that you don’t have to designate with a laser to guide the missile on target.


“That’s another area that’s budget-dependent,” Murdoch added. “We have money this year and next to do studies and get ready for [industry solicitations] in 2014.”


Barring funding complications, the Navy is hoping to field an SSM on the LCS in 2019.



LCS matures, new missile coming

Sell the Singapore experience

NEW attractions lured Thai tourist Usa Pitaknarongporn to Singapore this week – her fifth trip here.


The 47-year-old, currently in Singapore for a week-long visit with her family, went to all of them: Marina Bay Sands, Universal Studios, Gardens by the Bay and S.E.A. Aquarium.


The last time she came here was five years ago – the year the Singapore Flyer opened.


 “Whenever there are new attractions, we want to come,” said the housewife, who bought a package tour.


“If there are no new things to see, we may look elsewhere for something new.”


When asked if she would return, the mother of one said: “We have not decided. What else can we do here? Go shopping?”


Now imagine if she was given more options.


What about a cycling tour to see the sprawling flats in the heartland, a hawker centre food jaunt with a local foodie, or to a Nonya restaurant to see how ayam buah keluak (chicken with Indonesian nuts) is prepared?


Or if she could sign up for a Singlish lesson, or try her hand at making roti prata.


This is the type of unique content that the Government is pushing the industry to develop in the face of slower growth.


Last week, it said that visitor arrivals would grow between 3 per cent and 4 per cent, and tourism receipts between 4 per cent and 6per cent year-on-year over the next decade.


This is a turnaround from the record growth seen between 2002 and last year, when arrivals grew at a compounded annual rate of 6.6 per cent. The amount tourists spent here surged a corresponding 10 per cent over the same period.


But the Singapore Tourism Board (STB) said the current quantitative growth trend is “unsustainable”, and it urged the industry and individual businesses to create more unique content for visitors.


Singapore, after all, cannot keep building new attractions to keep its visitors keen. The industry seems poised for change that will force its players to either reinvent themselves or perish.


The solution may be better, customised products that justify higher prices and subsequently increased spending per tourist.


Victims of our success?


THE past decade has been a banner decade for tourism here, a time when “flights, hotel rooms and tours practically sold themselves”, said Ngee Ann Polytechnic senior lecturer in tourism Michael Chiam.


Singapore started hosting the world’s only Formula One night race in 2008; the two integrated resorts opened in 2010; and Gardens by the Bay opened last year, the same year the Marina Bay Cruise Centre opened to receive large cruise liners.


The novelty factor propelled international arrivals and tourism receipts to an all-time high last year, with an estimated 14.4 million visitors spending $23 billion.


The industry may be resting on its laurels after that stellar performance. Mr Robert Khoo, who was chief of the National Association of Travel Agents (Natas) for 13 years, thinks so.


The country’s infrastructure is in place but a majority of travel businesses lag behind.


Most of Natas’ 350 agency members, said Mr Khoo, develop standard packages and distribute them en masse to overseas partner agencies at marked-up rates.


“They sell the attractions individually. There is no customisation. It’s time to sell Singapore as an experience,” he said, adding that the industry competes on price, not product quality.


Singapore can do worse than look at what regional cities are doing.


If others can, so can we


HONG KONG’s travel businesses think outside the box.


They suss out local artists to see if they are keen to conduct artist-led tours, hire fashion gurus to give style tips on shopping trips, and even design secret tours – where visitors pay for surprise dinners, tickets to undisclosed movies and stays at unknown hotels.


Our industry needs to curate the island’s best experiences as opposed to simply stringing attractions together before selling them. How can it be that Singapore is known as a food paradise yet tours featuring local cooking classes are rare?


Hong Kong’s roll-up-your-sleeves attitude could be partly why consultancy Business Monitor International expects Hong Kong visitor arrivals to grow 8 per cent yearly till 2017. Tourism receipts are expected to increase 10 per cent year-on-year until then. Last year, Hong Kong received 48,615,113 tourists, 16 per cent more than in 2011.


Then you have Taiwan.


The growth of its nascent tourism industry – 7.3 million arrivals last year – is startling. Arrivals and spending have jumped more than 20 per cent year-on-year in recent years – topping Singapore and Hong Kong.


The takeaway? The focus on local tourism and industry support.


Professor Claire Lu, tourism director at Taiwan’s Chinese Culture University, said that the government has county offices scattered islandwide. Each is given a budget to develop potential tourist attractions or programmes in its jurisdiction.


The government designs tours around these offerings and sells them to visitors. The industry then naturally comes up with its own packages.


Taiwan’s famous activities – dining, cycling and railroad trips – were promoted mainly through specialist agencies that focus on niche products, for instance, gourmet food tours, said Prof Lu.


This is an idea that Singapore can adopt. Why not leverage on clan associations and neighbourhood committees to unearth unique gems in their precincts? Or tap on groups like the Singapore Heritage Society?


The STB could then fund community projects to refurbish these attractions, or extend funding to operators who want to conduct local tours.


But in Singapore’s quest to lure the big spenders, the local travel industry must also be mindful not to price-out visitors from the major source markets – Indonesia, China, India and Malaysia. The high-speed rail linking Kuala Lumpur to Singapore, slated to be built by 2020, is also expected to bring in streams of mass-market visitors.


Over-specialisation in Monaco, which targets big spenders from Europe, alienated tourists with smaller budgets, who went on to seek accommodation facilities outside the tiny city state on the French Riviera.


So what do we sell?


WHAT the industry needs to do is clear. But it could use more direction on how to package and sell local content, said Professor Bernd Schmitt, director of the Institute on Asian Consumer Insight.


The current STB campaign “Your Singapore” and new marketing collateral centred on the new slogan “Singapore Shiok” to showcase local delights do not give much direction, he said.


The “Your Singapore” campaign may also be taking the visitor-centric approach just one step too far, said Mr Schmitt.


“STB should take a step back, ask what we are really proud of, what can we sell, what are our strengths? Maybe some soul searching instead of throwing it to visitors to decide,” he said. “By trying to be something to everyone, you may end up being nothing to anyone.”


He suggested that the STB develop a campaign around a few unique selling propositions that the industry can centre its products on.


“I would go with shopping, food, culture and nature,” he said, adding that the industry could come up with multi-level experiences.


Shopping trips could bring tourists to Orchard Road malls for style tips, to Chinatown for cheongsam-hunting and to Mustafa Shopping Centre for a bargain.


Nature tours could bring tourists from Gardens by the Bay and Sungei Buloh to vertical farms in Lim Chu Kang.


“Singapore is a multi-level, distinct experience. Travel agents, the industry, need to learn how to tell and sell that story,” said Prof Schmitt.


The path forward


AS EMERGING Asian markets grow richer, legions of new tourists will be clamouring to travel.


By 2020, two out of every five travellers are expected to be Asian and will account for nearly half of global tourism expenditure, according to a Boston Consulting Group report.


With Asia accounting for over 75 per cent of visitor arrivals here, this bodes well for Singapore.


Other countries want a slice of the pie. New integrated resorts will soon spring up in Macau and South Korea; Bangkok plans to hold a Formula One night race by 2015; and Universal Studios is scheduled to open in South Korea and Shanghai.


With other offerings to turn to, visitors will be spoilt for choice. Singapore needs to give them a reason to keep coming back.


This window of opportunity may not be open for long. Seize it.


limjess@sph.com.sg


This story was first published in The Straits Times on May 2, 2013 


To subscribe to The Straits Times, please go to http://www.sphsubscription.com.sg/eshop/



Sell the Singapore experience

UK spouse visa... savings route

Originally Posted by lleuci
0edff viewpost


Hi there…


Hubbie and I are anxiously waiting for the outcome of our application (we’re 6 weeks into our wait icon razz ).



We’ve had 1 refusal which was probably in part due to the confusing nature of the financial requirements.



This time we have gone the savings route. I’m the Brit and haven’t worked for a while as I’ve been off having babies! These rules are soooo unfair if the Brit is a stay at home mum!!



Anyways – my question is if you meet the 62,500 in savings are there many/any situations where people have been refused visas? We sent in an accommodation offer letter and their council tax bill. Apart from that what else can they refuse it on. Our relationship is solidly provable – 3 babies over 4.5 yrs should help prove that.



I’m just stressing. I’ve heard that spouse applications from Aus are taking about 10 weeks to get back from Manila… arghhhhhh I hate this waiting!!!!!!!!!!!


I have an similar situation like you, as I had a refusal before and I am now waiting for my second application’s outcome. It have been 9 week, but I Am applying from Malaysia.


we were on the cash savings route for first application, reason of refusal was one of our account wasn’t open prior 6 months, as we were moving from Singapore to Malaysia and we just did an transfer to the new account. ( we thought with the transferring proof they could accept it) well, our mistake.



We have a year old daughter and we been living together for 3 years, UKBA didn’t comment anything part from the financial requirement.



We are now going for the CAT B route, as my husband found a job in UK while we waiting for the first application approval.



I am not an expert on this forum but I hope we both get the approval this time round.



Sorry if I wasn’t answering your question but I just thought of sharing my worries here too. 0edff wink



0edff fingerscrossed



UK spouse visa... savings route

Singapore Sundown Marathon 2013: Route Map, Course Info, Date and Event ...

The Sundown Marathon in Singapore is one of the most unique road races in the world. Instead of running early in the day or in the heat of the afternoon, runners will leave the start line just before midnight and run through the night.


Although the scenery will be obscured by darkness, runners will know they are getting close to the finish when the Singapore Flyer comes into sight. The Ferris wheel, which is the highest observation wheel in the world (until three others are completed), marks the end of the 26.2-mile journey.


Other events on tap for the event include a half marathon, a 10-kilometer race and a team 10-kilometer race. All of them take place at night. Knowing that, let’s take a look at all the key details for one of Singapore’s main sporting showcases.



Where: F1 Pit Building to Singapore Flyer in Singapore


When: Saturday, June 1 at 11:30 a.m. ET



Start Time and Other Events



Half marathon – May 31 at 11:30 a.m. ET


10 kilometers – May 31 at 12:30 p.m. ET


Team 10 kilometers – May 31 at 12:30 p.m. ET


Full marathon – June 1 at 11:30 a.m. ET


All times are courtesy of the races’ official site and converted to Eastern time (12-hour difference).



Route Map and Course Info



16535 MarathonMap crop exact Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WB

Courtesy: SundownMarathon.com



The race begins outside the F1 Pit Building just before midnight. The runners will pass by several sports landmarks in the country, including the nation’s indoor stadium, ski park and sailing center, as well as several parks. It then finishes by the iconic Singapore Flyer Ferris wheel.



Weather (via Weather Channel)



16535 MarathonStart original Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WB

Courtesy: TimeoutSingapore.com



Rain is possible on both days of the event. The forecast is for scattered thunderstorms on Friday and Saturday with highs near 90 and lows in the upper 70s, which means the night aspect of the race will only provide limited relief from the heat.


Winds are expected to be light. The chance for rain is 60 percent each day. High humidity levels are another issue runners will likely be forced to deal with. In other words, it doesn’t sound like perfect racing conditions are in store for the athletes.



Preview



The Sundown Marathon is about the experience. Of course, there are runners who will set out to win the race. But there are also plenty of people who will be taking part simply to enjoy the special opportunity to run under the moon instead of the sun.


Making it a night race was a brilliant move by the organizers in Singapore. There are so many marathons around the globe that it’s important to stand out in order to attract runners. They accomplished that. It helped the race expand as it heads toward its sixth year.


The top finishers will receive crystal trophies and cash prizes, according to the race site. It adds extra incentive, but most runners will gladly accept the chance to run in the unique marathon as their prize. That’s why the event should continue to grow in the coming years.



abc01 follow me c Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WB



Singapore Sundown Marathon 2013: Route Map, Course Info, Date and Event ...

Wall Street Turns to "Boot Camps" to Train New Workers

84852 Training tmagArticle Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WBRobert Caplin for The New York TimesKristen Kelly of Training the Street, one of several companies that teach Wall Street hires the basics, like spreadsheet building and financial analysis.


Newly minted university graduates who have landed coveted jobs on Wall Street may have impressive résumés and sought-after references. But often, nuts-and-bolts skills like spreadsheet building and database extraction are not part of university curriculums.


When millions of dollars can be won or lost on one calculation, firms are finding it essential that their new hires can tell the difference between a pivot table and a header row.



Enter specialized boot camps where — for fees that sometimes exceed $1,000 a day — would-be masters of the universe can perfect Excel modeling techniques and financial analysis. Each year, tens of thousands of students at the nation’s top business schools, and scores of new hires at financial firms, including Goldman Sachs and the Blackstone Group, now take courses run by companies like Training the Street and Wall Street Prep.


Graduates say the classes give them a new appreciation for the heart of financial analysis. An eight-hour crash course on leveraged buyouts from Training the Street was so intensive that it “kind of makes you want to slit your wrists,” said Michael Rojas, who graduated from Columbia Business School this month.


But over all, Mr. Rojas said, the training was thorough. “This is the stuff you really need to know, and that you don’t learn in business school,” he said. “They have a template model, and they walk you through page by page.”


The growing ranks in boot camps underscore a little-noticed trend by Wall Street banks and other financial firms to outsource technical training. Such knowledge is crucial to carrying out the daily tasks of many disciplines on Wall Street — whether it is the merger deal-making, bond trading or sell-side analysis.


“I just want someone who can really use Excel and PowerPoint,” said one senior loan syndication banker at a European bank, describing his recent interviews of newly minted M.B.A.’s in New York.


45039 dbpix training2 tmagArticle Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WBRobert Caplin for The New York TimesRick Yuan, an instructor at Training The Street, with Daniella Aryeh.


Nineteen of the country’s top 20 business schools now use Training the Street to teach an estimated 20,000 business majors every year in how to interpret financial statements, value corporations and run spreadsheet analyses.


“A lot of investment banks are casting a wider net, so they’re spending more time emphasizing getting people up to speed fast,” said Matan Feldman, who founded Wall Street Prep in 2003 after working as an analyst and associate at JPMorgan Chase. Because of the camps, “you don’t have as many clueless liberal arts majors anymore,” Mr. Feldman said.


Even the banks themselves send legions of their young hires for training. Credit Suisse, Merrill Lynch and Bank of America and others have hired Training the Street to school summer interns on credit analysis and mergers and acquisitions.


Such fundamentals also are valuable outside of Wall Street in businesses such as brand management and to technology companies in Silicon Valley that do financial modeling, said Missy Bailey, senior associate director of M.B.A. career services at the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California.


The training does not come cheap. Business schools pay Training the Street as much as $1,300 a student for a course. Wall Street Prep, also used by most top business schools and more than 150 banks and financial firms, charges corporate clients as much as $1,499 per student for a three-day course.


Darin Oduyoye, a spokesman for JPMorgan, said that the bank uses both companies for things like basic training for new associates and helping analysts prepare for licensing exams. “We also obviously augment these training and development opportunities with our own in-house programs,” Mr. Oduyoye said.


In June, Chevron, ConocoPhillips and Exxon Mobil, and banks involved in the energy business, will send about 15 new or recent hires to a three-day course in New York run by Wall Street Prep on valuing oil and gas companies.


These programs are also courting ever-younger students, and their parents’ wallets. In June, Training the Street will start a four-day Undergraduate Wall Street Boot Camp in New York and will charge students $3,000 (not including accommodations) to learn the basics of financial modeling, valuation and analysis. Wall Street Prep, widely viewed as more intensive on analytics, sells CD-ROMs for $39, for a basic Excel course, and as much as $499 for a “premium package” detailing financial modeling.


With the sluggish economy and a hiring downturn on Wall Street, where the number of securities and commodities jobs had declined by 30 percent to just under 170,000 since the peak in 2000, students say the courses, which include interview preparation, are a practical necessity.


Even the boot camp industry is acquiring a brass-knuckled intensity, as the camps expand to business schools in London, Singapore and Dubai; to undergraduate finance clubs; and to liberal arts majors at Colby College and Smith College, among others.


Much of the curriculum is developed by people who once worked in the Wall Street trenches. Wall Street Prep employs nine instructors, all former junior investment bankers.


Scott Rostan, who founded Training the Street in 1999 after working as an analyst at Merrill Lynch’s investment bank, has a small army of former Wall Streeters as instructors. “If all of your competition is taking an outside boot camp and you’re not, you’re going to be behind the curve,” Mr. Rostan said.


Surry Wood, now in his last year of business school at the University of North Carolina, spoke of an internship at Barclays Bank in New York last summer and building an enterprise valuation model for a company. His Bloomberg terminal valued the company at $5.7 billion, but Mr. Wood, using a Training the Street technique, came up with $5.5 billion, he said.


When the managing director asked Mr. Wood to walk him through the calculations, “I just broke it down for him,” Mr. Wood said. “That was a very good moment for me. By the end of the summer he was kind of pounding the table for me.” Mr. Wood starts full time at Barclays as an investment banking associate in July.


As boot camp training becomes more common, a saturation effect could occur. If everyone is taking classes like Excel Best Practices and Restructuring Modeling, doing so may not make one candidate stand out in job interviews.


But Wesley Hansen said such a course was vital when he switched to a career in finance. He was a camera operator on reality shows like “The Bachelor” before graduating last year from the University of Southern California’s Marshall School of Business, where he took Training the Street courses.


“I had no clue how to use Excel, so it helped me get a job, no doubt,” said Mr. Hansen, who is now an equity analyst in California with the brokerage firm BMA Securities.


A version of this article appeared in print on 05/31/2013, on page B5 of the NewYork edition with the headline: Wall Street Turns to ‘Boot Camps’ to Train New Workers.


Wall Street Turns to "Boot Camps" to Train New Workers

STB takes steps to help agencies focus on quality

THE Singapore Tourism Board (STB) is taking steps to help inbound agencies focus on attracting quality tourists, one of which is sharing consumer insights gleaned by its regional offices, which the trade can use to devise more ‘bespoke’ and tailor-made itineraries.



Another measure is to help identify and develop more training programmes to upgrade the skills of agency staff, in conjunction with national bodies such as the Workforce Development Agency (WDA). The new NATAS accreditation scheme (TTG Asia e-Daily, February 22, 2013) is one such programme.



STB’s CEO, Lionel Yeo, told TTG Asia e-Daily about these measures when asked what STB’s plans were to help agencies shift from competing on price to competing on expertise.



On the sharing of market intelligence, Yeo said: “We’ve been developing capability around market intelligence…We’re not just sharing, say, an understanding of the China market, but breaking down to markets such as Shanghai and Chengdu and what our focused studies show. This will help them to be more strategic in using these market insights to develop programmes.”



STB is also reviewing the Travel Agents Act Regulations and Tourist Guides Regulations to ensure a pro-business regulatory framework that enables the industry to better cater to discerning travellers.



“We think there are players out there who may have innovative ideas – how do we help them do so without having to cross a lot of regulatory hurdles or a high entry bar?



“Tour guides have given us the feedback they have to work through travel agencies. In a sense, that’s a barrier to someone who wants to operate as a freelancer in doing his own walking tours, for example. So how do we make it easier for some of the more enterprising tour guides to do so?”



The review is still under way with no definitive conclusions as yet.



 



– View from the Top with Lionel Yeo, TTG Asia, June 14, 2013



 



STB takes steps to help agencies focus on quality

BiggerBetterSale is a Cyber Monday in Singapore

e7d9f BiggerBetterSale Logo Jokowi puts heat on JICA, WBWith the success of Cyber Monday in United States and Singles Day in China, where the latter shocked the world with its $3.04 billion worth of sales transactions during its 24-hour promotional period last year, we know that people love getting discounts when shopping online. A new 24-hour flash sale platform called BiggerBetterSale.com will also be hoping to get people spending in Singapore when it launches on May 30.


Sponsored by Visa My Finds and organized by social enterprise Who Gives, the flash sales site serves as an alternative to the Great Singapore Sale, and will be offering substantial savings from popular online and offline brands. It boasts discounts of up to 80 percent and 50 percent at Zalora and at Reebonz respectively, to fantastic travel deals where Singaporeans would be able to purchase a one-way ticket at S$34 (US$27) to Kuala Lumpur on Jetstar. Other popular offline brands include Golden Village Cinemas and popular traditional Chinese medicine company Eu Yan Sang.


BiggerBetterSale starts at May 30 at 8.00pm (Singapore time). That’s just one day ahead of the Great Singapore Sale. The main sale lasts for 24 hours on the site. Then there’ll be a ten-day sale with items from over 50 participating merchants. The country manager for Visa Singapore and Brunei, Ooi Huey Tyng, hopes with Visa My Finds’ support at BiggerBetterSale.com, it will provide Singaporeans, especially Visa cardholders, a safe and convenient online environment to get the best deals.


Dorjee Sun, director at BiggerBetterSale.com, has set expectations for the online platform:


We think that with around 50 merchants and several hundred products listed, we could be helping boost e-commerce in Singapore by an excess of several million in sales during our 24-hour sale and the subsequent 10-day period.


However our goal for the first year is about helping increase online wallet share online in Singapore while providing merchants with a great return on investments on this campaign, as we are offering them this first campaign for free.



Shopaholics who would like to have extra holes in that pocket of yours and be notified of the ongoing sales and promotions, you can sign up with your email address at BiggerBetterSale ahead of the event.



BiggerBetterSale is a Cyber Monday in Singapore

Chủ Nhật, 19 tháng 5, 2013

Spell on agenda for Bel Sprinter after gallant effort in Singapore

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Spell on agenda for Bel Sprinter after gallant effort in Singapore

Getting hitched: 6 tips for the perfect proposal

Few people have more experience with wedding proposals than Kristie Kent, the “proposal planner” at the Fairmont Pacific Rim hotel in Vancouver.


“I’m basically here as a point of contact,” she explains. “Once [the prospective grooms] have got the ring in hand, they’re usually ready to go, but I try to help them think outside the box to come up with a different type of proposal.”



Kent has, for instance, helped co-ordinate the flyover of airplanes carrying banners with “Will You Marry Me?” printed on them, followed by fireworks timed to the “yes.”


Here are her tips for achieving an overwhelmingly positive response.


Drop to your knee


A genuflecting proposal is hard to top. And simple is always best: A classic kneeling pose is right knee down, left knee up, ring box in the left hand.


Practise, practise, practise


Utter the words “Will you marry me?” out loud to yourself before you say them to her. Even a cool customer is going to be nervous and you don’t want to emit a croaking mumble.


Consider your outfit


Cut-off sweat shorts and your favourite Ramones T-shirt don’t scream romance, while a tuxedo is probably overkill. Use what you’d wear to dinner with her parents as a gauge.


Pick your spot carefully (and avoid the spotlight)


A good hard rule: Avoid proposing anywhere that has a Jumbotron. Choose a private place that’s special to both of you: the cottage dock where you shared your first kiss, your favourite restaurant, a first-class suite on Singapore Airlines.


Get to the point and stay loose


This isn’t the right time to chronicle every moment of your relationship together or to recite an epic poem extolling her beauty. Use heartfelt words, but keep it brief. Once she sees you kneeling with a ring box in your hand, the jig is up. And since you don’t really know how she’s going to react, be prepared to go with the flow. If she starts crying for joy at the first sight of the ring, give her a minute before launching into a brief declaration of why you want to marry her.


Leave the viral videos to the kittens


Just because someone on YouTube conscripted his entire family and much of the neighbourhood to participate in a big-budget flash-mob proposal doesn’t mean you need to do the same. She’ll be just as thrilled with something intimate (and less likely to find out ahead of time). Remember to have your phone on hand so you can snap a photo of the two of you to post online later and call your parents (and soon-to-be in-laws) to announce the happy news.


This is part of a six-part series on getting married in style. Next week, we look at how to plan a top-notch bachelor party.




Getting hitched: 6 tips for the perfect proposal

Wyndham adds two new brands in Singapore - Travel Daily Media





  • 92bdb share email



  • By Mark Elliott, 19 May 2013, Sunday 12:01 AM



    92bdb Ramada Lobby Bar Area 300x200


    The lobby bar at the new Ramada Singapore at Zhongshan Park


    Wyndham Hotel Group has completed a major expansion project in Singapore, which has seen the launch of two of its hotel brands in the city – Ramada and Days Inn.


    The Ramada Singapore at Zhongshan Park officially opened on Saturday 18 May 2013, joining its sister hotel, Days Hotel Singapore at Zhongshan Park, which soft-opened earlier this year.


    The two properties, managed by Wyndham, are located at Zhongshan Park – a brand new development area in the historic Balestier area of Singapore, which also includes a commercial tower and shopping mall. The project forms part of a plan to rejuvenate the area and highlight the culture and history of Singapore.


    “Wyndham Hotel Group is proud to be part of Singapore’s development plan for the Balestier area,” said Duane Elledge, executive vice president and managing director of Wyndham Hotel Group in Asia Pacific. “With nearly 650 hotels in the region, these new properties further illustrate our commitment to growing our footprint and showcasing the exceptional services that we provide.”


    The new Ramada Singapore at Zhongshan Park features 384 rooms plus a restaurant, fitness centre, swimming pool, business centre and ballroom. This adds to the 405 rooms available at the Days Hotel Singapore at Zhongshan Park, which also includes a restaurant and a fitness centre.


    Wyndham now operates approximately 7,380 hotels in 66 countries under its 15 hotel brands.



    By Mark Elliott, 19 May 2013, Sunday 12:01 AM


Singapore"s Changi Airport Seeks Growth With Gold, Tuna

Changi Airport, Southeast Asia’s

largest freight airfield, plans to attract more gold bars, tuna

and vaccines to Singapore as it seeks to increase handling of

high-value cargo to make up for slowing trade.


The airport may process 7 percent more cargo by volume for

pharmaceutical products such as vaccine and test drugs, as well

as perishable goods including tuna and meat this year, James Fong, assistant vice president of cargo and logistics

development at Changi Airport Group (Singapore) Pte. Drugs are

one of the three biggest items handled by value, he said.


“An underlying demand for these things is growing with the

rise of the Asian middle class,” Fong said in a May 15

interview. “People want higher-value, higher-quality food.

Demand in North Asia is growing fast.”


The airport is offering 50 percent rebates on landing fees

since the start of the year to help cargo airlines struggling

with lower demand amid sluggish economies in the U.S. and

Europe. Changi is enticing carriers of high-yield cargo with

a tax-free maximum-security vault to store valuable art, gold

and gems, as well as Southeast Asia’s biggest refrigerated

facilities for perishable goods.


Economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region will boost

household incomes, increasing the need for higher-quality food

and luxury items, Fong said. The size of the middle class may

jump almost fivefold in 20 years, according to Airbus SAS.


Global Trade


Airlines haul about $5 trillion of cargo annually,

accounting for a third of global trade by value, according to
International Air Transport Association.


The global cargo market may increase 2.7 percent this year,

benefiting Asian carriers the most as they are the biggest

operators, according to IATA. The industry shrank 2 percent in

2012 for a second consecutive year, and airlines were filling

less than half of their cargo capacity because of weak demand in

the U.S. and Europe, according to the group.


Changi Airport handled 434,000 tons of cargo in the first

quarter, 2.2 percent less than a year earlier. Air freight may

recover next year, Fong said.


“With a more affluent population, cargo should pick up,”

said Siyi Lim, an OCBC Investment Research analyst in Singapore.

“The increase may not be pronounced yet because it takes time

to ramp up. The factors are there but it ultimately comes down

to costs. It depends on how competitive Changi wants to be.”


Fine Arts


Singapore Freeport opened in 2010 as a free-trade zone and

offers maximum-security storage services with direct access to

Changi Airport for valuables including wines, fine arts,

diamonds and gold. The facility will expand as all the space has

been leased.


Full-year growth in handling such valuable goods is

expected to reach about 16 percent, helped by a 55 percent surge

in the first quarter, Fong said.


Changi Airport has the region’s biggest facility to handle

all goods that require different temperatures, ranging from

frozen meat to flowers and vaccines, Fong said.


Coolport@Changi, the 8,000 square-meter (86,000 square-foot) facility operated by ground handler SATS Ltd. (SATS), has rooms

with temperatures ranging from minus 28 degrees Celsius (minus

18 Fahrenheit) to plus 19 degrees. The area handles about 18,000

tons of goods a month. It is Southeast Asia’s only such facility

certified under international standards.


A second temperature-controlled center run by Dnata,

another ground handler at Changi Airport, is expected to open

later this year, Fong said.


Indonesian Tuna


The ability to handle fresh produce at Changi Airport has

helped attract business for transshipment of seafood and meat

products from Australia and New Zealand to north Asia and

Europe, Fong said. The airport mainly handles seafood from

Indonesia that is flowns to Japan and China, he said.


“A lot of tuna in Japan is shipped from Indonesia,” Fong

said. “Those go to the famous fish market in Tokyo, they

auction it and it comes back again at a higher price.”


Shipping lines including Maersk Line (MAERSKB) have won cargo

business from airlines amid the global slowdown as customers

sought to cut costs when transporting items such as notebooks,

televisions and wine. There are signs that some shippers may be

turning to airfreight as the industry tests new methods, Fong

said.


“Speed is our biggest selling point,” IATA Director

General Tony Tyler said in December. “But it comes with a price

that is many times more expensive than shipping by sea.”


The airport is working with an unspecified airline and meat

producers in New Zealand to ship meat by both air and sea to cut

the transport time by about half, Fong said. Meat is now

typically transported by ship alone and takes about a month from

New Zealand to Europe, he said.


“For perishable goods, the longer you are in the mode of

transport, the lesser value you’ll get by the time you get to

the destination,” Fong said. The new offering is “something

we’re quite excited about because we see more shift this way.”


To contact the reporter on this story:

Kyunghee Park in Singapore at

kpark3@bloomberg.net


To contact the editor responsible for this story:

Vipin V. Nair at

vnair12@bloomberg.net



Enlarge image
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Singapore’s Changi Seeks Growth With Gold, Tuna


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Munshi Ahmed/Bloomberg


Changi Airport is enticing carriers of high-yield cargo with a tax-free maximum-security vault to store valuable art, gold and gems.


Changi Airport is enticing carriers of high-yield cargo with a tax-free maximum-security vault to store valuable art, gold and gems. Photographer: Munshi Ahmed/Bloomberg



Singapore"s Changi Airport Seeks Growth With Gold, Tuna

Conservatives "are out of control" over Europe says former chancellor Lord ...


  • Former minister said there was a ‘political price to pay’ for appointment

  • Mr Cameron was also dragged further into row over ‘swivel-eyed loons’

  • Lord Feldman denies making the remark about party grassroots activists

  • The PM was accused of using the insult himself last year

  • Lord Howe says David Cameron has open a political ‘Pandora’s Box’

  • He said row over lack of an EU referendum was a ‘new, almost farcical, low’

  • UKIP polls record 20 per cent support, behind Tories on 29 per cent



By

Helen Lawson




04:41 EST, 19 May 2013




|


11:27 EST, 19 May 2013




Former minister David Mellor has today criticised David Cameron for appointing his university ‘chum’ and tennis partner Lord Feldman as co-chairman of the Conservative party, as the row over an alleged ‘swivel-eyed loons’ remark about grassroots supporters intensified.


The Prime Minister was dragged deeper into the ‘swivel-eyed

loon’ row engulfing his party –  after it was claimed today that he used the

insult himself to deride Euro rebels.


Tory chairman Lord Feldman, a key member of Mr Cameron’s inner

circle, was yesterday forced to deny he had used the term against

Conservative local activists, saying the claims were ‘completely

untrue’.


72906 article 2326895 13CB5A12000005DC 118 306x423


72906 article 2326895 19D96921000005DC 806 306x423


David Mellow, left, weighed into the row, saying there was a ‘political price’ to pay for David Cameron’s appointment of his Oxford University friend and tennis partner Andrew Feldman, right


‘You can’t elevate tennis-playing friends to co-chair of the party without there being a political price to pay,’ Mr Mellor told the Daily Telegraph.


His comments came as former Cabinet minister John Redwood weighed into the row, telling BBC1′s Andrew Marr Show today that there should be disciplinary action if it was proved that someone used the insult.


Mr Redwood said: ‘If there is such a person, not named of course, they should be reprimanded because I, and my colleagues, think our members are very good people who work hard for our local communities they serve as councillors.


‘We agree with their views on Europe, we think that the European government is not working in Britain’s interest, it is taxing us too much, it is costing us too much and we want that new relationship.’



Lord Feldman said he was ‘very disappointed by the behaviour of the journalists involved’ in reporting the claims.


The newspapers who made the claims, The Times and The Daily Telegraph, are standing by their reports. A source at News International,

which owns The Times, said: ‘There is no doubt Feldman used the words

loons and swivel-eyed.’


The source said it was a ‘lie’ for Feldman and

Mr Cameron to deny it.


Mr Cameron put his reputation on the line by backing his Oxford University pal and tennis partner.


But The Mail on Sunday today disclosed that the Prime Minister was accused of using the same ‘swivel-eyed’ jibe last year.


72906 article 2326895 19DD68E3000005DC 602 634x489


Andrew Feldman, circled left, and David Cameron, right, were friends and tennis partners, and are seen here in a tennis club photograph, at Brasenose College, Oxford in the 1980s


72906 article 2326895 19DDFA99000005DC 424 634x540


Former Conservative Cabinet minister John Redwood told the Andrew Marr Show that the person who made the ‘swivel-eyed loons’ comment should be reprimanded by the party


It

is a matter of public record that Mr Cameron called UKIP supporters

‘fruitcakes, loonies and closet racists’ – although he rowed back after

UKIP’s success in the recent local elections.


Lord Feldman was accused of making

the ‘swivel-eyed loons’ remark to journalists at a London hotel.


They reported that an unnamed ‘close

ally’ of the Prime Minister blamed Tory activists for pressuring MPs to

take hardline stances on Europe.


They said he stated: ‘There’s really

no problem. The MPs just have to do it because the [Tory] associations

tell them to, and the associations are all mad, swivel-eyed loons.’


But yesterday afternoon, after crisis

talks with Mr Cameron, and amid growing claims on Twitter that the

unnamed person was Lord Feldman, the peer issued a statement, saying the

allegations against him were ‘completely untrue’ and he was considering

legal action.


‘I did

not, nor have ever, described our associations in this way or in any

similar manner. Nor do these alleged comments represent my view of our

activists,’ he said.


‘On the contrary,  I have found them to be hard-working, committed and reasonable people, the backbone of the party.’


Conservative vice-chairman Bob Neill attacked the press over the ‘swivel-eyed loons’ story.


He

told Sky News’ Murnaghan programme that Lord Feldman had ‘denied very

explicitly that he said it’.


72906 article 2326895 19CC00FD000005DC 330 634x422


Mr Cameron has put his full support behind his tennis partner Andrew Feldman


He added: ‘I think we have to be very, very

wary of this, I think, rather slipshod bit of journalism where neither

he nor Downing Street were ever approached for comment.’


Mr Neill said he had never heard Lord Feldman ‘or anyone in central office or in Downing Street say anything of that kind’.


In a high-risk gamble, Mr Cameron fully backed Lord Feldman.


A

No 10 spokesman said: ‘The Prime Minister supports Lord Feldman’s

position. It is categorically untrue that anyone in Downing Street made

the comments reported in The Times and the Telegraph.’


Feldman

was ennobled and made co-chairman of the Tory party by Cameron, who has

been his friend and tennis partner since they met at Oxford University.


A titanic trial of strength between

No 10 and the two newspapers now seems inevitable. Defeat for Feldman

would force him to resign and could inflict potentially catastrophic

damage to Mr Cameron.


Grant Shapps, who shares the party

chairman role with Lord Feldman, questioned the accuracy of the

potentially incendiary remark reported in a number of papers, claiming:

‘I don’t believe it’s ever been said.’


In an effort to avoid a damaging rift

with Tory volunteers, a party spokesman said the Prime Minister had the

‘highest regard’ for the Conservative Party’s activists and praised

their ‘incredibly hard work’.


Tory

MP Brian Binley said if the remarks were made it would not be a

surprise because the leadership has a ‘disdainful’ view of the party’s

volunteers.


f4758 article 2326895 1565AD5F000005DC 599 634x431


Conservative Party chairman Grant Shapps has questioned whether media reports of a senior Tory calling activists ‘swivel-eyed loons’ are accurate


Mr Binley, a

member of the party board which is chaired by Lord Feldman, said: ‘I

certainly will be wanting to know more about it when we have our next

board meeting.’


He said: ‘Certainly the gap between

the party leadership and the party’s voluntary sector in the country is

sizeable. I have made that complaint again and again.’


Mr

Binley added: ‘If this was said, by whoever, it would not surprise me.

There has been a disdainful view of the voluntary party.’


But Mr Shapps disputed the papers’ version of events, setting the party’s high command on collision course with the press.


He compared the row to the ‘plebgate’

stories surrounding former chief whip Andrew Mitchell and internet

rumours against peer Lord McAlpine which have resulted in libel claims.



PM’S ‘CHUMOCRACY’: SURROUNDED BY ETONIANS AND OXFORD FRIENDS


f4758 article 2326895 0E349CD600000578 583 306x423


Old Etonian Jo Johnson was David Cameron’s latest appointment of a friend to his political inner circle


Lord Feldman, educated at the elite Haberdashers’ Aske’s School, was elevated to the Lords and made co-chairman of the Conservative Party by Mr Cameron, who has been his friend and tennis partners since they studied together at Brasenose College, Oxford from 1985-1988.


Since coming to power in 2010, Eton-educated Mr Cameron has surrounded himself with fellow old Etonians and university friends, leaving him open to criticism that he only wants to listen to those from similar backgrounds in his ‘chumocracy’.


Last month, he appointed Jo Johnson, brother of London mayor Boris, to lead the Number 10 Policy Unit, while he counts fellow school Jesse Norman and Sebastian James as advisors.


His chief of staff Ed Llewellyn also went to Eton and Oxford, while deputy chief of staff Kate Fall is another of Cameron’s university pals.


Chief Whip Sir George Young and Cabinet office minister Oliver Letwin attended Eton, as did the Chancellor’s chief economics advisor Rupert Harrison, who was the school’s head boy.


George Osborne himself was educated at the elite St Paul’s school before Oxford, while Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg went to Westminster School and Cambridge.


Another recent policy appointment, former journalist Christopher Lockwood, was schooled at St Paul’s, as was minister Ed Vaizey, who later became vice-president of the Oxford Union.


Education Secretary Michael Gove was at Oxford at the same time as the Prime Minister, becoming president of the Oxford Union. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt was another of Cameron’s contemporaries at the university, after attending Charterhouse school.


Attorney General Dominic Grieve attended Westminster school before Oxford, serving as president of the university’s Conservative Assocation in 1977.



Asked

who was behind the ‘swivel-eyed loons’ remark at the Conservative Friends

of Pakistan event on Wednesday, Mr Shapps told Channel 4 News: ‘Unfortunately I

can’t reveal the answer to that, simply because I was not there and as

far as we are aware it was not even said, but we just don’t know.’


He

added: ‘I don’t believe anyone senior would say this type of thing,

it’s not an attitude or a view I have ever heard expressed in No 10, in

Central Office, we respect and work with people who work incredibly hard

as volunteers, unpaid, for the party.


‘I’m

trying to make clear, I don’t believe it’s ever been said. You can

always run a story that said there were 250 people in a room and one of

them said this.


‘The trouble is with this story we don’t know who is supposed to have said it.’


Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt told the

Andrew Marr Show: ‘The person who is alleged to have said that has

denied it, I know the individual and trust him. He is a man of great

honour.


f4758 article 2326895 19DDF9DC000005DC 703 634x515


On BBC1′s Andrew Marr Show today, Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Lord Howe’s views did not ‘represent the reality’ of the situation and insisted the Tories were united over Europe


‘The views of those people are incredibly important to the DNA of the policies we put into place.’


Lord Feldman added that he was ‘very

disappointed by the behaviour of the journalists involved, who have

allowed rumour and innuendo to take hold by not putting these

allegations to me before publication’.


f4758 article 2326895 03A7E69100000514 615 306x423


Lord Howe has launched a scathing attack on David Cameron, saying the Prime Minister seems to be losing control of the Tory party


Number 10

said the Prime Minister ‘supports Lord Feldman’s position’ and it was

‘categorically untrue that anyone in Downing Street made the comments’.


A Tory spokesman said: ‘The Prime

Minister, like every member of the Cabinet, has the highest regard for

the Conservative Party’s activists – for their patriotism, their

dedication, their incredible hard work at elections and between

elections and the time they give of their own free will to the

Conservative cause.’


Relations

between the party leadership and grassroots traditionalists have been

strained by Mr Cameron’s support for gay marriage, the coalition with

the Liberal Democrats and the perennially difficult issue of Europe.


Today former chancellor Lord Howe claimed the Prime Minister is losing control of his party as the

Conservatives’ ‘long, nervous breakdown’ over Europe continues.


Lord

Howe, whose differences with Baroness Thatcher over Europe led to his

resignation and triggered her downfall, said Mr Cameron had ‘opened a

Pandora’s box politically’ through his plan to renegotiate the UK’s

relationship with the European Union.


His

attack came as polls showed record highs of support for UKIP, with one

showing Nigel Farage’s anti-EU party would be backed by 20 per cent of

the British public if a general election were to be held now.


In a strongly-worded attack Lord Howe said the Tory leadership was ‘running scared’ of its backbenchers and had allowed Euroscepticism to ‘infect the very soul of the party’.


Writing in The Observer, Lord Howe said the row over the lack of legislation paving the way for the Prime Minister’s referendum by 2017, which led to a total of 116 Tories opposing the Government’s legislative programme, marked a ‘new, almost farcical, low’ for the party.



RECORD POLL HIGH FOR UKIP


The UK Independence Party surge has continued with two opinion polls giving the party record levels of support.


An Opinium poll put Nigel Farage’s party on 20 per cent, while a ComRes survey put them on 19 per cent.


The

ComRes poll for the Sunday Mirror and Independent on Sunday found

support for Nigel Farage’s party was up 4 per cent since the last survey

a month ago, with Labour down three points to 35 per cent, the

Conservatives down one to 29 per cent and the Liberal Democrats were

unchanged on 8 per cent.


The Opinium poll for the Observer put Labour on 37 per cent, Tories on 27 per cent and the Lib Dems on 7 per cent.


According

to the ComRes study 46 per cent of Britons would vote to leave the

European Union in a referendum now, compared with 24 per cent who would

stay in.


But if some powers

were returned to the UK from Brussels 43 per cent would vote to remain

in the EU, with just 24 per cent determined to see Britain leave.


The

poll found only 26 per cent said David Cameron was a good prime

minister, a record low in ComRes studies, while 31 per cent believed Ed

Miliband was performing well as Labour leader, a new high.


The

ComRes survey also revealed that 57 per cent of voters believed Mr

Cameron’s party was more divided over Europe than it was under Sir John

Major, with 14 per cent disagreeing.


But

there was some comfort for the Prime Minister, with 49 per cent of

voters saying the offer of a European referendum would be important to

them at the next general election, with 27 per cent disagreeing.


And

32 per cent believed Mr Cameron would make the best prime minister of

the party leaders, with 24 per cent opting for Mr Miliband.


He wrote: ‘Sadly, by making it clear in January that he opposes the current terms of UK membership of the EU, the Prime Minister has opened a Pandora’s box politically and seems to be losing control of his party in the process.


‘The ratchet-effect of Euroscepticism has now gone so far that the Conservative leadership is in effect running scared of its own backbenchers, let alone Ukip, having allowed deep anti-Europeanism to infect the very soul of the party.


‘The risk now is that, if it loses the next general election – a far from negligible possibility – the Conservative party will move to a position of simply opposing Britain’s continued membership, with or without a referendum.’


Lord Howe said the United States looked to the UK to play a leading role in Europe and leaving the EU would ‘be a tragic expression of our shrinking influence and role in the word’.


The former chancellor added it would represent ‘the humbling of our ambitions, already sorely tested by the current crisis, to remain a serious political or economic player on the global stage’.


He claimed ‘clear thinking’ and ‘strong leadership’ was needed to protect the UK’s status within the EU.


‘Last

week has shown that the Conservative party’s long, nervous breakdown

over Europe continues and what is essentially a Tory problem is now,

once again, becoming a national problem.


‘Serious mistakes have been made, but the situation is not irretrievable,’ he wrote.


‘What

is needed is a mixture of clear thinking, strong leadership and an

overriding concern for the national interest, not party management or

advantage.


‘If the

Conservative party is losing its head, a heavy responsibility now rests

with Labour and the Liberal Democrats to hold their nerve and stick to a

path they know to be right.


‘In the complex and interdependent world we inhabit today, to walk away from the European Union into the unknown would be a very dangerous choice indeed.’


Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt insisted

the Tory party was ‘absolutely united’ on the issue of Europe and Lord

Howe’s views did not ‘represent the reality’ of the situation.


He told BBC1′s Andrew Marr Show: ‘If you look at the substance of the issue, the Conservative Party is absolutely united.


‘We look at the European Union and we

worry about Britain’s ability to compete in the global race, we look at

the regulations and the red tape that comes from Europe, yesterday some

new regulation about selling olive oil in restaurants.


‘If you go into the boardrooms in New York or Tokyo or Singapore they think the European economy is frankly a joke.’


f4758 article 2326895 00F3294800000191 782 634x418


Lord Howe’s differences with Baroness Thatcher over Europe led to his resignation and triggered her downfall


Mr Cameron was ‘showing leadership’

on Europe by promising to work to change the relationship with Brussels

and the Tories were the only party prepared to ‘do the heavy lifting on

this’.


Mr Hunt added: ‘Of course we have a

debate. Patriotism runs deep in the veins of all Conservatives and when

you have an issue of sovereignty it’s something we debate fiercely.’


But he said ‘don’t underestimate

David Cameron’ because he had shown through his use of the veto and

securing a cut in the EU budget ‘this is someone who has delivered a

very great deal’.






The comments below have not been moderated.



Do these people exit the womb in a suit and tie?



Englishman

,


Mansfield,

19/5/2013 20:42



David Cameron made his friend a Lord and promoted him to be chair of the party. The whole honours system is based on cronyism. Worthless baubles



Simply The Best

,


Glasgow,

19/5/2013 20:36



That’s OK. This swivel eyed loon is now a UKIP member.



molly

,


South Shields,

19/5/2013 20:31



After these comments I used to be Conservative but now I am UKIP.



Ted

,


Donny, United Kingdom,

19/5/2013 20:19



life on a plate; all down to his fathers wealth; didn’t ignite anything at Carlton tv ; no self made men in conservative govt; just people who are used to receiving on a wink and a handshake; social mobility scroungers; no real ability or talent;



fedupgeordie

,


Newcastle,

19/5/2013 20:16



I blame Cameron’s nanny she should not let him out of the nursery.



Zippy

,


Richmond UK,

19/5/2013 20:14



Toffs looking after Toffs No suprises here



NZ Brit

,


NZ, United Kingdom,

19/5/2013 20:03



Lord Howe: ‘David Cameron Is Losing Control’


GEOFFREY HOWE WAS ALWAYS A TRAITOROUS EU LOVING FOOL SO NO CHANGE THERE


If the UK political parties do not listen to the voices of UK voters they will all be out leaving only UKIP the winner.


If Cameron was replaced by a more right-wing PM who was prepared to work with UKIP and secure REAL CHANGE that would break the coalition leading to a General Election which the Tory party would stand a good chance of winning ¿ at present they stand NO CHANCE.



Fiona

,


Northampton, United Kingdom,

19/5/2013 20:00



what a bunch of toffs who are so disconnected to the reality of the real worlds. It should be a requirement that every Prime Minister should have a background of hardship: have had two jobs just to make ends meat, work long hours etc. all these snobs getting into power know nothing of real world and real people. UKIP UKIP UKIP



cdst20

,


cardiff, United Kingdom,

19/5/2013 19:53



Yukky Yahhs! Gawd whats happened to the UK?????? Has it gone back 100 yrs.? Can I have a butler now please?? GET THEM OUT!!!!



sequinn

,


Crete, Greece,

19/5/2013 19:40




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Conservatives "are out of control" over Europe says former chancellor Lord ...