A burning issue: The supposed rapport between Prime Ministers Narendra Modi and Boris Johnson will soon have to pass the test of fire, of coal-based fire at any rate. Following the dire new IPCC report on climate change, Boris Johnson said it’s clear what needs to be done. To “consign coal to history” is about the first step, he suggested. Not something India is prepared to do in a hurry. The two leaders will soon have more to say to one another on this, that may not all be pleasant.
A good defence: It should surprise no one that both Nirav Modi and Julian Assange have the same lawyer defending them. Nor that Edward Fitzgerald has expertise in defending people reporting mental health issues. Or that he is amongst the most expensive barristers there is. Assange is not short of friends, nor Nirav Modi short of money.
Greensill ghost back to haunt Cameron: Disputes are returning to circle former prime minister David Cameron’s association with Greensill, the principal finance company that backed Sanjeev Gupta’s Liberty steel group. A BBC investigation suggests that the Greensill paid Cameron 10 million dollars before it collapsed earlier this year. Cameron was investigated, and then mostly cleared over charges that he lobbied unfairly on behalf of the company. But new revelations have brought new clouds over the issue.
What goes up must come down; but not always: There hasn’t been an icon to match Britain’s industrialisation in the 19th century to match Tower Bridge. The bridge had eight sets of mechanisms to open it, to satisfy doubting directors and their misgivings over fallback systems in case one failed after another. It was embarrassing for London therefore to see it fail well into the 21st century. It had opened on Monday to let a ship through but then got jammed until that was sorted later. The bridge was operated by steam power when it opened in 1894 and switched to electricity in 1976.
Tailor-made allies: Fashion designer Sabyasachi’s long-awaited collaboration with the H&M stores is set to go public on Thursday this week, following delays due to the pandemic. The collection titled Wanderlust features what have been described as rich Indian textiles in bold silhouettes. Sabyasachi said in a statement that the new collection spreads the “Sabyasachi aesthetic to a wider audience in India and worldwide.”
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