Premier League clubs will not be allowed to sign players from European Union (EU) countries without a work permit while foreign players under the age of 18 cannot be signed at all as part of post-Brexit regulations, the league said on Tuesday.
In a joint statement with the country’s governing soccer body (FA) and the English Football League (EFL), the Premier League said the regulations will come into effect when the mid-season transfer window opens in January 2021.
With the UK leaving the EU’s orbit on Dec. 31, following a standstill transition period, the league submitted the Governing Body Endorsement (GBE) proposal to the government last month and it has been approved by The Home Office.
“Post-Brexit, clubs will not be able to sign players freely from the EU,” the league said in a statement https://www.premierleague.com/news/1922063.
“Players from EU countries who want to play in the Premier League or EFL will be required to gain a GBE, like all other overseas players without the right to work in the UK.”
The criteria to sign players is based on a points system which considers the number of senior and youth international appearances, club appearances as well as the quality of the selling club, its league position and the league itself.
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“Players accumulating the requisite amount of points will earn a GBE automatically, while players just below the threshold may be considered for a GBE by an Exceptions Panel,” it added.
However, under the new rules, clubs will no longer be allowed to sign overseas players until they turn 18.
Premier League clubs will be allowed to sign a maximum of three Under-21 players in January and will be limited to six per season.
The regulations will be reviewed in full before the close season transfer window which opens after the 2020-21 season ends.
Moving forward with faith: Religion and politics in a Biden presidency
How will faith influence the direction of the Biden administration?
What agenda will various religious institutions pursue?
Can religion be a force for healing the nation’s deep political, ideological and racial divides?
Join us for a Zoom panel discussion between our journalists and noted faith leaders as we explore what role religion will play in the public square during the coming years. Hosted by The Associated Press, Religion News Service and The Conversation. Open to the public.
Thursday, December 3, 2020 at 4p.m. EST
Register now for the event
Meet the moderator:
Peter Smith, former president of the Religion News Association and religion reporter at the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Meet the panelists:
Dilshad D. Ali, the former editor-in-chief of Altmuslim, is an editor at Haute Hijab, and a member of Religion News Service’s journalism advisory board.
Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner, CEO and co-founder of Skinner Leadership Institute and co-convener of the National African American Clergy Network.
Dr. Steven P. Millies, an associate professor of public theology and the director of The Bernardin Center at Catholic Theological Union.
Dr. Russell Moore, theologian and president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention.
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About Religion News Service, LLC Religion News Service is an independent, nonprofit and award-winning source of global news on religion, spirituality, culture and ethics, reported by a staff of professional journalists. RNS is not affiliated with any religious tradition. Founded in 1934, RNS seeks to inform readers with objective reporting and insightful commentary and is relied upon by commercial and faith-based news organizations in a number of countries. RNS is a subsidiary of Religion News Foundation and is affiliated with the Missouri School of Journalism at the University of Missouri.
About AP The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the most trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day, more than half the world’s population sees news from AP.
About The Conversation The Conversation US launched in October 2014 with funding from six foundations. It is an independent source of commentary and analysis from the academic and research community, delivered direct to the public. A team of professional editors work with academic scholars to unlock their knowledge to then be shared with the wider public. Access to trusted, independent, high quality, authenticated, explanatory journalism is critical to a functioning democracy. Our goal is to promote better understanding of current affairs and complex issues leading to a better quality of public discourse.
From “Chateau Chunder from Down Under” to a global wine leader, in 75 years Australian grape and table wine production has evolved from a cottage industry into one of the world’s most popular wine producers.
Grapes have been grown in Australia since European settlement.
In fact, Australia has some of the oldest grape vines in the world because many of Europe’s established vineyards were destroyed by the pest phylloxera in the 1800s.
However in 1945, if you drank Australian wine there was a good chance it was fortified.
More than 80 per cent of the Australian-made wines then were sweet sherry, brandy and port styles because they were more suitable for storage and transport.
However that was all about to change with the post-war immigration push.
The Europeans who moved to Australia after World War II brought with them a preference for table wine with meals.
Fifth-generation winemaker Stephen Henschke celebrates 75 years of Australian viticulture and winemaking.(Supplied: Dragan Radocaj)
Stephen Henschke’s family have been producing wine in the Barossa Valley for 152 years and this year they won James Halliday’s 2021 Winery of the Year.
The fifth-generation winemaker said the post-war immigrants had a “fun food culture” whereas Australians traditionally were pretty dominated by the traditional British meat and three veg.
As people started to become more affluent with a disposable income, they also began to want wine with their meals.
“Anybody who was slightly more elevated in terms of income tended to drink French wines, so that was the see-saw against Australian wine — it was considered plonk and not as desirable,” Mr Henschke said.
As Australia’s population and drinking preference changed so too did where grapes were grown.
Being such a large country Australia’s climate and soils are extremely variable, and that allowed for the production of all the major wine styles, from full-bodied reds and fruity whites, sparkling, dessert and fortified wines.
Emeritus Professor Peter Dry has had a long career in viticulture.(Supplied: Peter Dry)
Traditionally grapes had been grown in warm regions, sown into deep alluvial soils on valley floors such as the Barossa Valley, Swan Valley, McLaren Vale and Clare Valley. But as table wine became more popular, cooler climate regions opened up.
Viticultural scientist, Emeritus Professor Peter Dry AM believed one of the reasons for the success of Australian wine was the emergence of cooler climate wine regions.
Through the 1960s and 1970s there was enormous growth in grape plantings.
Regions such as Coonawarra, Yarra Valley and the Eden Valley had, up until the 1960s, only produced small quantities of wine.
In the 1970s the Adelaide Hills was revitalised, Tasmania began producing commercial quantities of wine, and Victoria’s King Valley started to flourish.
In the late 1970s Margaret River was opened up, and regions such as Padthaway started to get planted up.
Barossa Valley bush grape vines in the 1970s.(Supplied: Peter Dry)
“So [cool regions] have been extremely important because some varieties, such as Pinot Noir, don’t produce good wines in warm regions — they have to be grown in cool regions,” Professor Dry said.
“Some of the new regions were started off simply by keen amateurs.
“In other cases by wine companies that needed to develop wine regions in these cool climates … and there was some serious climate evaluation and site selection involved.”
Doing it the Australian way
Australia’s broad climate range has also had a huge effect on viticulture and wine production.
As a result not only does wine produced in Australia taste different to wine of the same variety produced overseas, it can also vary enormously within Australia as well.
Being a “New World” wine Australian grape growers and wine producers have had more freedom to experiment with wine than some European countries and this has allowed Australians to produce wine their way.
Viticulturalist Prue Henschke has long wanted to make her vineyards look Australian.
Prue Henschke inspects a Christmas bush flower.(ABC Rural: Marty McCarthy)
“We’re not restricted by appellation so that’s meant we can explore new varieties, new roots stocks, new everything, we can change around on its head and see how it performs,” Ms Henschke said.
Irrigation made it possible for wine to be grown in new regions and from there Australia has developed vine and canopy management techniques that have been used throughout the world.
“Cultivation’s gone, because it was really starting to wreck our our soils … and we started looking preservation of organic matter and moisture,” Ms Henschke said.
Professor Dry said Australia took on mechanisation of harvesting and pruning much earlier than anywhere else in the world.
“We used irrigation because we didn’t have the summer rainfall that the Europeans have,” Professor Dry said.
“The Europeans used to make disparaging remarks about the fact Australian vineyards used irrigation, now things have changed enormously … and because their climate is changing they’ve realised they need to irrigate as well.”
The development of an Australian icon
Australia’s varied climate and soils mean grapes can be grown in all states and territories(Supplied: John Kruger)
As more vineyards were planted the Australian taste for wine evolved.
“Red wine was probably the most popular wine in 60s, in the 70s it changed because there was a trend towards white wine drinking because of our climate, and our sunshine, and eating more of those fun foods and the wine was riesling,” Stephen Henschke said.
“It was only in the 1980s chardonnay started to be talked about.”
By the late 1980s Australian wines had burst on to the international market, riding on a wave of Australian international promotion like the ‘Shrimp on the Barbie’ campaign and winning the America’s Cup yacht race.
Big, bold and affordable, Australia’s wines were sought after and one grape variety started to shine through.
That grape was shiraz.
It was one of the early grape varieties brought to Australia and had been used for years for blending and to produce fortified wine.
Fortunately it was fairly easy to grow, was resilient in most climates and it adapted well from a fortified wine to a table wine.
Winemaker Max Schubert was one of the pioneering winemakers at that time and he wanted to create a great Australian red wine that was capable of cellaring for 20 years.
Created initially as an experimental vintage in 1951, it is now worth thousands of dollars.(Supplied: Penfolds)
He developed the Penfolds Grange through the 1950s and 1960s and it has gone on to become one of the world’s most iconic and collected wines.
Shiraz is Australia’s number one produced wine grape overall and despite a decrease in 2020 due to the season and bushfires the 2020 harvest yielded a crush of 376,000 tonnes.
And a big part of what has driven demand for red wine, in particular shiraz, in recent years has been the Chinese consumer’s taste for it.
“Overall this has led to a marked shift in demand for red varietals from premium temperate climate regions such as the Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Coonawarra, and premium cool climate regions such as the Mornington Peninsula and Tasmania, over fruit from the more commercial warm inland regions,” Mr Soccio said.
In 1981, 8 million litres were exported, in 2020 Australia was the world’s fifth largest wine exporter with more than 60 per cent of the country’s wine exported.
Over the past year, more than 770 million litres have been sent to 117 destinations world wide.
The Chinese market is worth almost four times as much to Australian winemakers as the second most valuable market, the United States.
Aussie ingenuity
Whether it has been innovative techniques in the vineyards, brave winemaking and a willingness to experiment with alternative varieties and organic wine production, Australia’s grape and wine production has a history of innovation.
Angove’s employee Bill Marshall pours a glass of wine from an early version of the cask.(Supplied: Angoves Family Wines)
In the past 75 years there have been some Australian inventions that have revolutionised wine worldwide.
Before cask wine was invented bulk wine was available in half-gallon flagons, but the wine spoilt quickly.
In the 1960s Tom Angove, from Renmark, was interested in the airless flow technique for wine and came up with the idea for cask wine.
Chairman of Angove Family Winemakers John Angove watched on as his father developed and patented the innovation in 1965 that would eventually be used across the world.
“It had a lot of initial shortcomings. Other developments subsequent to that made it a viable package but the fundamental package was something Dad dreamed up and it’s worked ever since,” Mr Angove said.
“Wine prior to that was perhaps a little more elite, and it opened up the opportunity for more people to enjoy wine,” he said.
The world can also thank Clare Valley winemaker Jeffery Grosset for introducing the world to screw caps instead of cork.
“Jeff Grosset was sick of drinking corked wines so he in collaboration with the Wine Research Institute started investigating the use of the screw caps,” Professor Dry said.
“A lot of people thought we’ll just use them for our cheap wines and we’ll continue to put our expensive wine in cork because the consumers won’t like it, but people like Jeff were very brave and put their best wines in the screw top.”
And with that spirit of innovation, the investment the country has made in oenology and viticulture degrees has helped the industry become a world leader in a relatively short time in wine years.
Organisations such as the National Wine Centre and university degrees in viticulture and oenology are helping Australia lead the world in research and education.
Too much of a good thing
It hasn’t all be smooth sailing.
The wine boom and bust cycles have been cyclical and at times savage, with overproduction causing enormous heartache for the industry.
In the late 1980s, before exports really took off, the South Australian Government began its vine pull scheme where growers were paid to remove unproductive to overcome a glut of wine grapes.
Valuable old Barossa Valley wines.(Supplied: Vinehealth Australia)
“It was a disaster, we lost huge tracts of beautiful old Grenache, Mataro, Shiraz and even Riesling that people would die to have these days,” Mr Henschke said.
“So, that’s why our limited resources of those old vines are so precious because they’re a museum for the whole world,” he said.
Low grape prices in the mid 2000s and again in 2010–11 also saw calls for another sponsored grape pull and many grape producers left the industry or ripped vines out.
“We’ve also has Asian Financial Crisis, the GFC and now we’re got COVID.
“We’ve had these booms and busts but Australia’s positioned incredibly well in the world I think, even with our limited resources of water,” Mr Henschke.
“I think we’ve got the creativity of people’s imagination to make wines of almost unlimited styles and grape varieties to keep on creating intrigue for people.”
And that creativity will be needed for the Australian wine industry to tackle the next 75 years.
Adapting for the future
Given it is an industry that draws on the soil and climate for its identity, a changing climate has always played a role in the industry.
A world-first research document known as the Australian Climate Atlas has been developed to help them do that.
Gilli Lipscombe from Sailor Seeks Horse Wines, in Tasmania, is pleased to have information to adapt to the future.(ABC Landline: Mitchell Woolnough)
Paul and Gilli Lipscombe moved to Tasmania’s Huon Valley to grow Pinot Noir in what they call “marginal” country.
“To have really detailed numbers and projections for the next 20, 30, 40, 50 years, it’s hugely beneficial,” Ms Lipscombe said.
“We can make really concrete plans on what we need to do and how we need to approach the next few decades.”
One of Australia’s big advantages in the face of climate change the lack of restrictions on which grapes can be grown and where.
“We have always been very adaptable and we have been introducing new varieties for a very long time and we use at least 160 grape varieties for our wine in Australia, but of course there’s only about 15 to 20 varieties that produce about 90 per cent of our wines,” Professor Dry said.
“But at least we’re introducing these varieties and evaluating them, and varieties such as Fiano which has had a huge impact.
“We have introduced a lot of varieties that are much better adapted to hot climates than the existing varieties or the more traditional varieties that we have been growing,” he said.
Along with embracing non-traditional varieties, biodynamics organics and sustainable farming techniques are increasingly being adopted as the age-old mission of grape and wine making looks to the future.
South Australia’s Riverland has all the ingredients to produce world-class organic vineyards.(ABC Rural: Tom Nancarrow)
Church history – BYU religion professor Anthony Sweat released a book in November that has been seven years in the making.
“Repicturing the Restoration” shares 25 original paintings depicting art from Church history in new ways. Sweat had the idea in 2013 to create a book full of his artwork to aid in understanding the history and doctrine of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
“As I taught our church’s history and doctrine, I just started to notice that there were a lot of really important scenes of the restoration that had never been visually depicted or had not been depicted consistent with historical record,” Sweat said.
His idea for a book began with a discussion with his colleagues who were writing a book about the translation of the Book of Mormon. Sweat thought about certain accounts that had never been depicted through art and decided to complete a painting for their book.
His image for their book was of Joseph Smith translating using a hat. He described his portrayal of the account using a hat as something positive. In the past, images of Smith translating using a hat were done to negatively represent the Church.
Sweat then compiled a list of other important topics from Church history which hadn’t been painted according to historical context. One of the ideas he came across was the ordination of Black men, such as Q. Walker Lewis, to the priesthood.
“The ordination of Q. Walker Lewis is a powerfully moving depiction,” said Scott Esplin, publications director at the Religious Studies Center and professor of Church history and doctrine.
Alex Baugh, chair of the Church History department, described the painting as “pathbreaking art.”
Sweat explained Church history can be difficult to understand at times because of a lack of visuals.
“Those who are alive today are the first people who have really been raised on an abundant visual church curriculum,” Sweat said.
Esplin said “Repicturing the Restoration” invites the Spirit in ways reading without art might not. “I learned that art, including art of historical events, might move me spiritually, but that doesn’t necessarily reflect the historical reality of what the event was,” Esplin said. He added Sweat did a great job combining the history and art accurately.
“It’s not a typical art book. It’s a powerful way to teach and to convey historical meaning and interpretation,” Baugh said. He said he has used these paintings with Sweat’s permission in the religion classes he teaches. These images have helped his students learn difficult concepts in Church history.
Each of the 25 paintings in the book was completed solely by Sweat, but he had help from friends and colleagues who modeled for him and edited the book. “There’s always other people you rely on and need,” he said.
The Religious Study Center at BYU published the book, and the process involved a peer review by scholars, editing and proofing.
The book depicts the former ability women in the Church had to give blessings to the sick. (Anthony Sweat)
In the book, Sweat writes about the background behind each piece. “I also include an analysis of the painting. It teaches you how to be visually literate, which is a big part of the book,” Sweat said. He also explained how the art applies to current members of the Church.
“Every painting has those four sections of background image: analyzing the artistic image and application, and an analysis with questions,” Sweat said.
He said everyone who picks up the book must recognize the difference between art and history. He hopes his book will broaden and deepen readers’ understanding of significant parts of Church history. “In art, let art do art’s job, and let history be history’s job, and this book is trying to bring them both together so that they can work together,” Sweat said.
“Repicturing the Restoration” is available at Deseret Book.
But while some might cheer these as victories in a culture war, judicial intervention on behalf of religion may well only widen the gap between people of faith and the very institutions that they seek to protect.
Once the center of ethics and forward-thinking intellectualism, religion has become widely associated with hypocrisy and medieval phobias of science. For years we’ve heard about religious scandal, abuse and embezzlement; we can now add anti-mask zealotry.
In 1985, Americans regarded religious organizations as the most revered institutions, with nearly 70% of Americans expressing strong confidence in them. Today, that number hovers around 36%. Many religious institutions and leaders have become recalcitrant. Many of those who come to them seeking meaning, integrity and connection have left for greener pastures.
Little surprise, then, that between 6,000 and 10,000 churches shuttered and closed each year of the past decade — with a dramatic rise during the pandemic. Even if the Supreme Court allows church and synagogue doors to remain open, it cannot fill the pews.
If anything, its overreach will reinforce the association between religion and closed-mindedness. Many evangelicals don’t want their loved ones lambasted for being LGBTQ. Many Catholics don’t want to hear about damnation for those who access reproductive health care. Many mainline Protestants don’t want to hear about a universal God who needs them to be in a particular church’s pews. Many Jews don’t want to hear that Israel is a panacea for their diaspora needs. Many Muslims don’t want to visit a mosque in which women are relegated to side entrances.
The stark mismatch between spiritual needs and religious supply is not an indicator of secularization. Only 21% of religiously unaffiliated people are atheists, even as the fastest growing demographic of spiritual America is those who identify as “spiritual but not religious,” comprising 27% of Americans.
Americans are desperately seeking meaning and authentic connection. The booming global wellness industry shows how we prioritize mental, physical and spiritual health more than ever. The pandemic, spurring us to make sense of suffering, has become an existential “boundary experience.” Younger Americans are religiously disaffiliated but still looking to spiritual care providers for solace.
Indeed, there is reason to believe we are at the cusp of a 21st-century spiritual revival — if only religious institutions would get out of their own way.
One step they might take is to stop leaning on the judiciary for support. Appealing to the Supreme Court for permission to hold superspreader events only underscores the extent to which some religious institutions overlook the divine in each person. They would do well to serve the deeper needs of humanity.
In the early 19th century, the Second Great Awakening burst forth, as spiritual and communal yearning ignited a religious revival. Governments everywhere eliminated state subsidies and got out of the way of religion, unleashing a new footrace for hearts, minds and spirits. New modes of worship, new theologies, new leadership models and new understandings of belonging adapted religion to the frontier of nation and life.
According to Steven Waldman’s 2019 book “Sacred Liberty,” in 1776 there were 65 Methodist churches in the entire country; by 1850, there were 13,302. In 1784 there were 471 Baptist churches; in 1848 there were 7,920. The percentage of Americans who were affiliated with a house of worship doubled during this time period.
Where the Supreme Court sees dwindling traditions that require protection from the state, we see the beginnings of a new spiritual wave based on a free market of spiritual ideas. The powers that be would do well not to undermine it.
(Rabbi Benjamin Spratt is the senior associate rabbi at Congregation Rodeph Sholom in New York. Rabbi Joshua Stanton is spiritual co-leader of East End Temple there and a senior fellow of CLAL – The National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. The views expressed in this commentary do not necessarily represent those of Religion News Service.)
Four years after his death, the killer – or killers – of student Mr. Regeni still remain unknown.
He went missing in Cairo on 25 January 2016 – his disfigured body was found nine days later in a ditch by the side of a highway.
A post-mortem examination found he had endured torture before his death from a broken neck.
His murder caused a diplomatic spat between Cairo and Rome, with Italian prosecutors accusing Egyptian officials of misleading the investigation.
Now, Italian prosecutors are reported to be planning to put up to five members of the Egyptian security forces on trial in Italy in absentia.
They suspect Regeni was killed by Egyptian security forces because of his research into independent trade unions, a subject fraught with controversy in Egypt.
For their part, the Egyptians deny the accusations and say the student may have been the victim of a mugging.
On hearing of the suspension of the investigation, Regeni’s family called on the Italian government to recall its ambassador to Egypt.
To back up and ask a fundamental question: Is Sophie alive or dead? In the opening pages, she tells us she’s been killed, hit by a car after leaving the hairdresser. One short section near the middle of the novel, formatted like a play, presents a kind of afterlife tribunal in which Ezra and Sophie’s father argue with orthodox Hungarian rabbis for possession of her soul. Meta moments like these in “Divorcing” more frequently feel like feints toward experimentation than an impediment to understanding. This is especially true in the novel’s second half, which more conventionally recounts Sophie’s early life in Budapest; her voyage, in 1939 at 10 years old, to live in America with her father; and a return trip to Europe later in life.
Introducing Sophie in her adult distractibility and distress and then going backward to show her family’s life in prewar Europe is a rewarding strategy. What could have seemed like a clever but shallow way to do some Freudian searching is much richer, a kind of historical novella within the novel, amplifying Sophie’s character and offering a detailed view of the world that made her. “Her sense of the matter was that things were generally hopeless and that there was no place for her anywhere,” Taubes writes of the adult Sophie. “The world in which she would have wanted to live had ended — before Hiroshima, before Auschwitz.”
In Budapest, we see Sophie’s family gathering to celebrate Passover despite none of them being particularly religious. “Religion was something old and shabby; it was a dusty ugly piece of furniture you were ashamed to have in your own house, even in the back room, but you couldn’t get rid of it any more than you could get rid of Grandmother.” We sit alongside relatives swapping family lore, like the story of the aunt who “escaped from Budapest at the time when they were shooting down all the communists, leaping on a moving train in her nightgown.”
Sophie’s relationships with her parents are beautifully drawn, most impressively in a pair of consecutive scenes recalling her childhood. In the first, her father makes her laugh with his impressions of people, including his patients. “Why did people really come to him, she asked; what was the matter with them, what did he do for them,” Taubes writes. “She listened very carefully so she could avoid this happening to her.” Then her father relates a series of anecdotes characterizing various people he’s treated.
In the following scene, Sophie interrupts her mother reading and the two have a tense conversation, its full emotional contours only partly understood by Sophie. “Do you know why you don’t love me?” her mother asks.
“To say something to stop her mother from continuing, Sophie said, ‘Because you’re always away.’ Now she was angry at herself. She heard that from others. She had no right to say it to her mother. She was glad when her mother was away.”
In one of the heavier-handed moments, Sophie tersely says to a therapist: “I must repeat my mother’s life.” From the start, Sophie’s lifelong love of travel is presented as part free-spiritedness and part coping mechanism, a way to deal with the “oppressive, superfluous” nature of time.
Time and history, as experienced both personally and collectively, are just two of the big ideas this novel leaves a reader pondering. Aptly, given all the psychoanalysis, “Divorcing” is also rife with thoughts about dreams: recounted dreams, dreamlike imagery, the uncertain blurring of dream and reality. Packing for one trip while remembering another, Sophie feels that it’s “disconcerting how the urgencies of dream and waking life correspond. At home in neither. The one who got up no more myself than the one dreaming.”
António Guterres was speaking at an event to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the World Summit for Social Development, where he called for bold and imaginative action by leaders to avert the long-term impacts of the crisis.
“The pandemic brings new awareness of the social and economic risks that arise from inadequate social protection systems, unequal access to healthcare and other public services and high levels of inequality, including gender, race inequality, and all the other forms we witness in the world”, he said.
“It can therefore open the door to the transformational changes needed to build a New Social Contract at the national level, that is fit for the challenges of the 21st century.”
The Secretary-General outlined the components of this New Social Contract, which include a strong emphasis on quality education for all, measures related to fair labour markets and fair taxation, Universal Health Coverage, and “a new generation” of social protection measures.
He said countries with strong social protection systems before the pandemic were better positioned to rapidly offer their citizens access to much-needed healthcare. They also were able to ensure income security and protect jobs.
“We must make every effort to extend social protection systems to the two billion informal economy workers, many of whom are women”, he continued. “They are particularly vulnerable to the socioeconomic impact of COVID-19.”
Progress under threat
The World Summit for Social Development, held in Copenhagen, Denmark, in March 1995, saw world leaders agree that economic growth and social development must be balanced.
Since then, countries have made progress in putting people at the centre of development, according to the head of the UN’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA), Liu Zhenmin.
While results have been uneven, he pointed to successes such as reducing poverty and expanding access to education, especially for girls. However, the pandemic threatens to undermine these efforts.
“The COVID-19 pandemic reminds us that the gains are fragile. Forging a better, more sustainable path to recovery calls for governments, the private sector and civil society, to adapt their roles and responsibilities”, said Mr. Liu, underscoring the UN chief’s call for a new contract.
Re-imagine global systems
Meanwhile, the crisis has also exposed huge gaps in governance structures and ethical frameworks, and the Secretary-General further called for the re-imagining of global systems and institutions to build a more inclusive, equal and sustainable world.
“We need a New Global Deal where power, resources and opportunities are better shared at international decision-making tables – and governance mechanisms better reflect the realities of today,” he said.
“And at the same time, we need to integrate the principles of sustainable development – and the promise of leaving no one behind – in all decision-making.”
In this regard, he stressed the urgent need to secure the international cooperation and financing required to rollout COVID-19 vaccines and treatments that will be available and affordable to all, and to ensure support for developing countries so they can invest in better post-pandemic recovery.
For most Britons, the impact of the UK’s transition to Brexit will first be noticed when they go to the supermarket to stock up on food and drink after the festive break.
With or without a deal, departure from the EU’s single market and customs union is likely to mean stores having to raise prices and may leave them with gaps on the shelves as supplies of certain foods run short.
The UK imports around 45 per cent of its food, with 26 per cent coming from the EU and the remainder from the rest of the world. European imports come mainly from the Netherlands (14 per cent of the total value of EU goods), Germany (11 per cent), Ireland (10 per cent) and France (10 per cent).
That makes Britain vulnerable to the disruption in the flow of traffic from the continent which the government admits is likely due to the additional red tape resulting from Brexit, including more than 200 million extra customs declarations annually.
If no free trade agreement is secured and ratified by 31 December, tariffs averaging 18 per cent will be imposed on food and drink imported from the continent, with retailers likely to pass some if not all of this additional cost onto consumers.
An 18 per cent hike on products making up around a quarter of the typical shopping basket would push the UK’s average £45-a-head weekly spend on food and drink up by around £2.
At the same time, no-deal would mean additional costs averaging 23 per cent on sales to the EU, making UK food and drink exporters less competitive and eating into their profits.
The Food and Drink Federation’s head of international trade Dominic Goudie described a no-deal outcome as “catastrophic” for UK supply chains, and said it was “highly likely” that any additional financial burdens would have to be passed on to consumers.
But even if Boris Johnson gets a deal with Brussels, there will still be a big financial burden on importers and exporters from extra red tape, including customs declarations, health certification and rules of origin checks. If passed on to customers, this alone could push prices up by 3 per cent.
Any rise in food prices will hit the poorest hardest, as food purchases make up the largest proportion of their spending.
And with or without a deal, delays are expected at key ports like Dover and Folkestone, with the government’s own worst-case planning scenario suggesting traffic across the straits could be reduced to 60-80 per cent of normal levels, with waits of as much as two days.
UK authorities have deferred the full implementation of new paperwork to July, and can be expected to wave food deliveries through where possible.
So initially at least, queues of lorries are more likely to be seen on the Kent side of the Channel than in France.
However, any delays will put consignments of perishable goods like seafood and salads at risk.
And there are fears that a proportion of EU-based hauliers will be discouraged by the additional friction from making the trip to the UK at all, cutting the total amount of produce arriving from Europe.
While no one expects an overall food shortage, it is possible that particular products will be harder to find. Britain relies on European trade for most of its onions, mushrooms, tomatoes and salad, and for a critical portion of many other vegetables and fruits.
Meanwhile, failure to resolve issues relating to organic produce could mean UK suppliers being frozen out of the EU and Northern Ireland markets.
Mr Goudie said that delays are “inevitable” and warned that stockpiles of produce in the UK are currently low as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.
“While our industry has demonstrated remarkable resilience during the Covid-19 pandemic, many businesses have used up stockpiles that had been built for a no-deal Brexit to cope with increased demand,” he said.
“Staff have also been redeployed to respond to the Covid-19 crisis and as a result many businesses have fewer available resources to dedicate to preparing for the end of the transition period.
“While we are working closely with the UK government to highlight the issues at stake for food and drink, we are deeply concerned that even a thin Brexit deal will mean impossible deadlines for UK manufacturers that depend on highly integrated UK-EU just-in-time supply chains.”
The FDF is calling for an amnesty period following the formal transition to post-Brexit arrangements on 31 December, to allow companies time to make changes in areas like food labelling and new border requirements.
“Failure to do this will undermine choice and value for UK shoppers,” said Mr Goudie.
“We anticipate impacts on product availability and on prices but it is hard to predict what that will look like as the added trade friction is likely to lead to a mixture of over and under-supply which will be equally damaging for manufacturers.”
Uncertainty is greatest in Northern Ireland, with goods traveling from the British mainland subject to new customs and health checks on arrival.
Under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol signed by Mr Johnson in 2019, these measures are required for any goods which could enter the EU by crossing the border into the Republic.
The UK government has claimed the EU could use the protocol to impose an effective blockade on food supplies to the North, and has threatened to breach international law to prevent this happening.
This World AIDS Day let’s take stock of progress made and reflect on what we have learned. 2020 has not been an easy year for anyone amid the disruption and devastation brought by COVID-19.
The impact of the pandemic has been terribly unequal, with marginalized and vulnerable groups carrying the burden of this crisis.
When COVID-19 arrived in Europe our health systems were forced to adjust with unprecedented speed. In most countries this came at the expense of caring for patients suffering from other health issues, including HIV. As COVID-19 took hold, by July, we recorded 13% of countries in the WHO European Region reporting a risk of disruption to antiretroviral treatment services.
As we again battle a surge in COVID-19 cases, despite the heavy burden this already places on our health system and workforce, its essential we make efforts to reduce missed opportunities for preventing HIV and ensure continuity of testing, treatment and counselling services.
We have learned 3 important lessons this year that will help drive progress:
Strong health systems are vital.
Adequate HIV care includes mental health services.
Solidarity and partnership are our way through this crisis.
Firstly, COVID-19 has reaffirmed our belief that strong health systems are central to protecting our communities. For these systems to be effective, they must be accessible to all. Aligned with our agenda for health in the Region 2020–2025, the European Programme of Work (EPW) represents a commitment to leaving no one behind. The provision of quality HIV services is key to achieving this.
People living with HIV are at a greatly increased risk of developing mental health conditions, often suffering from depression and anxiety. While people living with mental health problems can also be at higher risk of HIV.
As part of the EPW, I have identified mental health as a core need and priority. The WHO Reginal Office for Europe’s focus on mental health is being operationalized through a “Mental Health Coalition”, coming together under the auspices of Sustainable Development Goal Advocate, Her Majesty Queen Mathilde of Belgium. It brings together Member States and high-profile advocates, as well as service users, providers and innovators, to reform mental health services and fight stigma. By integrating HIV and mental health services we will be able to reach more people with the specialist care and life-saving support they urgently need.
And finally, for these efforts to be realized we need solidarity.
There is plenty of work for us all to do. HIV affects more than 2 million people in the WHO European Region. The 2016 “Action plan for the health sector response to HIV”, aims to end the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat in the European Region by 2030 in line with the Sustainable Development Goals. Partnership and solidarity with you all, with our member states, with policy-makers and with partners like UNAIDS, will be critical.
I echo this year’s World AIDS Day theme of “Global solidarity, shared responsibility”. Let us remember that no one is safe until everyone is safe. If we want a way through the crisis, we must bring everyone along. If we want to protect our communities from future crises, we must leave no one behind.
