Date published: Tuesday 24th March 2020 8:55

Manchester Uniteds big-money move for Harry Kane is hinging on one major thing, while Tottenham are already eyeing an immediate replacement, according to Tuesdays Paper Talk.

Manchester United are reportedly resting their hopes on Harry Kane kicking up a stink to make a move to Old Trafford this summer.

There are strong rumours that the England skipper is finally looking to move on from Tottenham, having failed to win a trophy during his time at the club.

Kane is the third-highest goalscorer in the north London clubs history, behind only Bobby Smith and Jimmy Greaves, after coming up through the academy.

But the 27-year-old is now in the peak of his career and wants a chance of adding some silverware to his personal cabinet something that has eluded him at Spurs.

That has led to renewed interest from United, who have been chasing the prolific striker for the past five years.

However, the fact that the Red Devils will have to deal with Daniel Levy has been urging them to think differently with the Spurs chairman likely to command a fee of 150m for the clubs talisman.

To that end, The Athletic, via the Daily Star, claims thatUnited are hoping that Kane publicly declares that he wants to leave Spurs.

The report adds that would force Levy into thinking differently, though the Tottenham transfer supremo still has two aces up his sleeve.

The first is the fact that Kane is tied to a long-term contract after signing a six-year deal in 2018, while the second is that he is banking on Kane having the sort of personality that will stop him making a public outcry.

United also do not want to spend 150m during a time where they will probably have to spend a similar figure on another top attacking target in Jadon Sancho.

Arsenal have reportedly made contact with Real Madrid over a potential sale of Manchester United transfer target Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang (Daily Express)

Manchester United are ready to sign Odion Ighalo for up to 15m this summer after it emerged the Nigerian strikers loan runs out on May 31 (Daily Mail)

Manchester United have been given a boost in their pursuit of Birminghams Jude Bellingham as Borussia Dortmund have abandoned their plans to bid for the 16-year-old English midfielder (Daily Mirror)

Chelsea have been offered the chance to sign Philippe Coutinho this summer by Barcelona (Daily Mirror)

Players from all levels of the game are ready to revolt over plans to stage games behind-closed-doors (Daily Mirror)

Tottenham are now in a position that they are likely to make a move for Chelsea striker Olivier Giroud (Football.London)

Chelsea are reportedly interested in the potential transfer of West Ham midfielder Declan Rice (Sky Sports)

Barcelona have made Inter forward Lautaro Martinez their first-choice striking target with Arsenals Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang now only a back-up option (Daily Star)

Tottenham are interested in signing QPRs English midfielder Eberechi Eze, 21, although Crystal Palace and Sheffield United, who were interested in the player, are unwilling to pay the 20m QPR want (Daily Express)

Premier League stars are being kept apart until May 1 at the earliest with a lockdown lasting for at least six weeks (The Sun)

Lille and Nigeria striker Victor Osimhen, 21, has become a priority signing for Manchester United in the next transfer window (Daily Star)

Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti would consider a free transfer signing of Thiago Silva in the summer transfer window once it is open for business

Derby County are in advanced talks with American billionaire Michael Dell over a major financial injection (Daily Telegraph)

Newcastle hope they will be able to sign on-loan England full-back Danny Rose, 29, on a permanent basis from Tottenham when the transfer market re-opens this summer (ISport)

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Paper Talk: Man Utd move for Harry Kane hinging on one thing Man Utd's big-money - Teamtalk.com

In the 2017 Gujarat assembly polls, the Congress gained 16 seats, bringing its tally to 77 against the BJPs 99. It seemed like the grand old party could become a strong opposition in the BJPs model state. But, it was not to be. In July 2018, senior Congress leader and MLA Kunvarji Bavaliya defected to the BJP. He was made a cabinet minister within hours and won the bypoll in December.

In February and March 2019, four more Congress MLAs joined the BJP. One of them, Jawahar Chavda, got a cabinet berth. The BJP won all four seats in the bypolls; three of the winners were former Congress MLAs. (The fourth was not given a ticket by the BJP.) In March 2020, five Congress MLAs resigned, leaving it with 68 seats against the BJPs 103.

The Rajya Sabha elections, which were scheduled for March 26, were deferred because of the Covid-19 health emergency, with the new date to be announced after a review on March 31. This has given the Congress valuable time to keep its legislators together. As things stand, the assembly has 175 members, and 36 first-preference votes are needed to win each of the four vacant seats.

This means that the Congress needs 72 MLAs to ensure that both its candidates win and the BJP, with three candidates, needs 108 MLAs. The scenario indicates that cross-voting is highly likely. The Congress has packed off its remaining MLAs to Rajasthan, where it is in power. It was reminiscent of the 2017 Rajya Sabha polls when Congress president Sonia Gandhis confidant Ahmed Patel contested.

The MLAs were then taken to Karnataka. It did not prevent cross-voting, but Patel prevailed. Perhaps taking courage from this previous coup, the party has put on a brave face this time, too. But, it is evident that there are bigger issues for the partys state unit to worry about. There is a lot of unrest and frustration in Gujarat Congress and the party leadership has done little to quell these issues.

According to a youth leader who did not wish to be named, Good party leaders are often unused for reasons best known to senior party leaders. He added that the situation was made worse by senior leaders only thinking about their own communities and alleged that the party is practically leaderless in Gujarat as president Amit Chavda was a dummy of former state unit president Bharatsinh Solanki, son of former Gujarat chief minister Madhavsinh Solanki.

Bharatsinh Solanki allegedly pressured the party high command into giving him one of the two Rajya Sabha seats that the party is contesting. The party had already announced former Indian Premier League chief Rajeev Shukla and national party spokesperson Shaktisinh Gohil, who is from Gujarat, as its candidates. But, since Solanki had the support of a good number of party MLAs, the central leadership did not want to risk them deserting the party like in Madhya Pradesh. Shukla stepped aside, citing party organisational responsibilities, and Solanki got his wish.

As it played out, this arm-twisting by Solanki may have led to the BJP announcing three candidates instead of two. Highly placed sources confirmed to THE WEEK that a deal had been struck between the BJP and the Congress that the saffron party would not put up a third candidate if Shukla, who is Union minister Ravi Shankar Prasads brother-in-law, was contesting. But, Shuklas replacement by Solanki voided this arrangement and the BJP announced former Congress stalwart and Patidar leader Narhari Amin as its third candidate.

The mobilisation that had happened in the partys state unit before the 2017 assembly elections and the gains from the encouraging result seem to be well and truly lost. There is not a single binding force within the party organisation in Gujarat. All the wrongs are with the Congress, said Vishnu Pandya, a right wing ideologue. May it be the leadership, organisation or workers. This is true all over the country. Gujarat is merely a part [of the problem]. According to him, it was the time for the Congress to implement [corrective measures], not introspect.

In fact, it is said that the situation in the partys state unit has been such that its own leaders have driven out some MLAs. What is even more worrying is that there are plenty of leaders who are looking for a good option or the right time to desert. These are those who feel that they could be sidelined if they defect to the BJP. They have also been unable to generate the funds needed to float a new party. Manish Doshi, the partys state spokesperson, admitted that there was a dire need for consultation and coordination. Former MLA Siddharth Patel said there was high level of insecurity among partyworkers.

While the Congress alleges that its MLAs are being bought, it could not take precautions against such situations. Congress leader Arjun Modhwadia had said that the BJP has made buying MLAs the new normal; BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya denied the charge. The Congresss failure to keep its flock together has wasted the efforts made by former party president Rahul Gandhi to motivate the rank and file during the 2017 election campaign. Like Congress leader Narendra Rawat said, The future of the Congress is bright... but we are not ready.

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False dawn - THE WEEK

This will allow the state government to go ahead with necessary spending to tackle the spread of coronavirus for a three-month period up to June 30.

With the Andhra Pradesh government unable to convene the states Budget session in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the cabinet on Friday approved an ordinance for a vote on account.

This will allow the state government to go ahead with necessary spending to tackle the spread of coronavirus for a three-month period up to June 30.

Speaking to reporters aftera cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, Information & Public Relations (I&PR) Minister Perni Nani said that the cabinet had approved an ordinance to draw money for the expenses of the state for the next three months.

Once the ordinance gets the Governors nod, further details would be revealed, the Minister said.

As it is not possible to convene the budget session in the wake of the pandemic, the government is opting for an ordinance. The Chief Minister held extensive discussions on the medical facilities available and spoke about strengthening the healthcare system, Nani said.

A taskforce with five ministers, 10 senior bureaucrats and four officials from the Chief Ministers Office (CMO) will be constituted to coordinate with district-level teams of ministers and officers, he added.

The state has reported 12 positive cases of COVID-19 so far and around 28,000 foreign returnees are being tracked and under quarantine.

Four hospitals, one each at Vijayawada, Visakhapatnam, Tirupati and Nellore, have now been converted into dedicated super-specialty COVID-19hospitals while 100-bedded and 200-bedded isolation centres are in place at the constituency and district levels respectively, the state government said.

Stating that there were enough supplies of PPEs (Personal Protection Equipment) and masks available for healthcare providers, the state government said that a helpline 104 is available 24x7 to attend to any medical emergencies.

People should take the social curfew seriously and help the government in fighting the invisible enemy. It is very sad to see that students and others from our state are stranded at other places but the helplessness of the situation prompts us to say that they have to stay where they are or cross the border and be quarantined for 14 days, Nani said.

He also assured that essential commodities will be available across the state.

Read:

Quarantine at govt centre must for all inter-state entrants: Andhra DGP

Jagan requests all Andhra residents and natives to refrain from travel

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Unable to convene Assembly due to COVID-19, Andhra cabinet passes Budget ordinance - The News Minute

Cycling UK, a membership and lobbying organisation, applauded the decision but urged cyclists not to abuse the move.

Cycling UK urges people to distinguish between essential and non-essential shopping trips. This is not the moment to go out and browse for a nice new bike, said Roger Geffen, policy director.

However its another matter if youre getting that neglected bike out of the shed so you can make essential journeys without relying on public transport or a lift in someone elses car and you therefore need to get a replacement tyre or inner tube, or to get the bike repaired by a professional mechanic.

It is for this reason we think the government is to be applauded for keeping bike shops open.

Cycling is a great way not only to make that one bout of exercise each day, but also to make those essential journeys. Just remember when visiting the bicycle shop to follow public health social distancing and hygiene advice.

Mike Ashleys retail company Frasers, owners of Sports Direct and Evans sought clarification from the government over the move, taking to Twitter to ask if they should open their stores this morning.

To which Cabinet Secretary Micheal Gove responded, speaking on Good Morning Britain to Piers Morgan:

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Government thinking questioned over allowing bike shops to remain open - Business MattersBusiness Matters

Graphene is 200 times stronger than steel and harder than diamond. Its also flexible and transparent. Graphene is also the best heat and electricity conductor. As can be expected, the research community is very excited about this wonder material, and the business world follows suit

The Economist magazine published an article in 2017 about the new commodity that was fuelling a lucrative fast growing industry. It predicted the possible need of antitrust regulator stepping in to control the monopolising the said commodity, similar to US government intervention to restrain Rockefeller familys Standard Oil Company in 1800s. Since this publication by the magazine, the topic has generated much discussion and Data is new Oil became the common catchphrase in conferences, public speeches and magazine columnists.

The basis of The Economist argument was the massive wealth created by data companies during the last decade surpassing the wealth of rich oil companies. There were six energy giants in the 2016 list of top 10 companies in terms of market capitalisation. They were Exxon Mobil (US), Gazprom (Russia), Royal Dutch Shell (The Netherlands), British Petroliam (UK) and Petro China (China). But none of them were in the 2019 list. They were all replaced by digital new kids from US and China whose primary assets are digital intellectual property and data. Seven digital companies, namely Apple (US), Microsoft (US) , Amazon (US), Google (its parent company Alphabet/US), Facebook (US), Tencent (China), Alibaba (China) were occupying the slots and none of the oil companies made it to the top 10 list of 2019.

Replacement for oil

However, with the rise of electric vehicles and the decline of internal combustion engine for transportation, a question arises whether The Economist magazine got it right. By 2025, the electric battery will become the new oil barrel as the world drives to electrify its vehicles. Then a question arises whether the new oil is data or graphene?

It is a fact that fortunes of data is yet to unfold. Raw fossil fuel in the era of kerosene oil did not become the wonder commodity until the internal combustion engine was invented resulting the proliferation of mass land, sea and air transportation. Similarly data will create its augmented wealth when companies develop the real art of monetising the data for business use.

While data companies continue to create wealth, the electric vehicles era will create new wealthy nations and companies. And these new wealthy nations will be the countries rich in natural resources which would be used to fuel electric vehicles.

Growth of electric vehicles

Electric vehicle enthusiasts believe that the era of the internal combustion engine is over. That means era of oil is reaching the end of its life cycle similar to coal automation cycle ended in mid of nineteenth century. The winning electric technology will be the one that allows power units to store energy when the wind blows and the sun shines, while being able to release energy that can respond to the swings in demand. The only widespread and reliable technology at the moment is the lithium-ion battery which is being widely used from the thinnest smartphone to the heaviest electric bus.

The lithium-ion technology has been around for a decade and its mass production and use have made it significantly cheaper over time. It does, however, have its shortcomings, one of which is its inability to store energy for long periods.

On a global scale, electric vehicle sales have a recorded 63% year on year growth in 2018. Figures in 2019 that are yet to be released would be even impressive. Not only electric cars but an electric air craft which can fly more than 500km have already been tested successfully. More electric vehicles on the roads will not only mean cleaner air, but better health and longer life-expectancy.

Cobalt and batteries arms race

Cobalt is used to create the lithium-ion batteries required for electric vehicles and energy storage. The mineral is used to produce lithium-ion batteries used to power electric cars, laptops and smartphones. Critical to the construction of batteries, it has emerged as central to some of the industries set to determine the future. Roughly 10Kg of cobalt is needed to make an electric car.

The vast majority of the planets cobalt is located within the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) where a plethora of interested parties are engaged in a frantic contest for control over mining operations. DRC produces 60% of the worlds supply of cobalt. In 2009, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) had an estimated $24 trillion in untapped mineral deposits, including the worlds largest reserves of Coltan and significant quantities of the worlds cobalt. The United States Geological Survey estimates that the DRC has one million tons of lithium resources.

Mineral looting in DRC

After Rwanda, Uganda, and Burundis successful 1998 invasion of Eastern and South-eastern DRC in the second Congo war (1998-2003), mass scale looting took root, according to the United Nations. While initial invasion tactics were still being worked out, military commanders were already making business deals with foreign companies for Congos vast mineral reserves.

Between September 1998 and August 1999, stockpiles of minerals were illegally confiscated from Congolese businesses, piled onto trucks, and sold as exports from the confiscating countries. An American mineral field executive allowed rebels to use his private Lear jet in return for a $1 billion mining deal (source: Wikipedia).

The Western mining companies rush to acquire coltan-rich land in the rebel territory of the DRC was a classic continuation of the pattern of exploitation for gold and diamond in late 18th and early 19th centuries.

US lost the cobalt race

On the cobalt front, China controls seven of the largest DRC mines. Over the past decade, China has systematically set about creating and securing global supply lines in strategic raw materials, including securing its own forward supplies of key raw materials and battery-ready high-grade chemicals for its electric vehicle sector, at the expense of the rest of the world.

Emergence of the wonder material: Graphene

Early In 2004, Konstantin Novoselov and Andre Geim, two physicists at the University of Manchester discovered graphene. At just the width of an atom, graphene is the thinnest material known to humans, and also the strongest. Graphene is 200 times stronger than steel and harder than diamond. Its also flexible and transparent. Graphene is also the best heat and electricity conductor. As expected, the research community is very excited about this wonder material, and the business world follows suit.

Graphene for electric cars and mobile phones

Many experts predict that graphene will become a key raw material in electric vehicle batteries for the next decade. Both synthetic graphite and natural graphite, in the form of the intermediate product spherical graphite, are graphite products used in the anodes of lithium-ion batteries.

In a remarkable local development, Ceylon Graphene Technologies (CGT), a joint-venture between Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology (SLINTECH) and LOLC group recently announced about its plan to produce the worlds first graphene applied lead acid battery. Huawei has been tipped to release a smartphone with graphene-assisted batteries in the near future. The batteries are said to be able to charge fully in a matter of minutes and have an increased battery capacity and life.

The commercialisation of graphene is just in its infancy, but already dozens of new companies have been established to develop graphene based material, graphene production processes and other related activities. Several large and public companies (such as Samsung, Intel, Nokia, IBM and Sony) are involved in heavy graphene research. These companies may be on the forefront of graphene research, especially in high-end fields such as electronics and photonics.

Graphene in Sri Lanka

Like many other worlds bests, such as Ceylon Blue Sapphire, Ceylon Tea and Ceylon Cinnamon, Sri Lankas graphite is known to be one of the purest form of graphite on the planet with around 98% purity. It is sad to note that over a century, Sri Lanka has been exporting purest graphite in its raw form.

The Government recently 2020 announced the decision by the cabinet of ministers to approve a project for Kahatagaha Graphite Mine to develop value added graphite based products through private sector investments.

This is a great step for taking the country forward to prosperity through the wonder material graphite and its electric car powering era. Graphite mines were nationalised in the 70s by the United Front Government and Sri Lanka has the rights for the remaining graphite reserves which will be worth than oil in the era of electrics cars. However, out of our nationalised mines of Bogala, Kahatagaha and Kolongaha, Bogala graphite mine has been acquired by a foreign company.

That is an indication that the Graphene Rush had already begun in Sri Lanka more than a decade ago, as the German company GraphitKropfmuhl AG bought 90% ownership of Bogala graphite mine as way back as in 2005. It exports raw Ceylon graphite at a price less than $ 3 per kilogram and sell value added graphite in Germany at an estimated value of $ 2,000 per kilogram if not more.

Sri Lanka gearing up for the graphene era

The Mahinda Rajapaksa Government formed the Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology in 2012 as Public Private Partnership (PPP) which has been playing a pioneering role in graphene research, value addition and commercialisation in the country. Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology has private sector shareholders LOLC, Brandix, Dialog, Hayleys, Loadstar, Lankem Ceylon, and MAS Holdings. The first graphene and advanced material company in Sri Lanka, Ceylon Graphene Technologies was established in June 2018.

Gold deposits in Sri Lanka

In the meantime Professor Athula Senaratne, a renowned geologist and the former Vice Chancellor of University of Peradeniya recently announced the discovery of gold reserves in the Seruwila area.

How the West become rich

It is no secret how the West became rich and prosperous. In addition to many other reasons such as the innovations and inventions during the last three industrial revolutions, looting the rest of the world was one big factor. They conquered countries rich of natural assets to rob the wealth through military invasions and various conspiracies.

The West became rich and the countries which were the victims continue to be poor and people are imposed with engineered conflicts one after another as part of the continuous looting strategy.

The table shows the wealth worth billions of sterling pounds looted from only one goldmine in Witwatersrand, South Africa by the British during the Gold Rush within the very first decade of 20th century.

Right step forward

On the 27 last month the Government announced that it does not intend to sign the MCC agreement. The writer sees this as the right step towards safeguarding the precious natural resources of the country. Sri Lanka is rich of the purest form of graphite in the world and in a recent announcement, renowned geologist and academic Professor Athula Senaratne disclosed that Sri Lanka possesses a vast quantity of gold deposits. Land liberalisation under MCC would have weakened the control over sovereign land under which vast deposits of precious mineral deposits worth billions of dollars are lying underneath our sovereign land.

On 6 February Cabinet Spokesmen Minister Bandula Gunawardena and Ramesh Pathirana announced the decision by the Cabinet to approve a project for Kahatagaha Graphite Mine to develop value added Graphite based products through private sector investments. This is a great step for taking the country forward to prosperity during the wonder material graphene powered electric car era. It is said that President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, a technocrat backed by professional advisors has well understood tech priorities to deliver his vision for prosperity.

On the 10 February 2020 Ceylon Graphene Technologies (CGT), a joint-venture between the Sri Lanka Institute of Nano Technology (SLINTECH) and LOLC group announced its plan to produce the worlds first graphene applied lead acid battery. This will be done with the commissioning of CGTs latest plant to convert locally mined raw graphite to worlds purest Ceylon graphene.

These developments signal that country is in the right path to leverage precious natural assets to realise its development objectives. Sri Lanka should be smart enough to manage geo-political complexities and not to be another victim nation destroyed due its own valuable natural assets.

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Is graphene the new oil? - ft.lk

YARDLEY, PA Work that will span several months at one of Yardley's busiest intersections is scheduled to get started on Monday.

Crews will begin a project to replace the current traffic signal and do other work at the intersection of Main Street and Afton Avenue in Yardley. Yardley Borough Council members discussed the work at their meeting Tuesday night.

Because of a backlog in making the poles that will support new traffic signals at the intersection, the work could continue through July or August, Borough Manager Paula Johnson said.

The work will include the full replacement of the intersection's existing traffic signal with a new signal design that includes overhead traffic signals for improved visibility, borough officials said.

The new signal will meet all current PennDOT guidelines, officials said.

Pedestrian push buttons and pedestrian signals with countdown timers will be added at all four crosswalks, all signs around the traffic signal will be renewed and a four-camera video detection system will be installed, replacing the current in-ground loop detectors.

There also will be an emergency preemption system, which will allow borough officials to improve response time for emergency services.

Lighting at the intersection also will be upgraded with energy-efficient LED arms as part of the new signal pole installations. The existing traffic-controller cabinet will be moved form its pole-mounted location on the southwest corner of the intersection to the southeast corner.

All poles and mast arms will be painted black to match with existing decorative lighting in the area, Johnson said.

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Signal Work At Main St. And Afton Ave. In Yardley Starts Monday - Patch.com

Andrea Leadsom used her Commons resignation speech to deliver a parting shot at John Bercow, joking that he was the only politician she would tell to "f--- off".

The former business secretary who regularly sparred with the ex-Speaker in the Commons also said the Brexit referendum result was as good as Mr Bercow's face when she reprimanded him for calling her "a stupid woman".

In a personal statement after Prime Minister's Questions, Mrs Leadsom recalled her first rebellion against a three-line whip when she joined 80 other Tory rebels to vote for a referendum on EU membership in 2011.

She said this led to "media speculation" that she had told the former chancellor George Osborne to "f--- off".

Well, I can assure you that there's only one person to whom I might be tempted to provide such frank advice, and that wouldn't include any former or current chancellor and certainly not any current speaker," she said.

She added that the result of the EU referendum in June 2016 was "right up there with England winning the World Cup for rugby 16 years ago".

And she said: "It's right up there with the look on John Bercows face when I told him to apologise for calling me a stupid woman, and it is a bit behind the happiness of my wedding day."

Mrs Leadsom, who was one of the first casualties of last month's Cabinet reshuffle, added that she believed Boris Johnson was "the right person to seize the opportunities that await us outside the EU" and said it was "an honour" to serve as business secretary in his first Cabinet.

She wished her replacement, Alok Sharma, "huge success" as COP president when the UK plays host to the UN climate talks later in the year.

The South Northamptonshire MP said that she would now focus on the issue of early years from the backbenches.

She said: "When the Prime Minister asked me to step aside, he also gave me his word that he will enable me to take forward the early years work and I am delighted that the wheels are in motion.

"And I want to heartily congratulate him and Carrie for their decision to do their own bit of early years research."

Mr Johnson and his partner Carrie Symonds announced this weekend that they are engaged and expecting a baby in the early summer.

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Andrea Leadsom says the only person she'd tell to 'f--- off' is John Bercow in resignation speech - Telegraph.co.uk

Muhyiddin Yassin has been sworn in as the new prime minister of Malaysia. Many people were surprised because 94-year-old Mahathir Mohammad, the oldest prime minister in the world, was widely expected to be reappointed for a third time.

Muhyiddin outfoxed the wily Mahathir, because Mahathir made two fatal errors. First, he had resigned, thus creating a vacancy. Second, he made a miscalculation about the kings discretion. The Malaysian king appoints a person he thinks can command the majority in parliament it has nothing to do with election results or how many MPs support you. In Australia, its called the captains pick.

The king picked Muhyiddin over Mahathir, and thats that. The only way now to remove the new government is via a vote of no-confidence in parliament, which will take months.

Muhyiddins new ruling coalition consists of three parties: United Malays National Organisation (UMNO), Parti Islam Malaysia (PAS) and Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (PPBM or United Indigenous Party).

UMNO and PAS were the defeated parties in the historic 2018 general elections that produced Malaysias first regime change since independence. UMNO had been the ruling party for nearly six decades before losing to PPBM and Pakatan Harapan (Alliance of Hope). Mahathir had established PPBM specifically to beat UMNO, and almost the entire PPBM leadership was ex-UMNO.

Read more: Mahathir Mohamad crops up again in bid to lead Malaysia with Anwar on the same side

So now we have an interesting combination. UMNO and PPBM are essentially the same parties with similar ideologies, Malay nationalism, combined with PAS, which wants to turn Malaysia into an Islamic state.

But what about the non-Malay and non-Muslim Malaysians who make up 38% of the population? Dont they count?

The short answer is no. While the new administration will appoint a few non-Malays to the administration, make no mistake, this is an all-Malay government and its focus is on the Malay and Muslim community.

UMNO is still sore at the Malaysian Chinese and Indian population for voting en bloc against UMNO in 2018, which led it to lose government. Now its payback time. Expect more Malay-centric policies that will punish the Chinese and Indians.

Many are worried about the direction Malaysia may be heading in the short term.

First, there is concern that corruption trials relating to the infamous 1MDB scandal involving ex-prime minister Najib Razak may now go nowhere. Najibs wife is also charged with corruption in a different case, along with several other ministers in the last UMNO-led government.

In fact, the UMNO president, Zahid Hamidi, who is facing 47 charges of money-laundering (the legal term for corrupt money), is trying to get a cabinet post in the new Muhyiddin administration. The attorney-general has resigned and his replacement will probably not go after high-profile UMNO individuals now that UMNO is back in government.

High-level corruption was one of the main reasons UMNO was defeated in 2018 and UMNO has not reformed. Now its back in government, most people expect business as usual. There is credible fear that Muhyiddin cannot stand up to UMNO as UMNO is now the largest party among the three core parties. UMNO and PAS also have a political pact, which means PPBM will definitely not be able to stop the senior coalition partner if it insists on certain public policy.

Read more: What Najib Razak's corruption trial means for Malaysia and the region

Second, people are extremely worried about PAS. Since its founding in 1951, PAS has advocated the idea of turning Malaysia into an Islamic state. It has introduced huhud (Shariah) law at the state level in Kelantan and Terengganu, but cannot enforce the law because it conflicts with Malaysias federal constitution.

Now that PAS is one of the troika in power, will PAS push the new administration to amend the constitution? There is already talk that PAS will get the government to amend the Syariah Courts (Criminal Jurisdiction) Act, or RUU355. This will indirectly allow for hudud to be implemented.

Third, and perhaps most worrying, the new government has broken the political convention that it always has a significant number of non-Malay voices to represent the diverse population. This government was built purely on the concept of ketuanan Melayu Islam (Malay Islamic supremacy). Non-Malays to be appointed to the new administration will know exactly where they stand as window dressing.

Despite its racial and religious tensions, Malaysia has always been seen by the international community as a modern, moderate Islamic country with strong Westminster institutions. It was always understood that the political elite would choose the middle path at the end of the day, no matter how heated the politics became.

This may no longer be the case.

If there is a lesson to be learnt here, it is that regime change does not guarantee progress. In May 2018, there was joy that Malaysia had finally joined the club of newly democratising countries via the ballot box. Almost two years down the road we are seeing a complete reversal via an elite game.

If there is one thing about Southeast Asia, it is that the votes of the ordinary people do not matter when it comes to power games. Power here is a zero-sum game and, in this case, the non-Malays and non-Muslims in Malaysia are the losers.

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Malaysia takes a turn to the right, and many of its people are worried - The Conversation AU

NewsLynn Davidson confronted Boris Johnson's right-hand man at a meeting of special advisers

Tuesday, 3rd March 2020, 6:46 pm

Lynn Davidson was sacked as a special adviser to Defence Secretary Ben Wallace in the latest sign No 10 is exerting more control over the machinery of Government. But senior Conservative sources claimed her departure was unconnected to the argument she had with Mr Cummings, Boris Johnson's most powerful aide.

At a meeting of all special advisers on 14 February, Ms Davidson accused Mr Cummings of being "out of order" for telling aides they were at risk of losing their jobs in the Cabinet reshuffle.

No 10 subsequently tried to move her from the Ministry of Defence to the health or education department, but after Mr Wallace blocked the move she was unexpectedly fired this week.

Spad shake-up

Ms Davidson previously worked as a journalist for The Sun, before moving into the Government to work for then-Defence Secretary Penny Mordaunt. She is one of a number of special advisers to be sacked or moved in the wake of last month's reshuffle.

A Tory source said the move was planned before she confronted Mr Cummings and insisted there was no link between the two events.

In the Home Office, Priti Patel remains embroiled in a row over claims she bullied Sir Philip Rutnam out of his job as permanent secretary. On Tuesday the Home Secretary sent a memo to all staff co-written with Shona Dunn, who is Sir Philip's temporary replacement.

The pair said they "both regret Sir Philip's decision to resign", adding: "We both deeply value the work that every person in this department does and care about the wellbeing of all our staff. It is therefore a time for us all to come together as one team."

Court fight

The Government is currently being sued by Sonia Khan, a former aide to Sajid Javid, after she was frogmarched out of the building and accused of leaking information.

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A councillor at the centre of a previous row over the future of a Lichfield leisure centre could be axed from a task group looking to develop a replacement facility in the city.

Cllr Jamie Checkland had been earmarked as a member of the cross-party group put together by Lichfield District Council.

But his position is now in doubt after questions were raised over his involvement by another member, Lib Dem representative Cllr Paul Ray, at a meeting of the overview and scrutiny committee.

The six-person group has temporarily been reduced to five members while a decision is made over the councillors involvement.

Cllr Tim Matthews, chairman of the leisure, parks and waste management (overview and scrutiny) committee, said:

At the meeting we discussed who should be on the task group and confirmed the membership of five councillors.

Following a recommendation by a committee member, we decided to delegate the decision about filling the sixth place to the task group.

We also acknowledged the huge role the task group will have to play in the development of a new leisure facility in Lichfield, and how crucially important it is that we fully capture community need as we seek to shape the future provision of leisure in Lichfield.

Cllr Checklands initial appearance in the task group had raised eyebrows after comments he made during the original battle to save Friary Grange Leisure Centre.

The Conservative member had claimed at a public meeting about keeping the facility open that The Friary School of which he was a governor wanted their facilities back.

Ive been fighting on behalf of The Friary School to get a fair crack of the whip in relation to the facilities and the income that comes in to the school and the way in which the pool and other elements are managed.

My priority is the children of the school. They are there to be educated and the money that comes into The Friary School should be used for their education.

For a number of years now, because of the contract signed in 1971 when it was just a sports centre the county council was paying a third and the district council paying two thirds. In 1978 a pool was built on the side and the contract was not changed.

As time has eroded the school has been picking up the county council bill. As it stands, around about 70,000 a year goes towards supporting the sports centre and school thats your pupils money.

We gave notice that the school wanted their facilities back. They do belong to the school and they create an income. They were built by the county council as a sports centre and astro turf pitch as part of the school.

The Friary Schools move to become an academy had been central to the reasoning behind the original plan to shut the neighbouring leisure centre.

Cllr Checklands dual role at the council house and as a governor led to another councillor asking whether there was a conflict of interest with the Conservative representative later apologising for breaching the code of conduct after a debate about the facility.

He eventually opted to step down as a school governor, before resigning from senior roles at the local authority too.

I do this to ensure the good work that needs to be carried out by these committees is not distracted any further.

I was grateful for the chance to meet with you where I was able to prove to you my integrity over my past three years involvement concerning the issues at the Friary Grange Leisure Centre.

I submit this and offer my continuing full support for the future and the progress you going to make.

Lichfield Live understands Cllr Checkland will be interviewed by council leader Doug Pullen and cabinet member Liz Little to decide whether he should take up a place on the task group.

Cllr Steve Norman, leader of the Labour opposition group at the council, has criticised a lack of decisive action by the overview and scrutiny committee on the issue of Cllr Checklands involvement .

The decision on who should or should not be on the group should have been decided by the scrutiny committee there and then, but it was left for the leader and cabinet member, to interview Cllr Checkland and report back.

To be fair to the leader, Cllr Doug Pullen, I think he was trying to leave that to the scrutiny chairman, but I got the impression that the cabinet member was in charge of this.

Its scrutiny at Lichfield District Council but not as I know it.

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Councillor at centre of controversy during campaign to save Lichfield leisure centre could be axed from task group - Lichfield Live