From the Editors: Dubai’s decision to charge single-use plastic bags will promote responsible living

DUBAI’S DECISION TO CHARGE SINGLE-ONE PLASTIC BAGS WILL PROMOTE RESPONSIBLE LIVING: In what may well prove to be a game changer, Dubai’s Executive Council has decided that single-use plastic carry-bags will be charged 25 fils from July 1 this year. The decision is aimed at enhancing environmental sustainability through minimising single-use plastic items. This policy will be subject to evaluations at multiple stages, until the use of single-use plastic bags is completely dome away with. Tariff on single-use carry-bags is currently in force in more than 30 countries, while a partial or complete ban has been imposed in more than 90 countries around the globe. The move to ensure that single-use plastic bags are no longer made available for free to anyone – whether consumers or business establishments – is in sync with the global concern to secure a lower carbon footprint. Dubai Executive Council’s decision is, therefore, a huge step forward in ensuring responsible living. [COMMENT BY: Sanjib Kumar Das, Assistant Editor]

LEBANON’S PARLIAMENTARY POLLS MUST BE HELD ON TIME: The US Ambassador to Lebanon, Dorothy Shea, has warned that elections must be held on time in a fair and transparent manner. The comments are important, as they come amid concerns that the Lebanese politicians are up to their old games again. Reports suggests they are planning on postponing polls scheduled to be held in May, as they fear the electorate is going to punish them for their miserable failures of governance and endless corruption over the past few years. Even the Security Council has “underlined the importance of holding free, fair, transparent and inclusive elections as scheduled on May 15, 2022.” If - and that's a big if - the elections go ahead as planned, they'll be the first since massive protests erupted in October 2019 against the criminality of the ruling elite. [COMMENT BY: Omar Shariff, International Editor]

STRUGGLERS NEWCASTLE ARE A LONG WAY AWAY FROM THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE: Following the Saudi Arabian-backed £305 million takeover of English Premier League club Newcastle United, their latest signing Bruno Guimaraes believes the team can win the Champions League. The 24-year-old Brazilian midfielder, who joined the North-East club for £35 million last month, feels his new side will be a dominant force in world football due to the fact the new owners are flush with cash and have stated their intentions to buy the best players available. That is all well and good. The issue however is that Newcastle are currently languishing in the bottom three of the league table and are in very serious relegation trouble. If they do not improve results soon they will be demoted to the Championship. There will be hardly any chance of them being able to attract the top talents in football if the club is not playing in the top league of Europe. They need to first survive relegation and then they can try to sign quality players to improve the team. But the Champions League looks a long, long way off right now for them.[COMMENT BY: Imran Malik, Assistant Editor]

COUNTDOWN TO THE OSCAR NOMS BEGINS: Hours away from the Oscar nominations being announced tonight, this year’s list already has firm favourites lining up as frontrunners. Kenneth Branagh’s semi-autobiographical coming of age film ‘Belfast’ seems a shoo-in this year for the Best Picture category, as does Jane Campion’s ‘The Power of the Dog’. The latter could also earn Campion a Best Director nod, her second since 1993’s ‘Piano’, while Maggie Gyllenhaal could give stiff competition with her directorial debut, ‘The Lost Daughter’. ‘Dune’ remains a popular choice with fans while the Will Smith-led ‘King Richard’ could very well earn him a Best Actor nod. All shall be revealed when the nominations to the 94th Academy Awards are announced at 8.18pm UAE time by actors Tracee Ellis Ross and Leslie Jordan. Until then, we wait, fingers crossed, for our top picks to make the cut this year. [COMMMENT BY: Bindu Rai, Entertainment Editor]