Nothing Personal: Qatar’s business dealings in Britain catches attention of sensationalist title

Nothing Personal: Qatar’s business dealings in Britain catches attention of sensationalist title

Some people are facing the realities of shifting influences in the global economy. Some are pragmatic, but others are a nostalgic for the good old days.

March 11, 2012 5:24 by p.deleon

“…the greater their investment, the greater our dependency. The greater the dependency, the greater the risks,” ends the rather long rhetoric the Daily mail published on Saturday about ‘How Qatar bought Britain’.

“Kipp reads the Daily Mail?” you gasp in horror. Much as we’d like to admit this as some kind of secret shame, the only reason Kipp couldn’t help but talk about this article is because it’s been mentioned over separate occasions by different people throughout the day. People seem to have varying opinions about the whole thing.

Some choose to nitpick at the little things like “It’s really just London that Qatar’s bought.” While others choose to go the way of “Where are the articles when the Lanbos of Saudis and Emiratis get clamped near Harrods?” and some go the route of “Britain has a weak government, etc etc.”

Of course there are also those who do not look at Qatar’s investments as a threat, but rather a continuing line of investment that the GCC has poured into Britain, which to be honest is rather what Kipp is standing behind. After all, Saudi and Emirati-registered cars have adorned the streets of London for years. And let’s not forget the Arsenal’s home, the Emirates Stadium and the number of residential properties that have been acquired by other GCC states over the years.

So rather than talk about all the raucous that’s happening right now, Kipp is more interested in finding out what kind of relationship will residents in Britain have with its foreign business owners in the future (say 3-5 years)? And what will this do to the influx of British expatriates coming into the GCC states to spend some time in the bright sun and take advantage of tax-free living?

What do you think? Leave your comments below or give us a shout on our Facebook page and Twitter or email us at editor@kippreport.com