Background

BRUNEI

The Sultan's austere vision is in contrast with the behavior of his playboy younger brother Prince Jefri, whose lavish lifestyle was revealed during a long-running High Court feud involving the two men in London. Prince Jefri, who was accused of misappropriating some $6.5 billion of state funds, famously travelled in a fleet of private planes converted to carry polo ponies, had a $162 million home in Regent's Park, and a luxury yacht called Tits, with tenders named Nipple One and Nipple Two.

The Sandhurst-educated Sultan is himself said to have a personal collection of at least 2,500 luxury cars, including hundreds of Rolls Royces and Ferraris. He lives in a palace of 1,800 rooms and 290 bathrooms, and once had his polo shoes delivered by helicopter to a field where he was playing with Prince Charles.

Last week, Oxford University declined to say whether it would review the Sultan's honorary degree. Edinburgh's Royal College of Surgeons said that the matter was being considered by its officials but that any decision would rest with the college trustees.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: "We are aware of announcements that a new penal code has been enacted in Brunei based on sharia principles. We are looking into what this will mean in practice and will raise any concerns with the Bruneian authorities." (from the article above)

• Brunei Darussalam is a small Islamic Sultanate on the northwest coast of the Island of Borneo.
• Brunei is a sovereign state located on the north coast of the island of Borneo, in Southeast Asia. Apart from its coastline with the South China Sea, it is completely surrounded by the state of Sarawak, Malaysia; and it is separated into two parts by the Sarawak district of Limbang.
• It is the only sovereign state completely on the island of Borneo. The remainder of the island's territory is divided between the nations of Malaysia and Indonesia.
• The country’s official language is Malay, but English is widely understood and used in business. 
• Brunei became a sultanate in the 14th century, under a newly converted Islamic sultan - Muhammad Shah.
• In 1888 Brunei became a British protectorate and was assigned a British Resident as colonial manager in 1906.
• Brunei regained its independence from the United Kingdom in 1984.
• Economic growth during the 1970s and 1990s, averaging 56% from 1999 to 2008, has transformed Brunei into a newly industrialized country.
• It has developed wealth from extensive petroleum and natural gas fields.
• Brunei has the second-highest Human Development Index among the South East Asia nations after Singapore, and is classified as a developed country.
• Forbes also ranks Brunei as the fifth-richest nation in the world, out of 182, based on its petroleum and natural gas fields. (from wikipdedia)

SAUDI ARABIA

• Supporters of the campaign can point to increasingly public support for the idea of women driving in the media and among prominent Saudi figures.
• This month three women in the Shoura Council, an appointed quasi-parliament set up by King Abdullah to advise the government on policy, said the Transport Ministry should look into allowing women to drive.
• They argued that the ban made it hard for women to work or look after their families and that it caused financial hardship for families who had to employ a full-time driver.
• Some Saudi newspapers have also published editorials arguing women should be allowed to drive. (from the Reuters article above)

FRANCE

Association football (known as soccer in the U.S.) is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries, making it the world's most popular sport.

AFP reported this week: According to Ligue 1 teams, the new law, if implemented next year, would leave them with a 44 million euro tax bill and dissuade foreign talent such as Swedish star Zlatan Ibrahimovic -- who hit four goals in a 5-0 Champions League match at Anderlecht this week -- from signing for French clubs.

• Representatives of the clubs met with President Hollande this week in a final attempt to persuade him to grant football an exemption. He refused.  The government points out that it has already “capped” the super tax liability of French clubs at five per cent of their revenues.
• Even for the wealthiest of the French clubs, Paris Saint-Germain, owned by the Emirate of Qatar, this would limit exposure to the tax to (approximately $27 million) a year. Other, poorer clubs, would expect to pay between ($4-7 million) a year.
• Since this is what a club would expect to pay - or receive - as a transfer fee for a single moderately talented defender, the government argues that it is not an insuperable burden. Noel le Graet, president of the French football federation (uniting both amateur and professional game) agrees. He said yesterday that French people and businesses were being asked to make many sacrifices to reduce the country’s deficit.
• “Professional football should not be exempt,” he said.
• The super tax - (assured by the President) to last only two years while France reduces its budget deficit - was one of the most spectacular proposals during Mr. Hollande’s successful presidential campaign last year. 
• Implementing the idea has proved to be a political and constitutional nightmare. Even the threat of the tax is said to have accelerated the “fiscal flight” of wealthy French people who have moved to Belgium, Switzerland and Britain. (from the Independent article above)