If you want a holiday with western freedoms, avoid Dubai

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Jamie Harron was released from a Dubai prison this week after charges against him were dropped (Leandro Neumann Ciuffo)

As a strict Muslim country, I am always surprised to hear how visitors to the UAE find access to alcohol and are able to sunbathe on beaches and in hotels wearing swimming costumes without the condemnation of the authorities.

Islam expressly forbids alcohol and mind-altering substances and the wearing of immodest dress in public along with public displays of affection. When visitors are upheld for breaking these laws, there is usually an outcry. As visitors, though, it surely it is up to us to respect the beliefs and laws of the land. I know of same-sex couples who have holidayed quite safely in the UAE – they just haven't shared a room.

However, it is not right to accuse a visitor of something which is fabricated, which could have such dire consequences. Sheikh Mohammed is to be lauded for intervening in the case of Jamie Harron, who was accused of “touching a man’s hip” while steadying himself carrying alcoholic drinks in a bar. But if the UAE was really serious about upholding its traditional Islamic lifestyle, there would be no alcohol available at all.

I would concur with Grace Dent – if you want a holiday with the freedoms that our western lifestyles allow, you would be best avoiding the UAE and other Muslim countries which have wonderful weather and have used their wealth to build what many would consider “paradise”. I wonder what the locals think when they see such inequality, though?

Linda Johnson

East Riding of Yorkshire

Which type of Brexit are we hurtling towards now?

Is Theresa May more naïve and delusional than we thought? She stated categorically in the Commons: no transition unless a final deal is struck at same time.

The transitional request came originally from the UK side. The discretion to accept lies with the EU as final arbiter. To threaten to walk away unless a final trade deal is struck at same time is delusional. The trade deal is also at the discretion of the EU as final arbiter.

As services are not covered by WTO – a point agreed by Theresa May – and the clock is ticking, we are no doubt heading for a no-deal-walk-away-mayhem.

Interesting to focus on Boris Johnston’s words urging the EU “to get on with it” and adding other barbs. As the leaving nation, the onus is on the UK Government to develop substantive outlines for exit and now trade and present at the next meeting in Brussels. Bland words from Theresa May and snide one-liners from the Foreign Secretary in public do not make ”progress”. No doubt they are aiming to blame the EU for not according to the UK “entitlement”?

When you are politically bankrupt, you cannot use your overdraft as a threat.

No 10 has run out of credit and credibility; the EU will no doubt call time and rescind all favours.

John Edgar

Stewarton

Curiously, I am becoming more confident of a soft Brexit, based on the following scenario.

Voters across all 28 current EU member states have misgivings about EU membership. The depth of such feelings varies from country to country, but the nationalists are not going to go away any time soon. The elected leaders of all the EU countries pay close attention to their voters as an adverse election result can see them out of a job (or fatally wounded). Those leaders therefore need to demonstrate that their voices are being heard within the EU and that reforms are in hand to make it more attractive. Why have such reforms not been launched already? Is it because the European Commission in Brussels wields too much power and opposes the changes?

Brexit is the golden opportunity to deliver this reform as taking away the UK's contribution to the EU budget means the commission will become unaffordable and must be changed – unless the remaining 27 states increase their contributions, which will be politically unacceptable to them domestically. By offering the UK decent terms, this will result in a smooth exit, which will minimise damage to domestic economies across Europe. Again, good for votes. A friendly UK could then, as part of the reform programme, help to tidy up the loose ends, such as Switzerland and Norway, and facilitate the formation of a formal group of "associate" EU members.

After the referendum last year, one of your contributors wrote that we would go from being just about inside the EU to just about outside. Captures it nicely, I think.

Bernard Cudd

Morpeth

Theresa May is like a rabbit stuck in the headlights: she has lost the capacity to think. A transition will only be needed if there is a hard Brexit, but what every business needs now is a stable marketplace. Threatening a hard Brexit in 18 months is stupid. How can a business act to adjust to major changes in its marketplace when it does not know what they are or whether they will happen?

What the economy needs is certainty that nothing changes without three years' notice and that there will then be a transition period, the length of which depends upon the severity of the changes.

Jon Hawksley

London EC1R

It must be a great comfort to all those "just about managing" to get by on low and frozen wages that those extreme Brexiteers like John Redwood are looking after their interests and can assure them that crashing out of the EU with no deal won't interfere with their wine-buying.

Geoff Forward

Stirling

The buyers never seem to pay

Donald Trump is going to build a border wall and get the Mexicans to pay for it.

Theresa May is not going to erect border posts, thus forcing the European Union to construct them, with the Irish taxpayer, as usual, paying the price.

Liam Power

Co Louth, Ireland

Subtlety or error?

As someone who was once deeply involved in matters of professional and research ethics, I always enjoy Will Gore's sober, well thought out and beautifully written pieces. It's for that reason that I'm not sure whether this sentence in his piece in Tuesday's Daily Edition is subtly phrased or just the usual homophonic confusion:

"One might have thought the EU could also be interested in reports of violence by Spanish neo-Nazis opposed to Catalan independence, as well as claims those extreme nationalists have been given free reign by police."

Bruce Napier​

Derbyshire

A headline idea

What can trump “President tramps effort to tromp on the memory of the widow of a soldier”?

Dennis Fitzgerald

Melbourne, Australia