𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Dubai looks nothing like a warzone, with supermarket shelves packed and cheerful locals out and about, according to Reform UK’s Richard Tice.

The party’s deputy leader is in the United Arab Emirates city visiting his fiancée, Isabel Oakeshott, and he is glad he did not perform a U-turn and abandon the trip when his phone lit up with images of destruction.

He told Express: “I was on my way to Heathrow for a flight to the United Arab Emirates when social media began claiming Abu Dhabi airport had been hit.

“As Abu Dhabi was exactly where I was headed, on an Etihad flight, I wasn’t exactly optimistic. Scrolling through alarming-looking images of a building in flames as I sat on the Tube, I wondered if I should do a Starmer-style U-turn and go back.

“Good job I didn’t abandon the mission, because those pictures turned out to be fake. And while my flight wasn’t exactly packed with holidaymakers heading for the Gulf, it departed almost bang on time. Even better, I had the luxury of half the plane to myself.”

Despite reports of panicked social media “influencers” trying to flee Dubai, Mr Tice said he was “delighted to have headed in the opposite direction”.

“As [the UAE] comes under attack from Iran, fighting off a barrage of ballistic missiles and drones, it is important to show our solidarity,” he said. “Moreover, my fiancée and her children live in Dubai.

“Since the mad mullahs launched their outrageous and totally unprovoked offensive, I have wanted to be by her side – even if I can only escape my parliamentary and constituency duties for a very short while.”

Describing the city at this time of crisis in the Middle East, he said: “It’s all strangely normal. There are no buildings in smoking ruins; no empty supermarket shelves.

“On the contrary, Dubai is still glittering and very much alive. The Straits of Hormuz may be effectively closed, delaying international cargo, but branches of Waitrose and Carrefour in Dubai are so well stocked that their problem may become one of over-supply.

“Tonight, we’re going out to dinner – or perhaps we’ll order take out. There may be the occasional “take cover” alert, as the UAE Ministry of Defence does its job – to date, it has intercepted some 95% plus of missiles and drones – but it seems that almost everything is still available at the touch of a button.

“Sure, it’s quieter than usual, but residents are cheerfully out and about, enjoying the last few weeks of warm weather before the hot summer arrives.”

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While Mr Tice branded the Labour Government’s response to the crisis a “total embarrassment”, he said the UAE was “resilient and determined”, and he will be meeting with local ministers.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage travelled to President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida to lobby against Sir Keir Starmer’s deal to hand sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

Mr Tice said: “Amid this historic crisis, we are where it matters: building relationships; forging alliances.”