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Quest Means Business
IATA Travel Pass Will Bring Back International Travel; "Are You OK?": Simple Question From Meghan Markle; Football Legend Maradona Dies In Argentina
Aired November 25, 2020 - 15:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
(PRESIDENT-ELECT JOE BIDEN'S SPEECH)
[15:11:45]
RICHARD QUEST, CNN BUSINESS ANCHOR, QUEST MEANS BUSINESS: The President- elect Joe Biden delivering a sober, somber, but uplifting Thanksgiving address from his headquarters in Delaware, acknowledging the gravity of
what the United States is facing, and at the same time emphasizing the hope that exists.
We'll deal with the politics throughout the course of the next hour, but I want to focus first of all on the health aspects of what the President-
elect was talking about.
The experts are warning of the mother of all super spreader events under way and in the United States, Thanksgiving, but -- and the reason we're
going to spend real time tonight talking about it is that U.S. Thanksgiving could provide a warning to the rest of the world as it prepares to enter
its own holiday season, Christmas, Hanukkah, Diwali, Kwanzaa and the like.
Michael Osterholm is a member of Joe Biden's COVID advisory team. He joins us now from Minneapolis. Thank you for staying with us. We will get to it.
What Joe Biden says about the way he is going to tackle COVID, it is -- it is revolutionary apart from the way the current administration is doing it,
but is it too late?
DR. MICHAEL OSTERHOLM, MEMBER OF JOE BIDEN'S COVID ADVISORY TEAM: Well, it's never too late to do the right thing and the right thing in attacking
this particular virus is to let science rule the day and I'm very confident that that's what we'll see here. I think the second piece to this, though,
is also we need a roadmap, we need hope.
We are entering the very darkest days of this pandemic, in fact, the most dangerous public health moments since 1918 and the swine flu pandemic, but
we also have a very, very bright light at the end of the tunnel with these vaccines.
We need to get from where we're at today, where we are in a raging pandemic to where we can get to vaccines in the next several months and actually
reduce that risk dramatically with those vaccines.
so I think what he laid out was one of science-based approach and one of -- if I had to say it, and I'm a nonpartisan guy, I've served roles in the
last five presidential administrations, this was an FDR moment, I think.
QUEST: An FDR moment for fireside chat and the delivery was certainly that today. We can expect more.
You talk about 1918, let's look at the chart of 1918, which I just happen to have just close to me here. If we look at it, look, they got it right in
the sense of -- they dealt with the first bit in Philadelphia and then it went horribly wrong in the middle of '19 because they just didn't follow
through. Have we made exactly the same mistake again?
OSTERHOLM: No, we haven't made the same mistake again. There is one slight difference. In 1918, the virus would come into a community and be gone
within six to ten weeks, with another wave to appear months later. They didn't understand the epidemiology or the way that the virus was
transmitted.
We are in a different kind of pandemic. We have not really had this virus let up attacking us since it first emerged in Wuhan back in December. And
so, here we are now literally in our 11th month of this pandemic causing great pandemic fatigue.
People are tired. People felt like they have already done everything they could and now what we need to do is get them to the finish line where we
have a vaccine. We need to try to keep people with us and understand why we are trying to reduce transmission not just to save our hospitals, which
we're trying to do that, but also because the promise is that they will have these vaccines at the end.
They didn't have that in 1918. We do have that and that's what makes this all the more reason why to prevent transmission so that we can get people
to a healthy state without having to be ill.
[15:15:34]
QUEST: Michael, we promise you, you would be finished by 15 and indeed you are, sir. Thank you.
OSTERHOLM: Thank you.
QUEST: I appreciate it. We'll talk about again.
OSTERHOLM: Thank you.
QUEST: Now, air traffic always spikes around Thanksgiving in the United States. This year is no different.
Look at the flight map at the moment. Now, bearing in mind the number of passengers who will be traveling, and most of those flights particularly in
the United States are near capacity, this is not a case of airlines flying empty planes.
All this travel in the middle of a surging pandemic, potential vectors of family coming together in a year marked by isolation. College students are
heading home and the virus may be following there and back.
And despite a slew of public health warnings against travel, millions of people are on the move smashing pandemic-era records.
Pete Muntean is at Washington Reagan National Airport on this busy travel day, the busiest in the year. It looks as if it's quieting down just a
little bit now behind you. I guess that's because people are now actually traveling.
PETE MUNTEAN, CNN AVIATION CORRESPONDENT: Well, it comes a bit in waves here, Richard. You know, the T.S.A. says about 900,000 people passed
through security at America's airports yesterday. That means about 4.8 million people have flown since the T.S.A. issued a warning telling people
to not travel for the Thanksgiving Holiday, a number that could be pushed up by another million people today.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
MUNTEAN (voice over): Caroline Osler says she could not stay home anymore, so she took a coronavirus test and boarded a flight home to Kentucky for
Thanksgiving.
CAROLINE OSLER, TRAVELING TO KENTUCKY: I think at some point, it's just -- it's too hard to stay away from family, especially for the Holidays.
MUNTEAN (voice over): It is the rationale of 50 million Americans according to AAA who will travel by plane, train or car this week. The new
forecast is only a 10 percent decrease from last year's pre-pandemic levels. But AAA thinks the actual number could be even lower, as
coronavirus cases surge.
Last week, the Centers for Disease Control said to cancel Holiday travel.
YASMINE DEHGHANI, TRAVELING TO CONNECTICUT: I understand the risk that I'm taking, but I want to see my family.
MUNTEAN (voice over): Passenger levels are already starting to rise again and set a new record of the pandemic on Sunday.
This past weekend was the busiest three days at airports since travel cratered. Major airlines are gearing up for more passengers and adding new
flights for the first time since March.
Airline industry groups say they are not encouraging travel, but they are not discouraging it either.
NICK CALIO, AIRLINES FOR AMERICA: I think it's perfectly ethical. We would not fly people if it were not safe.
MUNTEAN (on camera): Airlines feel empowered by new research that says cleaning like this, plus heavily filtered onboard an airplane and everyone
wearing a mask keeps virus transmission rates low.
DR. LEONARD MARCUS, HARVARD SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH: It's a layered approach.
MUNTEAN (voice over): Dr. Leonard Marcus is on the team of Harvard virologists who study the air inside airliners. Their findings that being
in a passenger cabin is may be safer than a grocery store, but Marcus cautions travelers to plan every step of their trip to reduce risk door to
door.
MARCUS: Everyone has to make a decision about their own personal risk. It's a very personal decision.
MUNTEAN (voice over): Airlines are starting programs to test passengers for coronavirus, but only on limited international routes.
For Caroline Osler, that means taking another coronavirus test before gathering around the table for a Thanksgiving like no other.
OSLER: I think it reaches the point when you have to decide what's best for yourself and how you can best protect yourself and those around you as
well.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
MUNTEAN: The T.S.A. says not many people are canceling their trips since the C.D.C. issued that warning. Today is expected to be big, but Sunday
could be even bigger. That's when the T.S.A. thinks all the people who left for the Holiday could be coming home at all once -- Richard.
QUEST: Pete Muntean at Washington Reagan. Thank you, sir.
Now, the IATA chief, Alexandre de Juniac will be joining us at half past the hour, just about ten minutes from now.
European nations are struggling to curb the coronavirus before Christmas, a few, including Ireland are planning to relax the restrictions. The Irish
Finance Minister is next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:22:11]
QUEST: The World Health Organization says Europe remains the biggest global contributor to new coronavirus cases. E.U. nations are desperately
trying to contain the spread of COVID before Christmas.
Some have had early success. France and the U.K. and Ireland are all preparing to ease lockdown restrictions. Germany is making a last ditch
attempt to contain the virus with tougher measures.
The Chancellor, Angela Merkel is expected to extend the lockdown into December.
Ireland is giving people reason for a Holiday cheer, saying it expects to ease restrictions for nearly two weeks around Christmas. The country's
strict lockdown has helped curb new cases and now, the Chief Medical Officer wants to keep it that way warning Irish citizens abroad not to come
home for Christmas, the risk of bringing the virus into the country is too high.
Paschal Donohoe is the Irish Finance Minister. He is also the President of the Euro Group, he joins me now from Dublin.
Minister, it is good to have you. Thank you, sir. I appreciate it. Let's talk about Ireland first, the ability to reopen. The Deputy Premiere summed
it up, didn't he, people are going to travel anyway so you may as well put together a plan that enables it to happen, but these bubbles and mixing of
households that's the problem.
I'm not sure the minister -- I'm not sure he's hearing me. Let me just try this one more time.
PASCHAL DONOHOE, IRISH FINANCE MINISTER: No, I'm not.
QUEST: Finance Minister, are you hearing me? It's Richard Quest in New York. Are you hearing me?
DONOHOE: I am indeed. I have you now, Richard.
QUEST: There we go. Perseverance, we pushed the right button and we paid the electricity bill. The question was simple, people are going to travel
anyway as the Deputy Premiere said, so -- but these bubbles and mixing of households, it's very complicated for people to actually follow and keep.
DONOHOE: Well, public house guidance needs to be clear and simple and what we have been able to do here in Ireland is reduce the spread of the disease
particularly over the last number of weeks by clear guidance.
We are going to have the decisions to make later on this week regarding what household contact will be in Ireland across the coming weeks and
across the Christmas period and the guidance will need to be clear, it will need to be simple and it will need to be well understood. That has been the
case in recent weeks and months here in Ireland.
QUEST: If we take the economic situation and the ability with second and potentially thirds and a difficult winter, how much more support are you
expecting to have to give the Irish economy?
DONOHOE: I'm expecting the support that we have to make and give to the Irish economy to last throughout most, if not all of 2021. I hope as we
move through 2021, Richard, it will be possible to reduce the level of the support as indeed we were able to do across the summer here in Ireland, but
I expect some form of support will be required for most of next year and we have that budgeted for in the budget we did a few weeks ago here in our
country.
[15:25:30]
QUEST: How concerned are you that Poland and your Euro Group, or -- your Euro Group President hat on now, how concerned with you that Poland and
Hungary and their obstinance refusing to agree to the budget for the E.C. level is going to cause serious real problem?
DONOHOE: Well, of course, any concern in the role of the money that is going to be really needed for '21 and for 2022 in the European Union, any
delay, is of course is a concern, but I actually do believe agreement will be found, Richard, to release the funding, to release the loans and grants
within the European Union in 2021 and the reason why I believe that, Richard, is because the funding will be needed next year.
The economic damage of COVID-19 is really clear. The European Union has taken a big step forward in agreeing grants that will be available
essentially by the European Union to help those who need the help the most and because I believe that agreement is so important and will be needed
next year, I do ultimately believe that this matter will be resolved even though, of course, I am concerned that it has developed at this point.
QUEST: Okay. I know a deal can be done on Brexit and the possibility of a deal being done is there, but it's getting very tight. Is it likely that
it's going to be some skinny deal that gets everybody over December 31st?
DONOHOE: I think it is likely that the agreement that will be reached will be a very focused agreement that will require much work in the coming years
between the European Union and the United Kingdom if they want to add to it any way, if they want to develop the relationship further.
So I think it will be focused and it will be quite a targeted agreement, but I do ultimately believe, as you kind of suggested in your question,
that an agreement will be reached in the end and the reason why I believe an agreement will be reached, Richard, is while I believe the agreement
that will be put in place will not be as good as for example, the United Kingdom being in the European Union, I still believe it will be
significantly better than there not being an agreement at all.
If I look at how much the U.K. and E.U. will continue to have in common, from a values and from a broader geopolitical point of view, it is one of
the propelling reasons of why I think an agreement will be reached if the will is there in the next few weeks.
QUEST: Minister, thank you. So many issues one has to deal with now that you are the President of the Euro Group as well. There are so many things -
- so let's go through this -- but it's good to have you, sir, and we appreciate it.
And if we don't speak before Christmas, have a very Happy Holiday season for you, too.
DONOHOE: Thank you.
QUEST: Good to see you. Now, getting travel going again. IATA says its digital health pass, the travel pass could be the key to reopening borders.
The head of IATA, Alexandre de Juniac will be with us after the break.
It's QUEST MEANS BUSINESS.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:30:00]
QUEST: Hello, I'm Richard Quest. There's more QUEST MEANS BUSINESS in just a moment when the head of IATA will tell me why testing not quarantine is
the future of international travel.
And a question, "Are you OK?" The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle, has sparked an entire conversation on mental health as she reveals her own
personal struggles and tragedy.
But all of that's after the news because this is CNN and on this network the news always comes first.
One of the greatest football players of all time Diego Maradona has died at the age of 60.
The Argentine superstar led his country to the World Cup title in 1986. He was a colorful controversial figure on and off the field. After retirement,
Maradona remained in the game as a manager until his death.
President Elect Joe Biden has given a Thanksgiving address to the nation a short time ago. He acknowledged the tragedy caused by the pandemic and
urged people to stay safe.
He also emphasized a message of hope, promising the country would emerge from its current crisis.
More than two weeks after Joe Biden was projected the winner of the election, the Chinese president is acknowledging Biden's victory. Xi
Jinping sent a message on Wednesday to congratulate President Elect Biden according to the Xinhua news agency.
President Trump is still refusing to concede.
IATA says quarantines are not the way forward for air travel. Instead IATA's developing a digital health passport around testing and vaccines.
And says the app is the key to reopening borders safely.
It's working with IAG on the project and plans to launch early next year.
Alexandre de Juniac is the CEO and director general of IATA. He joins me from Geneva via Skype.
It is good to see you, sir, I appreciate your time. I know it was a busy week with the annual general meeting.
I want to focus on this question of the travel pass. How far advanced is your scheme and system, bearing in mind what Alan Joyce said of Qantas,
that Qantas is soon going to be requiring a certificate?
ALEXANDRE DE JUNIAC, DIRECTOR GENERAL & CEO, IATA: You know the travel pass it is the unavoidable complement of any testing system and even
vaccine system to give comfort and confidence either to passengers or to government to reopen border and to travel by air.
Why? Because when you are a passenger and when you are a government you have to prove either that you are vaccinated when the vaccine would be
there or that you have been tested negative.
So the app manages the flow of information coming from the lab or the test center to the passenger then to the airline then to the government.
And it's a kind of certification of things that have been done properly and the results are the one that allows you to travel or to meet the
requirements that have been set --
QUEST: How --
DE JUNIAC: -- by the government of the country.
[15:35:00]
QUEST: How quickly can you get this thing up and running? If vaccinations are starting December, January it's realistic that by mid next year
governments are going to require vaccination certificates and airlines are going to have to provide it. Can you be ready by then?
DE JUNIAC: The app will be ready in the coming weeks, so it's totally compatible with the schedule we have mentioned.
The point is that it is applicable for vaccine but this is even more important for testing.
As you know, we are (inaudible) in favor of systematic testing of all passengers as a substitute to (inaudible) because we understand that there
is quarantine to protect the population from reimporting the virus.
But then we say this quarantine's is a complete breaking point (ph) for air travel. And so if we want to reopen air travel we should propose something
else.
And this something is the systematic testing and all of that is certified, guaranteed, transferred by this app. So that is the system we are putting
forward.
QUEST: IATA has enormous experience, of course, in dealing with these. You've run -- what most people don't know is that you run the payment
system --
DE JUNIAC: Yes.
QUEST: -- the inter-airline payment system. So you're well familiar with managing vast amounts of schemes and datas.
On a question -- on a personal question, Alexandre, why did you decide next March now is the time to leave?
I pay tribute to your leadership during this extraordinary period where you've been a rock of stability, but why was now the time to go?
DE JUNIAC: It's very kind appreciation from you. I think we have with the IATA team and with our members we have built a building block on which the
industry will be able to restart. And to restart strongly, efficiently and safely -- from everybody point of view, passengers and government -- on On
these building blocks.
They are there, they will be ready and so my successor, Willie Walsh, who is a very talented and experienced CEO and will be able to build and to
push as we start at the appropriate level.
So we have tried to give him the right tool, the right organization to run that.
QUEST: And we will talk many more times, of that I'm certain, between now and when you leave as we navigate these -- we didn't have time today to
talk about the huge losses but there'll be plenty of time for you and I to get to grips with that.
DE JUNIAC: Sure.
QUEST: Alexandre de Juniac, good to see you, sir. Thank you.
DE JUNIAC: Thank you.
QUEST: Thank you. Now airlines are facing an unprecedented crisis but there is optimism that is returning.
In our new series "Think Big" Emirates president, Tim Clark, says business travel is set for a major rebound.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JOHN DEFTERIOS, CNN EMERGING MARKETS EDITOR: When does business travel get back to normal or is it going to be defined as a new normal that's probably
25 or 30 percent less than you had prior to the pandemic?
TIM CLARK, PRESIDENT, EMIRATES AIRLINES: No, I would say the converse.
What has happened is that as a result of being locked down, as a result of having to engage in the networks that you see, whether it be Zoom,
(inaudible) whatever.
And I saw in the mid-90s when we digitized the global economy and all these tools came to market. The digital world, the age of information came along
and everybody said you know what's going to happen, we're not really going to travel anymore, we won't want to do this.
And actually we can do much more of what we wanted to do over the -- the converse happened.
Between 1995 and 2015, 2018 the demand for business travel grew exponentially.
As we get back to normal, as the economies strengthen, as cash starts flowing back into the business that have been affected, you'll forget all
the -- as they always do. We'll start to see business travel bounce back and we'll see it grow. It will not slow down.
DEFTERIOS: You had a $5 billion swing from profitability to loss in the latest quarter. Can you get to profitability in the first half of 2022 as a
carrier then --
CLARK: I think --
DEFTERIOS: -- as a group?
CLARK: I think we will start seeing a rapid return to cash positivity during the course of '21, again, the back half.
I would say that in the financial year '22-'23, that's when you will see the airline going back to profitability and generating the cash that it
needs to do all of the -- meet the obligations that it has.
And we can then continue our plans for fleet renewal, for network expansion, with some of the new aircraft, the tools that we need to start
opening up new points.
That'll happen in '22, '23, '24.
[15:40:00]
So all right, I may be out by six months. But in the past, we've generally got it right when we take an assessment of what's likely to happen.
And in the end, you plan for that, you action your whole company resource on that plan. And hope that it comes as good as I think it will.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
QUEST: Tim Clark. More to come, lots more including the loss of a football legend. We're learning new details about Diego Maradona's sudden passing.
We'll be in Buenos Aires after this short break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
QUEST: The legendary footballer Diego Maradona has died at the age of 60.
His lawyer says it was a heart attack and tributes are now arriving from all over the world.
Nowhere one would mourn him like his home country of Argentina where he remained a larger-than-life figure well after his playing career.
He was forever courting controversy. Of course, his crowning achievement on the field was leading Argentina to the victory in the 1986 World Cup. He
scored two iconic goals to beat England that year in the quarterfinals.
It was the first, known around the world as the "hand of God," the shot that made him a household name.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COMMENTATOR: (Speaking foreign language). Goal.
CROWD: (Applause)
(END VIDEO CLIP)
QUEST: Don Riddell of "WORLD SPORT," joins me now from London. Let's talk about that first.
I mean, it wasn't just the questionable nature of what took place, it was the statement, "the hand of God."
DON RIDDELL, CNN "WORLD SPORT": Yes. And that was how he himself described it.
I was watching an interview again from one of his former teammates in that game today who after the goal Maradona had said come and hug me, come
closer, because he knew it was a bit dodgy and he wanted it to look a bit more genuine.
Of course, we didn't have all the incredible television technology that we have now so it wasn't immediately clear. And the referees certainly didn't
have the technology that they do now so the goal has stood.
Hugely controversial. But what people --
[15:45:00]
sometimes forget is what happened four minutes later in that quarterfinal match against England
When he slalomed from the halfway line past seven England players to score what some people consider to be the greatest goal of all time, certainly
the greatest goal that has been scored at a World Cup tournament.
And in that moment, in those four, five minutes in that game we saw the two sides of Diego Maradona portrayed so poetically.
Because he was summing up his absolute brilliance with the ball, his genius talent, his almost magical talent but also the fact that he was prepared to
bend the rules, show some of his kind of street fighting qualities; the cunning, the sneakiness which is kind of how he lived his life.
But the man was brilliant, no doubt about it.
QUEST: His post-playing life, he was a manager with limited success in some cases, but he was dogged by problems, personal, mental health issues
and addiction and the like for many years.
RIDDELL: Yes. And that began during his playing career. It wasn't something that happened to him afterwards. He has battled demons throughout
his life.
He was a product of the streets, he grew up in a very, very rough neighborhood around Buenos Aires in Argentina and then of course he made it
to the top of the world.
But he was never able to really kind of shrug off those demons.
QUEST: Right.
RIDDELL: He struggled with drug and alcohol addiction, he was addicted to cocaine for a good 20 years and health issues followed --
QUEST: Right.
RIDLEY -- as a result of that.
QUEST: Don, stay with me a moment. We have now got (inaudible) , Buenos Aires who we managed to -- oh, I beg your pardon, it's happening -- it's
happening, as fast as I can get there, we lose him again.
So, Don, you're still with me. Just as well I didn't let you go as well. What will be -- if you sum it up what is the pluses and the minuses, what
does it come to?
RIDDELL: Well, I think football fans would love to just remember him for his talent on the field.
I spoke to the documentary filmmaker Asif Kapadia last year who made the documentary "Diego Maradona "about him. And I said he had so many demons,
he had so many things go go wrong with his life, so many things were not a great example, I said should we be celebrating him?
And he said absolutely. Because you look at the footballer he was and he was a genius and he was brilliant and he was admired by people all over the
world.
And players like Diego Maradona don't grow up as a kid thinking I want to be a role model, I just want to go and play football. And that is what he
did so brilliantly.
People today have been saying if you were lucky enough to see him play in the flesh live in the stadium it was an incredible thing to say that you
were able to do. He was just so mesmerizing to watch. But a lot of people would say you would pay to see him just warming up before the game.
There are clips that I'm sure are going viral on social media today of him just kind of juggling the ball before the game and just having so much fun
with it. And he just made it look so easy.
You've got to remember the pitches that they played on, Richard, 30, 35, 40 years ago were not these kind of smooth carpets that you see now across
Europe and in the Premier League.
These pitches were bumpy, they were horrible, they were very difficult to control the ball on. And yet he just used to glide around the field with it
kind of magnetically glued to his foot. His talent was -- really was very rare and just incredible.
QUEST: Don Riddell, thank you, sir.
2020 has been a tragic and difficult year for so many people that we know. And being royal doesn't exempt you from having difficulties.
Meghan Markle has opened up about a deeply painful loss for her family. In a moment.
[15:50:00]
QUEST: "Are you OK?" "Are you OK?" "Are you OK?"
Now it's a question often asked without any interest and the reply is usually a simple and perfunctory, "Yes, I'm fine." Carry on.
Well, this morning when I read my "New York Times" -- yes, I still pick up a real paper -- "The losses we share." It's an article in the op-ed
section of the "Times" by Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex. And that question has much deeper meaning.
In the article the duchess shares news of her miscarriage in July, the first time that we'd heard about this.
In the article she also says in a year as painful as this one for so many people in many different ways, three little words, "Are you OK?" might make
a big difference.
Let's put that question to Moira Forbes the executive vice president of Forbes Media -- a Forbes woman and mum to what she calls two toddler
tornadoes.
And Moira, gosh, how great to have -- how lovely to speak to you about this.
MOIRA FORBES, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, FORBES MEDIA: Thank you, Richard.
QUEST: Look, so I read the article and I was -- because obviously, the royals and everything, I was prepared to sort of oh, yeah, yeah, poor
little royal, type of thing.
But the more I read it the more I realized this is -- she was really not talking about her miscarriage, she was talking about the way we're treating
each other in this very difficult time that the globe (ph) is facing at the moment.
FORBES: Certainly. Her personal story is a lens through which she talks about the larger issues of 2020, whether it be the pandemic, the social
unrest in this country, there isn't anyone who hasn't been untouched by the events of this year, particularly in such a polarizing year.
So she really is honing in on an important issue to her and that is mental health. And really ensuring there's a sense of connectivity and that
there's an opportunity this year as we end this year and look to the future to really reach out with empathy and sincerity and kindness to connect with
one another in such an isolating and difficult period.
And it's deeply personal and moving but it really speaks to a global set of issues that all of us can relate to in such a profound way.
QUEST: I'm concerned that we -- again, reading the article I'm getting concerned that we're all paying lip service to this idea of the importance
of mental health.
We're all recognizing -- I hear CEO after CEO talk about oh, yes, we're aware of the strains of mental health but actually the execution of policy
that accommodates these difficulties is still lacking. And I think that's what she's also talking about, not lip service.
FORBES: It's fundamentally lacking. I think there's silver linings to this year in the sense that the mental health crisis around the world is really
coming to the surface.
And you make a good point, Richard, there is so much lip service but very little elbow grease in terms of people rolling up their sleeves and
addressing this problem is such a profound way.
I think this year is an opportunity for us to turn this crisis into real change and finally put mental health at the forefront of an agenda for
business leaders and health care professionals around the world in a way that it never has been before.
QUEST: Moira, so what do you make of Meghan and her future? I notice that she says in the article -- she describes herself -- or they describe her as
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex is a mother, feminist and an advocate. The actress seems to have gone somewhere by the wayside.
But come on, let's get to what we think -- what's behind it? What do you think -- is she putting a marker down?
[15:55:00]
FORBES: I think certainly she's putting a marker down. She's someone that doesn't act without a lot of strategy and intention behind it.
And I think she's really looking to how she uses her voice and establish her platform on the key sets of issues. I think next year the most
important thing will be to see the actions that she takes.
She has an extraordinary platform, a global voice, but it really will be important to see the muscle she puts behind it and can she actually take
measurable steps to move forward on these key issues and also bridge some key divides.
She's a huge voice, very, very controversial, but she has an opportunity to be a really powerful force for change if she can identify the best way to
channel those intentions, that energy.
QUEST: Moira, last question. Are you OK?
FORBES: I am OK, Richard. You might see some dark circles under my eyes -- you mentioned I have two toddler tornadoes but I am OK because they have
not run into the room and interrupted us. So I feel like that is a win and a win to be with them and safe and healthy for this holiday.
QUEST: My bribe failed. I was trying to bribe whoever is looking after them that they would run in and attack at the last moment.
Moira, good to see you. If we don't speak before the holiday season, I wish you all happy Thanksgiving. Thank you.
FORBES: Thank you. Thank you, be safe, Richard.
QUEST: Thank you. Now the last few moments of trade, let's have a quick look.
Bearing in mind everything's closed tomorrow in New York, no trading on Wall Street -- let's not get too excited. All right. We're back into
30,000, it's down half a percent.
This is just a minor blip on a quiet day before a national holiday with half day's trading on Friday. Everybody is already thinking about turkey.
A quick look at the Dow 30 -- we'll just show you now as we take a break. There you are.
(Iinaudible) unusual, nothing to get wildly excited. Except maybe Salesforce down five percent.
I'll have a "Profitable Moment" after the break.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
0334
QUEST: Tonight's "Profitable Moment". When I suggested at this morning's meeting on QUEST MEANS BUSINESS that we do the story of the Meghan Markle
article, one of my colleagues said why, it's not a business story.
And, yes, to be fair to that colleague it's not a business story but that really is not the point, in my view.
On this program we recognize that business has a much larger agenda, it has a capital 'B' and not a small 'b' meaning profits.
And I think that the article that Meghan Markle wrote, of course we all take much greater interest in it than if Mrs. Smith had written it, A.,
because she reveals the sadness of her miscarriage but also she is who she is.
She married Prince Harry and then the two of them upped sticks and left the Royal Family and they're now holed up in Los Angeles.
But the point she makes is a valid one, and that's why we've done it tonight. Whether it's business or family, holidays or work days, rich or
poor, the issues of COVID and mental health are real and they're not going away. And there's every potential they're going to get a great deal worse
as we go into a cold, hard winter.
And that to me is business indeed.
And that's all from QUEST MEANS BUSINESS tonight. I'm Richard Quest in New York.
Whatever you're up in the hours ahead, to I hope it's profitable. The bell is ringing, the day is done.
END
