Egypt’s President Says End of His Term in 2030 Is ‘Completely Settled’; Transport Scotland Asks If It Can Borrow That Phrase for the A9
Roads chiefs 'deeply inspired' by a deadline described as settled, final and absolutely not subject to review.
The A9 near Dunkeld, where completion is also, in its own way, completely settled. Photo: Richard West, “Under the A9 Jubilee Bridge, NW of Dunkeld”, via Wikimedia Commons (geograph.org.uk), CC BY-SA 2.0
DUNKELD — Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi’s declaration on Saturday that the year 2030 “will mark the end of my presidential term” and that “this matter is completely settled” has been warmly received in Perthshire, where officials say they have been looking for exactly that tone of voice for years.
“‘Completely settled’ — it’s beautiful,” said a Transport Scotland strategist, gazing at a laminated A9 dualling timetable that has been reprinted several times. “We’ve tried ‘on track’. We’ve tried ‘committed to’. We’ve tried ‘by 2025’, ‘by 2035’ and, on one occasion, ‘eventually, God willing’. None of them had that ring of total certainty that people trust immediately and completely.”
Highland Perthshire drivers say they recognise a 2030 deadline when they hear one. “In this part of the world, 2030 is a sort of spiritual concept,” said a Pitlochry commuter. “It’s where all the bypasses live. And the new schools. And my pension.”
Other Scottish institutions have moved quickly to adopt the formula. Perth and Kinross Council confirmed the end of the city’s roadworks was “completely settled” for “a date to be completely settled later”, while St Johnstone said a European campaign was “completely settled, pending the results of every match”.
Constitutional experts note that heads of state announcing their own end dates is an unusual but welcome development. “In Scotland, we have institutions that have been about to end since 1979,” said one academic. “Nobody has ever been this specific. Frankly, it’s refreshing.”
At press time, the A9 completion date had been formally updated to “2030, completely settled”, with a footnote in very small print reading “(Egyptian time)”.
The real story: Egyptian President El-Sisi says 2030 will mark the end of his presidential term, 'completely settled' (Xinhua world news summary, 17 Oct 2026)
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