Hello and welcome to the intelligence from The Economist. I'm your host, Jason Palmer.

Every weekday, we provide a fresh perspective on the events shaping your world.

Chinese officials want to boost the economy of Xinjiang province, developing manufacturing, trade and tourism.

But they also want to continue repressing and co-opting the province's Uyghur minority.

Our correspondent reckons those plans are incompatible.

And since the very start of the intelligence, our Bartleby columnist has been railing against the harms of useless meetings, long hours, corporate jargon, and more.

Today, he bids us farewell and shares what he's learned about the world of work.

But first... This will serve as a gate change announcement for our customers traveling or a jet flight...

If you have occasion for international travel, good luck getting to grips with the restrictions.

And cross your fingers, they don't change between your departure and your return.

According to Britain's inscrutable traffic light system,

rules for travelers returning from France loosened this week.

For those coming from Mexico, they tightened.

East Asia and Australasia are largely locked down,

sub-Saharan Africa mostly open.

America still won't take travelers from the European Union.

Strict quarantine rules in government-approved facilities,

Byzantine testing regimes, outright bans,

travel remains out of reach for many and messy for everyone.

And not just travelers, of course. It's nightmarish for the economies of tourist spots,

for tour operators and airlines, for hotels and restaurants.

And the truth is that it's not clear how much good any of these fickle rules are doing.

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