Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 12 Mar 2019

1. May claims backstop victory before vote

The House of Commons will vote again on Theresa May’s version of Brexit today, after she last night claimed an 11th-hour victory in securing a legally binding add-on to her Brexit deal that ensures the Irish backstop cannot be permanent. However, the backstop has not been removed completely from the Withdrawal Agreement nor made subject to a time limit, as some MPs wanted.

2. Singapore joins other nations with Boeing 737 ban

Singapore has become the latest nation to temporarily suspend the Boeing 737 Max fleet of aircraft from flying into and out of its airports. The decision comes after an Ethiopian Airlines Boeing Max 8 crashed on Sunday, killing all 157 people on board. It was the second fatal accident involving that model in less than five months. China has also grounded its 737 Max 8 jets, as have Cayman Airways and Ethiopian Airlines.

3. Web creator warns of ‘dysfunction’ on anniversary

Today is the 30th anniversary of the creation of the World Wide Web – and its inventor Sir Tim Berners-Lee is warning that a “mid-course correction” is needed to stop his utopian vision’s “downward plunge to a dysfunctional future”. The British scientist is calling for urgent action by governments and technology firms to tackle threats including hacking, online harassment and exploitative clickbait.

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4. Missing tourist Catherine Shaw: body found

A body has been found in the search in Guatemala for missing British backpacker Catherine Shaw. Formal identification has not taken place but the body is thought to be that of the 23-year-old, from Oxfordshire, who was last seen on 5 March. Her father flew out on Friday to join the search in San Pedro, where she had been staying for two weeks.

5. Women killed by partners after calling police

One in five women killed by their partners have previously been in contact with the police, new figures show. Twelve out of 63 women allegedly killed by partners in Britain in the year up to March 2018 had spoken to the police beforehand. Since then, another 11 have died in similar circumstances, The Times reports.

6. Bloody Sunday: decision over prosecutions due

Prosecutors in Londonderry will decide this week whether to bring murder charges against former British soldiers for the 1972 Bloody Sunday killings. Members of the Parachute Regiment’s 1st Batallion shot dead 14 unarmed civilians in Derry City’s Bogside area on 30 January that year, fuelling a long-term cycle of violence.

7. Thatcher ‘shielded MP accused of child abuse’

Then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher shielded a Conservative MP accused of child abuse, according to newly released MI5 files. Sir Peter Morrison, MP for Chester, served as a junior minister and then as Thatcher’s parliamentary private secretary despite ongoing concern from the intelligence agency that he was an abuser.

8. Pelosi comes out against impeaching Trump

Nancy Pelosi, speaker of the US House and the country’s most senior Democrat, has told The Washington Post she is not in favour of impeaching President Donald Trump, unless for “something so compelling … and bipartisan”. She added: “I don’t think we should go down that path, because it divides the country. He’s just not worth it.”

9. Mint creates ‘black hole’ 50p for Hawking

Professor Stephen Hawking has joined Isaac Newton and Charles Darwin as a scientist featured on British currency, as the Royal Mint unveils a new 50p coin in his honour. The coin does not feature a portrait of Hawking, who died last year aged 76, but instead carries a representation of a black hole, an equation and his name.

10. Briefing: can Operation Sceptre reduce knife crime?

A major crackdown on knife crime has kicked off across England and Wales. At least 39 people have been stabbed to death in the UK since the beginning of the year, with several teenagers among the victims.

What is Operation Sceptre and can it reduce knife crime?