Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Wednesday 29 May 2019

1. Local councils ‘running out of reserve cash’

At least 11 local councils in England have been warned by a spending watchdog that they will have “fully exhausted” their cash reserves – money held back to deal with projects or emergencies such as flooding – within four years unless they top them up. The Local Government Association said that councils face “systematic underfunding”, the BBC reports.

2. Hunt ‘flip-flopping’ as Cleverly enters Tory race

Jeremy Hunt has lost ground to Michael Gove in the race to replace Theresa May as Tory leader because he is seen as ‘flip-flopping’ on the issue of a no-deal Brexit, according to The Times. The foreign secretary has previously said that he would choose no-deal over no Brexit, but yesterday asserted that such a move would be political suicide. Junior Brexit minister James Cleverly has also entered the leadership race.

3. John Bercow: I’m staying on as Speaker until Brexit

John Bercow has said he will stay in his position as Speaker of the Commons while Brexit is ongoing, adding that it would not be “sensible” to quit while “there are great issues to be resolved”. There had been rumours he would stand down in July. Bercow has proved unpopular with the Right of the Tory party and with some Brexiteers.

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4. Ex-wife of Amazon boss giving $18bn to charity

MacKenzie Bezos, the recently divorced wife of Amazon founder and world’s richest man Jeff Bezos, has pledged to give half of her $36bn (£28bn) divorce settlement to charity. The 49-year-old has signed the so-called Giving Pledge set up by billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett to encourage the world’s richest individuals to be more philanthropic.

5. University of Essex ‘sorry’ for sex assault delays

The University of Essex has apologised after the BBC discovered delays of up to a year in handling claims of sexual harassment made by students, despite a policy of dealing with such issues within 60 days. The BBC also found that none of the 38 students who had complained of sexual harassment had gone on to report their claims to police.

6. Real Madrid top European football rich list

Accountant KPMG has named Real Madrid as the most “valuable” football club in Europe, promoting the Spanish side to the top of the money table at the expense of last year’s winner, Manchester United. Six English clubs are in the KPMG top ten, which is ranked by “enterprise value”, including profitability from broadcasts and stadium value.

7. British sailor jailed for honeymoon yacht death

A British-Australian man has been jailed for eight years in Miami after admitting the manslaughter of his new wife on a honeymoon yacht trip off the coast of Cuba. Lewis Bennett, 42, was also smuggling stolen coins when his 41-year-old bride Isabella Hellmann disappeared in May 2017. Her body has never been found.

8. Newsagent WHSmith ‘still Britain’s worst retailer’

Newsagent WHSmith has been named the UK’s worst high-street store for value and in-store experience for the second year running in an annual survey of customer satisfaction by the Which? consumer group. John Lewis topped the rankings of 100 shops rated by a total 7,700 shoppers.

9. Sale of entire Italian village revealed as PR job

An Italian village that advertised an online sale of all of its assets, from the town hall to street signs, has admitted the whole thing was a PR stunt. Officials in Esino Lario claimed last month that everything would be sold to the highest bidder because depopulation had depleted the village’s resources - but was actually working with a local tech company specialising in broadband for remote areas.

10. Briefing: the parties at risk of collapse

As the fallout from the European elections continues, commentators believe the results could have huge ramifications for the future of British politics.

Across the country as a whole, it was a good night for Nigel Farage’s Brexit Party, the Lib Dems and the Greens. But the results were as much about the night’s losers as the winners.

The UK political parties at risk of collapse