Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 31 May 2019

1. Trump puts tariffs on all imports from Mexico

After starting a trade war with China, imposing tariffs on imports, US President Donald Trump has turned his attention to Mexico. In a tweet, Trump said a tariff on Mexican imports would start at 5% on 10 June and “gradually increase” until illegal immigration into the US through Mexico ends. He added there would be a 5% increase each month.

2. Lib Dems top party in unprecedented poll

The Liberal Democrats have proved the most popular party in a poll of voting intentions for the first time since 2010. The YouGov poll for The Times put them on 24%, with the Brexit Party next on 22% and Labour and the Tories tied on 19% each. It is unprecedented for two challenger parties to take the top two places in a poll, YouGov said.

3. Trump to challenge May on Huawei in London

US President Donald Trump plans to warn Theresa May in person about the risks he believes are associated with the UK allowing Chinese firm Huawei to build parts of its 5G network, when he visits London next week. Downing Street said that its review into Huawei was “genuinely ongoing” and it would listen to what Trump had to say.

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4. Deputy Jo Swinson standing as Lib Dem leader

The current deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, Jo Swinson MP, has said she will stand for the job of leading the party when Sir Vince Cable steps down on 23 July. Former energy secretary Sir Ed Davey has already declared his intention to run for the job. The Lib Dems came second in the EU elections last week with 20% of the vote.

5. GP surgeries closing at ‘all-time highest rate’

The medical website Pulse says the closure of GP surgeries across the UK hit an all-time high in 2018, when 138 premises shut down, affecting half a million patients, compared to just 18 in 2013. NHS England disputed the figures and said fewer surgeries had closed in the financial year 2017-2018 than the previous financial year.

6. Peer claims £50,000 expenses but stays silent

A Labour peer claimed almost £50,000 in expenses for attending the House of Lords last year despite never once speaking or asking a written question. Former trade union secretary David Brookman was one of dozens of peers from all parties who never spoke last year. Almost one third of peers barely took part in debates.

7. Claus von Bulow, acquitted of murder, dies

The socialite Claus von Bulow, cleared of trying to murder his wife in one of the highest-profile cases of the 1980s, has died at 92. Von Bulow was found guilty of attempted murder by injecting an insulin overdose in 1982, but the verdict was overturned three years later. Martha von Bulow spent 28 years in a coma before dying in 2008.

8. Dating app users risk weight control issues

Women and men who use dating apps may be more likely to control their weight in unhealthy ways than those who do not, researchers in the US believe. A survey of 1,700 adults found that vomiting, fasting and using laxatives were the most common methods of losing weight. The team said a direct link with the apps was not proved.

9. Celebrities with pet monkeys are ‘morons’

A professor of evolutionary biology, Ben Garrod, has decried celebrities with pet monkeys – including Rihanna and Justin Bieber – as “morons” for encouraging a trend in keeping primates as pets. There is no law against owning primates in the UK and no requirement to register them but it is thought there are about 4,500 in private hands.

10. Briefing: is press freedom under attack?

The issuing of warrants used to arrest two Belfast journalists has been criticised as “inappropriate” by the most senior judge in Northern Ireland, in a case that has highlighted growing concerns about threats to press freedom worldwide.

So is press freedom under attack? The Week looks at the evidence.

Is press freedom under attack?