Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 2 Nov 2010

published 2 November 2010

Our popular news catch-up service is posted Monday to Friday at 8.0 am. You can rely on it to keep you up to date through the working day with the main news talking points. DID POLICE SNIPER INSERT SONG TITLES IN EVIDENCE?A police sniper is being investigated for allegedly inserting song titles into his evidence at the inquest last month into the death of Mark Saunders, the 32-year-old barrister shot dead by marksmen during a siege at his Chelsea home in 2008. The Independent Police Complaints Commission has confirmed that the officer, known only by his codename Alpha Zulu 8, is under investigation. He is one of two marksmen who could have fired the fatal shot. BARACK OBAMA FACES MIDTERM ROUtAll 435 seats in the US House of Representatives, 37 of the 100 Senate seats and a number of governor's mansions are up for grabs in today's midterm elections, with all polls pointing to a humiliating vote of no confidence in President Barack Obama. The Republicans are set to regain the House of Representatives, and it's touch-and-go whether they will take the Senate too. Among the early indicators will be the Kentucky Senate result: Republican Rand Paul, a right-wing Tea Party favourite, looks set to beat Democrat Jack Conway. THE SPORT OF KINGS ... AND GIANTS The big sports headlines come from opposite ends of the world today. A French horse called Americain, ridden by Gerald Mosse, won the 150th Melbourne Cup (above). It was the first time France has tasted victory in what is one of the biggest horse races in the world. In the US, the San Francisco Giants won the World Series for the first time since 1954 after beating the Texas Rangers 3-1. PRINCE WILLIAM WEDDING RUMOUR The Daily Mail is reporting today that the parents of Prince William's long-time girlfriend Kate Middleton were included in a weekend house party at Balmoral, suggesting an engagement is in the offing. However, those invited on the shooting and stalking weekend were guests of William at his father's residence, Birkhall, on the Balmoral estate, and neither Prince Charles nor his wife, Camilla, were there. BOMB PLOTTERS HAD 'DRY RUN' IN SEPTEMBER It has emerged that suspect packages sent from Yemen to Chicago, containing literature and other material, were intercepted by US authorities last September - suggesting it was a 'dry run' by the plotters behind last week's discovery of explosives hidden inside printer ink cartridges. US security officials now believe the September shipment was designed to check routes and timing. Mystery of the September 3 UPS plane crash The al Qaeda 'franchise' behind the cargo bomb plot UK PRISONERS TO GET THE VOTEConvicted prisoners in Britain look set to be allowed to vote in elections for the first time in 140 years. An announcement is expected this week because the Government has finally accepted that it cannot afford to go on fighting a European Court of Human Rights ruling in 2005 that the ban is unlawful. However, any new ruling is expected to exclude those in jail for the most serious offences. LILY ALLEN SUFFERS MISCARRIAGE The pop star Lily Allen is being comforted by her boyfriend Sam Cooper after losing her six-month-year-old baby in a miscarriage at the weekend. Allen, 25, had suffered a previous miscarriage in 2008, when she was in a relationship with the Chemical Brothers' DJ Ed Simons. On this occasion, she was taken into hospital suffering from stomach cramps. Lily Allen suffers second miscarriage ASHTIANI EXECUTION THOUGHT TO BE IMMINENT Supporters of Sakineh Ashtiani, the Iranian widow sentenced to death by stoning earlier this year, believe her execution is imminent. The International Committee against Executions (ICAE) has heard that the prison where she is is being held has received the necessary authorisation to carry out her execution - which is expected to by hanging, in light of the global outcry against the stoning sentence. ANGLO-FRENCH DEAL ON NUCLEAR TESTING David Cameron and Nicolas Sarkozy were due to sign two treaties in London today - one for greater military cooperation, the other for the joint development and testing of nuclear warheads. For The First Post today, Robert Fox argues that the 'Little England' headlines about British troops fighting under French command should be ignored - it's happened before. Robert Fox: Fighting together makes sense PRESSURE MOUNTS ON BERLUSCONiOne of Silvio Berlusconi's oldest allies in government, Gianfranco Fini, has said the Italian PM should stand down if it transpires that the allegations against him concerning 17-year-old girl belly-dancer Karima Keyek - aka Ruby Rubacuori are true. The key issue is not Keyeks's claim that she witnessed 'bunga bunga' sex parties at Berlusconi's home - but that he abused his authority by phoning the Milan police station and demanding she was released from custody following a theft charge. Berlusconi ally says PM may have to resign over Ruby