Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 27 Sep 2011

published 27 September 2011

Ed miliband slams Cameron over NHS and TAXLabour leader Ed Miliband has attacked David Cameron over proposals to axe the 50p rate of tax and NHS reforms in his speech to his party's conference. "Only David Cameron could believe that you make ordinary families work harder by making them poorer and you make the rich work harder by making them richer... How dare they say we’re all in it together," he said. BAE FIRES 3,000BAE Systems, Britain's biggest defence contractor, has confirmed it is to fire 3,000 workers in order to "ensure its lon-term future". Most of the cuts will be to the military division, which has been hit by slow orders for the Typhoon fighter. The Brough factory in East Yorkshire will lose 900 jobs, while Samlesbury and Warton in Lancashire will lose 565 jobs and 843 respectively. BAE cuts threaten conflict at home, weakness abroad DAD's army writer David Croft dies David Croft, who co-wrote classic BBC comedies such as Dad's Army, Allo Allo and It Ain't Half Hot Mum, has died in his sleep at home in Portugal at the age of 89. In a statement, Croft's family said: "He was a truly great man, who will be missed by all who had the great fortune of knowing and loving him." 'STOP GIVING CANCER DRUGS JUST TO EXTEND LIFE'A group of 37 leading cancer doctors including London specialist Karol Sikora yesterday called for an end to the use of expensive cancer drugs just to extend life in terminal cases. They argued in the journal Lancet Oncology that costly drugs brought little value and the money should be used to determine whether a tumour is beatable. Amanda kNOX 'like jessica rabbit'Amanda Knox has been compared to the cartoon character Jessica Rabbit by her defence lawyer. Giulia Bongiorno used a line from the film Who Framed Roger Rabbit to say the American student, who is appealing against her conviction for the murder of Meredith Kercher, "isn't bad, she's just drawn that way". Earlier, another lawyer said Knox was a "diabolical witch of deception". Amanda Knox: why both sides should now back off HARD TIMES MEAN LESS COCAINE SOLDCocaine consumption has fallen in America since the economy crashed in 2008, according to researchers. Deaths from overdoses fell from 478 to 274 last year in New York, and from 281 to 198 in Miami. Dr Stephen Ross said "addicts don't have enough money anymore" while casual users have other spending priorities. MICHAEL JACKSON DEATH TRIAL TO OPEN IN LAThe trial of Michael Jackson's personal doctor Conrad Murray on charges of involuntary manslaughter in the singer's death more than two years ago is to open in Los Angeles today after months of legal wrangling and jury selection. The prescription and use of the anaesthetic drug propofol is expected to dominate the trial, which will be broadcast live. KREMLIN DISSENTER MEETS OLD-STYLE PURGEThe Kremlin finance minister Alexei Kudrun was fired by President Medvedev yesterday within 24 hours of protesting the Russian leadership deal which will see Vladmir Putin trade jobs for the second time with Medvedev and return to the presidency next year. "Nobody has revoked discipline and subordination," said Medvedev. Has Putin had facelift to prepare for presidency? LIBYA REFUSES TO RELEASE LOCKERBIE PAPERSLibya's interim justice minister Mohammed al-Alagi yesterday refused a request from Scottish prosecutors for access to papers and potential suspects in the 1988 Lockerbie bombing, saying "the case is closed". However, the Foreign Office claimed last night to have spoken to National Transitional Council leaders and said the case "remained open". Libya: oil flows again but Gaddafi remains at large RUPERT MURDOCH FALLS VICTIM TO PROPERTY SLUMPTroubled media magnate Rupert Murdoch has fallen victim to the property slump, agreeing to knock $5m off the $14.1m asking price of his Long Island mansion, the Real Estalker blog reported yesterday. Murdoch had been trying to sell 'Rosehearty', a Gatsbyesque mansion on Oyster Bay he once rented to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, since 2007.