Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 26 Sep 2011

published 26 September 2011

SHARES RISE ON EUROZONE RESCUE PLAN European bank shares have risen on the news that a plan to rescue the eurozone is being hatched. French and German bank shares rose by up to 10% on Monday. The plan could involve writing down 50 per cent of Greece's €350bn debt and quadrupling the European Financial Stability Facility fund to €2 trillion. The BBC says the plan will take several weeks to put in place. Greek default could be best thing for the markets SIX CHARGED IN BIRMINGHAM TERROR PLOTSix men from Birmingham, aged between 25 and 32, will appear before West London Magistrates today charged with terrorism offences including preparing a suspected suicide bombing attempt, training in Pakistan, building a bomb, and making a martyrdom video. The men were arrested by the West Midlands Counter Terrorism Unit. AMANDA KNOX A 'DIABOLICAL WITCH'Amanda Knox has been described as a "diabolical witch of deception" by an Italian lawyer involved in the appeal against her murder conviction. Carlo Pacelli, who represents Patrick Lumumba, a barman seeking damages from Knox after she told police that he had killed British student Meredith Kercher. He said Knox had "a double-faced soul". Amanda Knox: why both sides should now shut up ED BALLS OUTLINES PLANS TO SAVE ECONOMYShadow chancellor Ed Balls outlined a five-point plan to re-start the UK economy including VAT cuts, tax breaks for small companies and a levy on bankers bonuses to be spent on jobs for young people and affordable homes. He also endorsed debt reduction and austerity and said that if elected Labour would not reverse all the coalitions cuts. Labour’s solution: more growth, more Balls £150m atlantic shipwreck foundA shipwrecked British cargo boat containing silver worth £150m has been discovered in the Atlantic. The SS Gairsoppa was carrying 200 tonnes tons of silver when it was sunk by a German U-boat en route from India to Liverpool. The vessel was found by US exploration firm Odyssey Marine which will keep 80% of the cargo's value in a deal with the British Government. BARCELONA'S LAST BULLFIGHT A SELL-OUTA sell-out crowd of 20,000 filled Barcelona's historic Monumental Arena last night to witness the last bullfight in the city following the ban on the 600-plus year tradition in Catalonia, the first such ban imposed in Spain. Three top matadors killed six half-tonne bulls and were carried from the stadium on the shoulders of devotees. In pictures: Last bullfight in Barcelona NOBEL PRIZE WINNER MAATHAI DIESThe first African woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize, Kenyan Wangari Maathai, has died at the age of 71. The social and environmental campaigner, who was also the first female professor at the University of Nairobi, founded the Green Belt Movement in 1977, which has planted tens of millions of trees. She was awarded the Nobel prize in 2004. KREMLIN SPLIT OVER PUTIN PRESIDENCY Russia's finance minister Aleksei Kudrin opened a rare split in the Kremlin edifice yesterday by announcing that he will quit the government when current Russian president Dmitri Medvedev becomes prime minister next year in the leadership deal under which Vladmir Putin will return to the presidency. Kudrin said he would not work with Medvedev as PM. Has Putin had facelift to prepare for presidency? SAUDI WOMEN GET THE VOTESaudi Arabia's King Abdullah announced yesterday by royal decree that women will get the right to vote and run in future municipal elections, and will also be appointed to the Majlis al-Shura, which advises the royal family. He made no concession, however, to the current campaign to allow women to drive. Saudi women ‘get the vote’ - but will it really happen? CHRIS LANGHAM RETURNS TO THE SCREENChris Langham, the Thick Of It star arrested and imprisoned for downloading child pornography in 2005, tells today's Guardian: "Everyone wants to see me working, but nobody wants to hire me." But he did get hired for a part in Black Pond and his "comical and heartbreaking" performance is a reminder of how gifted an actor he is. Chris Langham returns after ‘fantastic’ time with family