Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 24 Nov 2011

1. LEVESON: MOSLEY ATTACKS DACRE

Max Mosley has attacked Paul Dacre, editor of the Daily Mail, at the Leveson Inquiry. He said he was "naive about sex" and obsessed with "schoolboy smut". Mosley, who launched a privacy campaign after a News of the World story about his sex life, called Dacre a "scavenger". He also accused the media of acting like the mafia. Earlier, Sienna Miller said she was spat at by paparazzi.

Sienna Miller tells Leveson how paparazzi spat at her

2. STRIKES WILL COST JOBS SAYS GOVT

The government has warned that next week's public sector strikes will lead to job losses and cost £500m. The Treasury made the prediction based on lower public sector output and the effects of that on the private sector. However, TUC general secretary Brendan Barber accused the government of "fantasy economics".

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3. YEMENI LEADER SALEH STANDS DOWN

Ali Abdullah Saleh, the president of Yemen, has become the fourth Middle Eastern leader to be ousted this year after he agreed to end his 33-year rule and hand power to his deputy Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Under the deal, signed in the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh, presidential elections will take place in 90 days and Saleh will be granted immunity from prosecution.

Yemeni President Saleh steps down after Saudi-US pressure

4. UN REPORTS ABUSE BY LIBYAN MILITIAS

Thousands of "enemies of the state", including women and children, are being illegally detained by rebel militias in Libya, according to a report by the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon leaked last night. There are reports of torture and ill treatment of up to 7,000 people held in private jails outside government control.

UN leak: Libyan militias are detaining thousands illegally

5. ARSENAL THROUGH, CHELSEA BLOCKED

Two more goals from in-form striker Robin van Persie mean Arsenal are the first English team to qualify for the knockout phase of the Champions League after beating Borussia Dortmund 2-1. Chelsea's hopes are in the balance. Needing victory to guarantee a place in the last 16, they were beaten 2-1 by Bayer Leverkusen.

Reborn Arsenal surge into next round of Champions League

6. UK BORROWING COST LESS THAN GERMANY'S

The cost of borrowing for the UK government has fallen below that of Germany for the first time in two-and-a-half years. Germany would pay 2.23% over ten years while the UK would pay 2.21%. The implication is that Britain is considered a safer bet for investment. Yesterday, a German auction failed to sell 35% of €6bn in bonds.

7. BURGLAR BLAMES 'DUMB' VICTIMS

A habitual 16-year-old burglar in Leeds wrote that he was "not bothered or sorry" for burgling a house when ordered to write to his victims as part of his punishment, but blamed them for being "dumb" by leaving their curtains open and a window unlocked. The letter was released by West Yorkshire Police to encourage household security.

8. GEORGE MICHAEL IN HOSPITAL

Singer George Michael was last night in the AKH hospital in Vienna after cancelling a concert in Vienna and postponing dates in Strasbourg and in Cardiff's Motorpoint Arena this weekend. Publicist Connie Filippello said Michael, who spent a month in jail last year, had been "diagnosed with pneumonia and is receiving treatment."

George Michael in Vienna hospital with pneumonia

9. ALI G’S 'GHETTO' CHANGES ITS NAME

Ali G's home 'hood' will no longer be Staines, but Staines-on-Thames. Local councilors voted for the change yesterday to shake off the mockery of the television comedy in which Sacha Baron Cohen's character declares "me woz born in da heart off da Staines ghetto". Public consultation supported the change.

10. HOT TICKET: MAYFAIR GETS A NEW DINER

The latest restaurant from the people who brought you Le Caprice, Scott's and The Ivy, opens tonight in Mayfair. Called 34, it capitalises on the current trend for steak dinners, offering boutique beef cuts and seasonal game cooked on a parilla (charcoal) grill, in an art deco themed dining room. 34 Grosvenor Square.