Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Sunday 14 Jul 2013

1. NHS'S 13,000 NEEDLESS DEATHS REVEALED

Some 13,000 people have died needlessly at the 14 worst NHS trust hospitals since 2005, a report will reveal this week. The report, from the NHS’s medical director Prof Sir Bruce Keogh, will show that warning signs were clear for ministers and managers to see, including alarming infections and huge blunders such as surgery performed on wrong body parts.

2. SACK CROSBY, LIB DEMS TELL CAMERON

Senior Liberal Democrats are calling on David Cameron to sack his controversial election strategist Lynton Crosby over his links with the tobacco industry. As the coalition divides over public health policy, former health minister Paul Burstow said Crosby should either quit or be sacked after it emerged that his lobbying firm works for global tobacco giant Philip Morris.

3. JURY ACQUITS GEORGE ZIMMERMAN

A jury has acquitted George Zimmerman, the Florida neighbourhood watchman who shot dead an unarmed black 17-year-old male last year. Lawyers for Zimmerman had claimed he acted in self-defence and with justifiable use of deadly force when he shot Trayvon Martin. The case has become a springboard for a national debate about racial profiling.

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4. TROOP SUICIDES EXCEED AFGHAN TOLL

More British soldiers and veterans took their own lives during 2012 than died fighting the Taliban in Afghanistan over the same period, the BBC's Panorama is to reveal. The programme has learned that 21 soldiers committed suicide last year, along with 29 veterans. During the same 12 months, the Afghanistan death toll was 44.

5. ROWLING'S SECRET DETECTIVE NOVEL

JK Rowling has secretly written a detective novel under the pen name of male debut writer Robert Galbraith. The Cuckoo's Calling was published in April to critical acclaim. Rowling told the Sunday Times: “I had hoped to keep this secret a little longer because being Robert Galbraith has been such a liberating experience.”

6. IS A CURE FOR CANCER ONE STEP CLOSER?

A cure for cancer might be one step closer as a company based in Oxfordshire signs deals with two huge pharmaceutical companies to back its research into how the body's own immune system can be used to target malign tumours. Immunocore has been working for 20 years to develop ways the body's T-cells can beat the disease.

7. ROYAL BABY: JAMES MOST POPULAR NAME

The British public hope that the royal baby will be called either Victoria or James, a poll for the Sunday Times reveals. Twelve per cent of the 1,800 people surveyed by YouGov last week opted for Victoria as a girl’s name, with 19% choosing James for a boy. The second-most popular name for a princess was Diana while the second most popular name for a boy was George.

8. BRAZIL: FALLING COW KILLS MAN

A man in Brazil has died after a one-tonne cow fell through the roof of his home and landed on him as he lay in bed. The cow was grazing in the south-eastern town of Caratinga when it stepped on the the asbestos roof, which collapsed under its weight. Local media says that the death of Joao Maria de Souza, 45, is the third such incident in the region in the past three years.

9. GLEE STAR MONTEITH FOUND DEAD

Glee star Cory Monteith was found dead in a Vancouver hotel room yesterday, local police have announced. The 31-year-old, best known for playing Finn Hudson on the hit television series, had battled substance abuse problems. He was believed to be alone when he was found in a room on the 21st floor of the Fairmont Pacific Rim Hotel.

10. TEST MATCH: ENGLAND IN CHARGE

England are in a commanding position going into the final day of the opening Ashes Test. Australia began well in their chase for a target of 311 but in a thrilling final hour yesterday, England removed captain Michael Clarke, Steven Smith and Phil Hughes in the space of 18 balls to reduce the visitors to 174-6 at the close, still 137 runs adrift of victory.