Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 8 Oct 2013

1. PRESS REGULATION: MINISTERS REJECT PLAN

A sub-committee of the Privy Council has rejected the newspaper industry’s plans for a new press regulator, according to the BBC’s Newsnight. An unnamed source told the programme that the four Lib Dem and four Tory cabinet ministers thought the proposals were “flawed”. They are to announce a decision later this month.

Press regulation Q&A: legal bid to block Royal Charter fails

2. MALARIA VACCINE ‘READY BY 2015’

UK drug firm GlaxoSmithKline says it has developed an effective vaccine against malaria, after trials across seven African countries on 15,000 subjects showed it reduced cases of the disease in children by almost 50 per cent. The drug, known as RTS,S, has been developed with the Bill and Melinda Gates foundation.

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Malaria vaccine: 'world a step closer to eradicating disease'

3. LAMPEDUSA: CAPTAIN FACES MURDER CHARGES

The captain of the boat that capsized off the Italian island of Lampedusa, killing at least 250 people, has been formally arrested on charges of murder, causing a shipwreck and aiding clandestine immigration. Bensalem Khaled, 35, from Tunisia, has been transferred to a prison in Sicily today after being held at the immigration reception centre in Lampedusa.

4. HIGGS MEN WIN PHYSICS NOBEL PRIZE

Scientists Peter Higgs and Francios Engler have won the 2013 Nobel Prize for Physics for their work on the theory of the subatomic particle known as the Higgs boson. In the 1960s, the men were among several physicists who proposed a mechanism to explain why the most basic building blocks of the Universe have mass.

5. HELP TO BUY: 30% OF MARKET SIGNS UP

More than 30 per cent of the mortgage market has signed up to the government’s controversial Help to Buy scheme, under which house buyers are able to get loans of up to 95 per cent of the value of their homes. The PM, David Cameron, said: “Help to Buy is going to make the dream of home ownership a reality for many.”

The pros and cons of Help to Buy: is it worth it?

6. TOMMY ROBINSON QUITS EDL

Tommy Robinson, the founder and leader of the English Defence League has confirmed he is leaving the far-right group. Robinson said he acknowledged the “dangers of far-right extremism”, but says he still aims to “counter Islamist ideology not with violence but with better, democratic ideas”.

Tommy Robinson leaves EDL 'to form new party'

7. FOUR ARRESTED IN SILK ROAD PROBE

Four men suspected of being significant users of Silk Road, the billion dollar online narcotics bazaar, have been arrested in the UK, the Daily Telegraph reports. The suspects are being investigated by the newly formed National Crime Agency, which launched on Monday with 4,000 officers.

Silk Road arrests: Four held in UK after drugs site swoop

8. CHILD BENEFIT: 165,000 MISS DEADLINE

An estimated 165,000 people have missed the deadline to register their child benefit with the taxman, meaning they could lose the payment and face additional penalties. HMRC has urged those who have not registered to do so now to avoid incurring further costs, pointing out that fines are decided on a case-by-case basis.

9. DIANE ABBOTT SACKED FROM FRONT BENCH

Outspoken Labour MP Diane Abbott has been "sacked" as a shadow health minister a day after Ed Miliband reshuffled his shadow ministry. Abbott linked the move to her habit of speaking out about Labour’s direction and policies. “I think Ed wanted more message discipline,” she told the BBC.

10. HOT TICKET: IBSEN'S GHOSTS AT ALMEIDA

Richard Eyre's new adaptation of Henrik Ibsen's Ghosts has opened at the Almeida Theatre, London. A widow attempts to escape the ghosts of her unhappy marriage by telling her son the truth about his womanising father. Stars Lesley Manville. "Thrilling," says the Daily Telegraph. Until 23 November.

Almeida's 'harrowing and vivid' revival of Ibsen's Ghosts