Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 22 Nov 2013

1. FLOWERS ARRESTED OVER DRUGS VIDEO

Former Co-op Bank head and Methodist minister Paul Flowers has been arrested over a “drugs supply investigation” after a video emerged showing him apparently paying £300 for cocaine. Tory MP David Davis has said George Osborne and the Treasury have “serious questions” to answer about their oversight of the bank.

Paul Flowers: ex-Co-op boss arrested over drugs claims

2. ‘SLAVES’ REFUSED MEDICAL ATTENTION

Three women who were kept in near-slavery for 30 years at an address in south London were refused medical attention even after one of them told her captor she had suffered a stroke. It has also been revealed that the two suspects in the case - a man and a woman both aged 67 - were previously arrested in the 1970s.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Three women freed from London house after 30 years of 'slavery'

3. LATVIA SUPERMARKET COLLAPSE KILLS 45

At least 45 people are believed to have died in the Latvian capital, Riga, after a supermarket roof collapsed yesterday. It is feared the death toll could rise even further as rescuers search the rubble. Three of the dead are emergency workers, killed as they tried to help. A criminal investigation has been launched.

4. JOHN F KENNEDY REMEMBERED IN US

Members of the Kennedy clan have gathered at the grave of John F. Kennedy in Arlington Cemetery, Virginia to mark the 50th anniversary of his assassination. Communities across the US are marking the anniversary and Dallas, Texas, where the president was shot, is holding its first ever ceremony to mark his death.

Assassination: no one wants to be told it was the little guy

5. BERNERS-LEE WARNS OF WEB SURVEILLANCE

Sir Tim Berners-Lee, the British man who invented the World Wide Web, has warned of a “growing tide of surveillance and censorship” which he says threatens the future of democracy. Berners-Lee said governments felt “threatened” by people who use his invention to “expose wrongdoing”. He said “bold steps” were needed.

6. ASHES: ENGLAND ROUTED IN AUSTRALIA

England suffered their worst batting collapse since 1990 as they were routed by Australia on the second day of the first Ashes Test in Brisbane, slumping from 82-2 to 91-8 before being bowled out for a paltry 136. Fast bowler Mitchell Johnson and spinner Nathan Lyon did the damage and Australia ended the day on 65-0 with an ominous lead of 224.

Ashes: Australia go on the rampage to rout 'pathetic' England

7. ALABAMA PARDONS SCOTTSBORO BOYS

The US state of Alabama has posthumously pardoned three black teenagers of the group of nine dubbed the Scottsboro Boys who were wrongly accused of raping two white women in 1931. No rapes had in fact taken place. Five of the others had their convictions overturned and one was formally pardoned in 1976.

8. HUGH JACKMAN TREATED FOR CANCER

Actor Hugh Jackman, star of the Wolverine films, has revealed he was treated for skin cancer. Posting a ‘selfie’ on his Instagram account showing a bandaged nose, Jackman urged fans to have problems checked. He was diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma after his wife urged him to have a mark on his nose examined.

9. SAMSUNG MUST PAY APPLE $290M

Samsung has been ordered to pay Apple $290 million for copying iPhone and iPad features. The verdict by a Silicon Valley jury covers 13 older Samsung devices that a previous jury found were among 26 that infringed Apple patents. Samsung is expected to appeal the latest verdict.

10. HOT TICKET: HUNGER GAMES ROUND TWO

The second instalment of The Hunger Games film trilogy has opened in UK cinemas. In The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, Jennifer Lawrence returns as teen heroine Katniss Everdeen who must fight for her life again in an all-star battle rigged to ensure her failure. “Thrilling,” says The Daily Telegraph.

Thrilling sequel to The Hunger Games, Catching Fire - reviews