Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 15 Sep 2014

1. HAMMOND IN PARIS FOR I.S. SUMMIT

Foreign secretary Philip Hammond is in Paris today for the start of a two-day summit of foreign ministers from around the world, to discuss the response to Sunni militants Islamic State (IS), who have taken over parts of Syria and Iraq. The meeting comes two days after IS killed British aid worker David Haines.

2. PM IN SCOTLAND FOR FINAL ‘NO’ PUSH

David Cameron is in Scotland today, making his last visit north of the border before Thursday’s independence referendum, warning voters that a split with the UK would be irrevocable. Yesterday, the Queen told a member of the public near Balmoral that she hoped voters would “think very carefully about the future”.

3. TURING BIOPIC WINS TORONTO FILM FESTIVAL

The Imitation Game, a biopic which stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Enigma code-breaker Alan Turing, has won the top award at the Toronto Film Festival. Director Morten Tyldrum said it was an “honour” to win the People’s Choice award. Runner up was British romantic comedy Learning to Drive, starring Sir Ben Kingsley.

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4. PHONES 4U TO GO INTO ADMINISTRATION

High street retailer Phones 4U is poised to go into administration, putting 5,596 jobs at risk, after Vodaphone and EE decided not to renew their contracts with the firm. The firm said its 550 shops would be closed today, though staff would “continue to be paid until further notice”. Existing customers will not be affected.

5. PRIVATE FUNERAL FOR IAN PAISLEY

Ian Paisley, former first minister of Northern Ireland and DUP leader, will be buried in County Down today after a private funeral service at his family home in east Belfast. Tributes will be paid in the Northern Ireland Assembly to Paisley, who died on Friday at the age of 88, six years after he left politics.

6. UGANDA: POLICE FOIL AL SHABAAB RAID

Security services in Uganda say they have foiled a planned terror attack by al Shabaab, the Somalian franchise of al Qaeda. Police say they swooped on a “terror cell” yesterday, almost a year after the Kenya mall attacks, arresting 19 people and seizing “substantial amounts of explosives” including suicide vests.

7. ASHYA KING TO BEGIN PROTON BEAM THERAPY

Five-year-old brain tumour survivor Ashya King is to begin specialist proton beam therapy in Prague today which his parents hope will ensure a tumour removed in the UK in July does not return. There was a public outcry after Ashya’s parents were arrested when they removed him from the UK, against doctors' orders.

8. BRAZIL BUILDS TOWER TO MONITOR AMAZON

Work has begun on a 325-metre steel tower in the heart of the Amazon basin in Brazil. The Amazon Tall Tower Observatory will be used to gather data on greenhouse gases and the weather in one of the world’s largest rain forests. Brazilian and German scientists will work on research together at the tower.

9. WALKING OR CYCLING ‘IMPROVE WELLBEING’

Walking or cycling to work improves wellbeing, with ‘active commuters’ reporting less stress and saying that they find it easier to concentrate than those who drive or take public transport. The findings come from a study by the University of East Anglia, using data from nearly 18,000 adults over 18 years.

10. HOT TICKET: TRUE WEST REVIVED

A revival of Sam Shepard's 1980 play True West has opened at the Tricycle Theatre, London. When a hard-working scriptwriter is forced to collaborate with his drifter brother on a Hollywood screenplay old sibling rivalries threaten to tear them apart. "Enthralling," says the Daily Telegraph. Until 4 October.

True West – reviews of 'brilliant' Sam Shepard revival

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