Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 11 Dec 2014
- 1. NEW LAW CLOSES CHILD ABUSE ‘LOOPHOLE’
- 2. HK POLICE CLEAR MAIN PROTEST CAMP
- 3. POLICE ARREST 76 AT LONDON GARNER DEMO
- 4. SUPERBUGS TO KILL MORE THAN CANCER
- 5. JIHADIST’S FATHER SORRY HE TOLD POLICE
- 6. COSTA COFFEE SALES STILL ON THE RISE
- 7. PORTAS FIRST TO USE RIGHT TO MARRIAGE
- 8. JOEY BARTON: DEATH THREAT IN FRANCE
- 9. GREENPEACE SAYS SORRY FOR PERU STUNT
- 10. HOT TICKET: ALICE IN WONDERLAND BALLET
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
1. NEW LAW CLOSES CHILD ABUSE ‘LOOPHOLE’
A new offence is being created to close a loophole which enables paedophiles, David Cameron has said. It is already illegal for an adult to send explicit pictures to a child but until now there has been nothing to stop them soliciting pictures from a child. A new unit will focus on paedophiles using the covert 'dark web'.
2. HK POLICE CLEAR MAIN PROTEST CAMP
Police in Hong Kong have begun to clear pro-democracy protesters out of the main camp they have occupied since September, removing barricades. Only a few hundred protesters remain of tens of thousands who were there - and the police action is being seen as a final act in the long-running protests.
3. POLICE ARREST 76 AT LONDON GARNER DEMO
The Met police yesterday arrested 76 people at a demonstration held in support of Eric Garner, an African-American killed by a white policeman with a chokehold in the US. The protest in the Westfield shopping centre saw an estimated 600 lie on the floor. A splinter group allegedly caused trouble, which led to the arrests.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

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.
4. SUPERBUGS TO KILL MORE THAN CANCER
Drug-resistant infections, sometimes dubbed ‘superbugs’, will kill more people worldwide than cancer by the year 2050 if no action is taken, according to analysis prepared for the government by economist Jim O’Neill. The bugs, which currently kill 700,000 a year, could cost the world economy as much as £63tn.
5. JIHADIST’S FATHER SORRY HE TOLD POLICE
Sky News has spoken to the father of Mohammed Nahin Ahmed, jailed for nearly 13 years after travelling to Syria to fight. He would not give his name but said he regrets having gone to police for help with his son and added that, after the heavy sentence, other parents are likely to be “too scared to tell police”.
6. COSTA COFFEE SALES STILL ON THE RISE
Whitbread, owner of Costa Coffee, says the ubiquitous chain’s total sales have risen by 17% over the last quarter, while like-for-like revenue is up 5.2%. Costa’s rapid growth in recent years is partly attributed to a backlash against its rival, the US multinational Starbucks, over the latter’s tax arrangements.
7. PORTAS FIRST TO USE RIGHT TO MARRIAGE
Retail guru and TV personality Mary Portas was yesterday the first person in the UK to take advantage of new laws allowing her to convert her civil partnership to partner Melanie Rickey into a marriage. Another couple, Percy Steven and Roger Lockyer, married after almost 50 years together.
8. JOEY BARTON: DEATH THREAT IN FRANCE
Footballer Joey Barton has revealed he received a death threat while playing in France in the 2012-13 season. The QPR midfielder posted a scan of the letter on his Twitter account. It warns him to leave France and says if not: “I will come to you specially Marseille smash your head shots baseball bat.”
9. GREENPEACE SAYS SORRY FOR PERU STUNT
Environmental activists Greenpeace have issued a fulsome apology to Peru after causing offence with a stunt there. They placed a banner calling for use of renewable energy next to the 1,500-year-old hummingbird at the Nazca Lines, entering a prohibited area and leaving footprints, authorities said.
10. HOT TICKET: ALICE IN WONDERLAND BALLET
The Royal Ballet revival of Christopher Wheeldon's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland has opened in Covent Garden. Based on Lewis Carroll's classic tale, it follows plucky Alice down the rabbit hole to a dreamlike world of magical encounters. "Dazzling," says the Daily Telegraph. Until 16 January.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
10 things you need to know today: September 22, 2023
Daily Briefing Zelenskyy visits Washington as Biden unveils more Ukraine aid, Rupert Murdoch steps down at Fox and News Corp., and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 22 September 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 21, 2023
Daily Briefing Biden extends temporary protections to 470,000 Venezuelans, Republicans grill Garland on Biden and Trump investigations, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
Woman reunited with egg she signed in 1951
It Wasn't All Bad Good news stories from the past seven days
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 20, 2023
Daily Briefing Zelenskyy, Biden urge UN members to oppose Russian aggression, hardline Republicans block spending bill as shutdown looms, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 19, 2023
Daily Briefing Iran, US swap prisoners in a complex deal, Canada accuses India of role in Sikh leader's assassination, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 18, 2023
Daily Briefing Protesters call for ending fossil fuel ahead of UN meetings, Trump doesn't 'even think' about going to jail, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 15, 2023
Daily Briefing A grand jury indicts Hunter Biden on gun charges, House defense spending bill stalls as shutdown looms, and more
By Harold Maass Published