Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Sunday 25 Jan 2015

1. DEFECTOR: UKIP IS FARAGE VANITY PROJECT

An MEP has defected from UKIP to the Conservatives, branding his old party as nothing more than a "vanity project" for its leader Nigel Farage, who runs it "like a dictator". Amjad Bashir said Farage uses the party "as a means for getting power". Prior to his defection being announced, Bashir was suspended by UKIP over "unanswered financial and employment questions".

2. DOES ROSE WEST HOLD CELL KEYS?

A new policy means tens of thousands of prisoners are allowed to hold the keys to their own cells, claims the Sunday Express. Nearly 30,000 of Britain's 84,000 inmates are able to come and go from their cells at certain times, and are able to lock their cells doors "for privacy". Murderers Rose West and Ian Huntley are reported to be among the inmates able to lock their own cells.

3. WARSI SLAMS GOVT MUSLIM STRATEGY

Lady Warsi has launched an attack on the government’s approach towards Muslims. Writing in The Observer, she says the failure to engage sufficiently with communities has undermined the battle against extremism. She slams David Cameron’s rejection of requests from Muslim leaders to have an annual meeting with him, equivalent to the one Jewish leaders have each year.

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4. GREEN SURGE COULD HIT LABOUR

A surge of support for the Green Party could damage Labour’s hopes in 22 constituencies at the general election, according to research by The Observer. The Greens have enjoyed a spectacular rise in membership and considerable lifts in the polls. Last month, membership rose to 44,713 – ahead of totals for the Lib Dems and Ukip. The Greens outscore the Lib Dems in many opinion polls.

5. JAPAN PM SLAMS ISIS MURDER

The prime minister of Japan has condemned as "outrageous " the ISIS video that seemingly portrays the murder of hostage Haruna Yukawa. Shinzo Abe is demanding the release of the second hostage, Kenji Goto, shown in the video. "This act of terrorism is an outrageous and unacceptable act of violence," he said. Meanwhile, his administration says it is trying to verify the footage.

6. SCOTS NURSE SURVIVES EBOLA

The Scottish nurse who almost died after contracting Ebola while working in Sierra Leone said she was “happy to be alive” as she was discharged from hospital after making a full recovery. After more than three weeks in hospital, where at times she was critically ill, Pauline Cafferkey is now free of the virus. She says she drank “lots of Irn-Bru” during her hospital stay.

7. ASTEROID SET TO MISS EARTH TOMORROW

An asteroid measuring up to 1,800ft across is expected to fly past Earth tomorrow. The rock, called 2004 BL86, will miss the planet by 745,000 miles but budding astronomers should still be able to see it with telescopes and binoculars. Don Yeomans of NASA said: "It provides us a unique opportunity to observe and learn more."

8. ROB LOWE SLAMS OBAMA BIBI SNUB

Actor Rob Lowe has hit out at the Barack Obama’s decision not to meet the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Referring to the White House’s decision to meet YouTube comedian GloZell, the West Wing star tweeted: “Hold up. Is it true that a woman who eats cereal out of a bath tub gets to meet with the President and the Prime Minister of Israel does not?”

9. FA CUP: CHELSEA AND CITY OUT

The FA Cup brimmed over with magic yesterday as Chelsea and Manchester City were dumped out of the competition by Bradford City and Middlesbrough respectively. Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho said he was "ashamed" and "embarrassed" by his side's fourth-round exit to League One Bradford City. Arsenal travel to Brighton today.

10. CELEBRITY CHEF CONSIDERED SUICIDE

Chef Antony Worrall Thompson says he considered killing himself after he was arrested for shoplifting in 2011. “I did talk about it to my therapist,” he tells the Sunday Telegraph. “I thought, my family would be better off if I was out of here. I wouldn’t have done it, I don’t think.” He was cautioned after his arrest at a Tesco branch in Henley.