Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Wednesday 24 Jun 2015

1. Calais security boost after strike chaos

Extra French police have been drafted to Calais after yesterday’s chaos, with migrants taking advantage of a wildcat strike to try to enter the UK illegally. The strike, which forced lorry drivers to queue, is over- but there are fears it could happen again. Migrants prised open doors and boarded lorries as they queued.

Refugee crisis: Calais Jungle children 'have nowhere to sleep'

2. WikiLeaks: US spied on French presidents

Whistle-blowing website WikiLeaks says the US spied on three French presidents between 2006 and 2012 - Jacques Chirac, Nicolas Sarkozy and Francois Hollande. The site refers to intelligence reports and technical documents from the NSA. The US has refused to verify the documents.

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France 'will not tolerate' threat to security after NSA 'spying'

3. Clinton: Confederate flag should not be flown

Hillary Clinton has weighed in to the debate over the Confederate flag, after the governor of South Carolina said it should no longer be flown at the statehouse. Clinton said the flag was a symbol of America’s “racist past” and should not be used anywhere. Retailers including Amazon have stopped selling the flag.

South Carolina to take down confederate flag

4. Cameron to change child poverty definition

The Cabinet has discussed changing the way child poverty is defined, lowering the number of children classed as affected. The move comes in advance of figures expected to show child poverty on the rise for the first time in a decade. The statistics, out on Thursday, will say 2.5 million children are living in poverty.

5. Queen may have to move out of Buckingham Palace

The Queen may have to move out of Buckingham Palace while maintenance work costing £150m is carried out. The palace needs new plumbing and wiring and some rooms have not been redecorated since the 1950s. The news comes after the Crown Estate made Crown Estate profits of £285m, meaning public royal funding could rise to almost £43m.

Scottish government to 'keep Crown Estate profits'

6. Protesters attempt to storm Commons during PMQs

Protesters from Disabled People Against Cuts have attempted to storm the House of Commons chamber during Prime Minister's Questions. The group, some of who were in wheelchairs, are campaigning against the end of the Independent Living Fund, which provides money to the severely disabled, but will be closed on 30 June.

7. Glastonbury Festival opens for business

The Glastonbury Festival has opened for business, with music fans setting up camp days before the main acts are due to take to the stage. The first act of this year's festival, flautist Frei Zinger, took to the stage at the Croissant Neuf Bandstand at 11am. Main stage headliners The Who will close the festival in four days time.

Glastonbury 2020: is the festival going ahead?

8. World ‘largely likes’ the US and Obama

More people world-wide now say they favour the US and Barack Obama, with an average of 69% approval in 40 countries surveyed by the Pew Research Cenre. This is an increase on 65% in 2013 and 2014. The US enjoys worldwide support on its fight against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, with 62% approval.

9. Miami Dolphins owner to bid $8bn for F1

The owner of the Miami Dolphins, Stephen Ross, is reported to be working with investors from Qatar to buy an $8bn stake in F1 racing. RSE Ventures and Qatar Sports Investments want to buy a 35.5% stake in the company that owns the sport, currently held by CVC Capital Partners, boosting its US presence.

10. Briefing: Where next for Greece and the euro?

Negotiating teams representing Greece and the EU are said to be as little as €2bn away from a deal, which in the context of a broader bailout package, in the hundreds of billions, and a short-term deal worth around €18bn over six-months, looks like small fry. But given the lack of real progress in recent weeks, it appears to be a major gulf.

Greece crisis: has bailout ended threat of Grexit?

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