Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 13 Oct 2015

1. Labour to oppose Osborne’s surplus pledge

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell last night told Labour MPs that the party will now oppose Conservative measures to force future governments to run a budget surplus, just two weeks after he announced that Labour would back the plans. McDonnell says the U-turn underlines Labour’s anti-austerity position and was a matter of tactics not policy.

Jeremy Corbyn is a 'disaster', says Stephen Hawking

2. MH17 was shot down by Russian-made Buk missile

Malaysia Airlines flight MH17 was downed by a Russian-made 9M38 Buk missile, say Dutch investigators. The plane crashed over Ukraine in July 2014, killing 298 people. The report says the aircraft broke apart when the missile hit the front of the plane and most on board would have lost consciousness almost immediately. It does not say who fired the missile.

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Missile that downed MH17 came from Russia, investigation rules

3. Rise in hate crimes down to awareness

Hate crimes rose by almost a fifth last year according to Home office figures. In 2014-15 police recorded 52,528 hate crimes, which are defined as offences motivated by hostility or prejudice, up from 44,471 in 2013-14. More than 80% of incidents were racially motivated. However, the rise has been put down to greater awareness and an improved willingness to report it.

4. Fears for UK pensioner facing 360 lashes in Saudi Arabia

The family of a UK pensioner facing 360 lashes say they believe the punishment may kill him. Karl Andree, 74, has already been in prison for more than a year after he was caught by police with home-made wine in his car. David Cameron has written to the Saudi government but No10 has denied the case had led to the cancellation of a £5.9m prisons deal with Saudi Arabia.

British grandfather to be flogged in Saudi Arabia for having wine

5. US Democrats prepare for first presidential debate

The race to the White House in 2016 continues in the US tonight with Democrat wannabe-candidates taking part in their first TV debate. The five leading candidates, including front-runner Hillary Clinton, will take to the stage in a Las Vegas casino for CNN and Facebook. There have been reports of touts selling black-market tickets.

6. UK inflation turns negative once again

The UK inflation rate has turned negative for the first time since April according to new figures. The Consumer Prices Index was at -0.1% in September thanks to a decline in fuel prices and a smaller than expected rise in the price of clothing. The supermarket price war meant that food prices fell for the 15th month in a row. The Retail Prices Index fell to 0.8% in September, from 1.1% in August.

Pound plunges after Bank of England's dovish rates signal

7. Watson refuses to apologise over Brittan probe

Tom Watson, Labour's deputy leader, has refused to apologise for urging police to reinvestigate a rape allegation against former Conservative home secretary Leon Brittan, who died earlier this year without knowing he was not under suspicion. Watson said police had a duty to investigate all allegations of abuse and said it was the victims of abuse who deserved an apology.

8. Playboy magazine to drop naked images

Playboy magazine is to stop publishing photos of naked women - though semi-clad models in provocative poses will still be featured. The owners of the American magazine founded by Hugh Hefner in 1953 say the internet has made nudity “outdated”. Circulation has dropped from a 1970s high of 5.6 million to just 800,000.

9. Gun fears as mother and child shot in Salford

Gangland feuds in Manchester have led to a spate of shootings, including those of a seven-year-old boy and his mother in Salford. The pair were shot in the legs in the doorway of their home, and police believe the attack may be linked to the murder of local 'Mr Big', Paul Massey, in July. There have also been shootings related to a separate feud in Little Hulton.

10. Briefing: Google buys alphabet domain

Weeks after restructuring its business under a new name, Google – now a subdivision of parent company Alphabet – has bought the apt but unweildy domain name Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com. The web address was first registered – by somebody else – in 1999. Speculation about how much the search giant has paid to acquire it, and what it will do with it, is rife.

Google buys alphabet domain: Abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz.com