Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 28 Oct 2016

1. Tribunal rules that Uber drivers are employees

The GMB union has hailed a "monumental victory" for Uber drivers after an employment tribunal case ruled that they were workers rather than self-employed contractors. The decision means drivers will be entitled to holiday pay, paid rest breaks and the National Minimum Wage. The decision will affect other companies, including Deliveroo. Uber says it will appeal the decision.

2. Protection for Antarctic sea announced

The Ross Sea near Antarctica is to become the world's biggest marine-protected area following the signing of a landmark international agreement. Around 600,000 sq miles will be protected from commercial fishing for 35 years. The sea, which is part of the Southern Ocean, is home to 38% of the world's Adelie penguins.

3. Fire rips through Exeter city centre

A massive fire in Exeter city centre has ripped through the "oldest hotel in England". Hundreds of firefighters are battling the blaze which is thought to have begun in an art gallery near the city's cathedral, which has now spread to the nearby Royal Clarence Hotel, which dates back to 1769. Police described the fire as a "major incident".

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

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.

Sign up

4. NHS to miss £500m "health tourism" target

The NHS will miss a target of recouping £500m a year from "health tourists" by 41%, a goal announced in 2014 after it was claimed the service was being "overly generous" in allowing free healthcare to foreign patients. Hospitals say they struggle to identify EU patients who should be charged or to recover debts from others.

5. Blair: Don't rule out second EU referendum

Tony Blair says the UK should keep its "options open" and not rule out holding another EU referendum. The former prime minister said he accepted the verdict of the vote in June but added that it was vital to study the "real-life implications" of Brexit when "we have a clear sense of where we're going".

Brexit: Theresa May says ‘trust me’ to deliver

6. Trump running mate's plane skids off runway

A plane carrying US vice-presidential candidate Mike Pence slid off a runway while landing in New York's LaGuardia Airport yesterday. His Republican running mate, Donald Trump, said Pence had been close to "grave, grave danger". No one was injured.

Trump travel ban: Judge expands definition of relatives

7. Nude celebrity photos hacker jailed

A hacker has been jailed for 18 months for stealing nude photographs of female celebrities in 2014. Ryan Collins, 36, of in Pennsylvania, tricked more than 100 actors and singers, including Jennifer Lawrence, Aubrey Plaza and Avril Lavigne, into revealing their email passwords in order to gain access to the images.

8. 'Pickled' dinosaur brain found on beach

A pebble found on a beach near Bexhill-on-Sea, East Sussex, is actually the first-known fossilised dinosaur brain. It is thought to have belonged to a large plant-eating animal such as an iguanodon which died near water with its head buried in sediment, "pickling" the brain and and preserving it.

World's first fossilised dinosaur brain found on UK beach

9. Apple launches 'instant emoji' laptop

Apple launched the first new version of its MacBook Pro laptop for 18 months last night – and it features a touch-sensitive bar which can insert emoji into text. The computer is thinner, lighter and has a built-in fingerprint scanner. It also continues Apple's roll-out of USB-C and has no universal standard USB-A ports.

MacBook Pro: Kaby Lake models 'to enter production this year'

10. Briefing: The best books of 2016, so far

Critics are enjoying a bumper year for books, with a string of new

releases from established authors and talented newcomers. Zadie Smith,

Yann Martel, Ali Smith and Julian Barnes are among the big names with

new works on the market.

Best books of 2017: 24 stand-out novels