Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Wednesday 16 Nov 2016

1. Johnson's Brexit vision 'intellectually impossible'

Boris Johnson has been accused of offering the British public an "intellectually impossible" vision of the country after Brexit. Dutch finance minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem made the accusation after Johnson told a Czech newspaper that the UK would leave the EU customs union but would still trade freely with EU states.

Brexit: Theresa May says ‘trust me’ to deliver

2. Assad welcomes Trump as 'natural ally'

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, waging a bitter civil war since 2011, has welcomed the election of Donald Trump, saying the president-elect could be a "natural ally" if he fulfils his campaign promises to fight Islamic State in Syria and discontinues the attempt to engineer regime change there. Assad said these pledges were "promising".

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Syria 'planning a new chemical attack', US claims

3. Croydon tram was travelling at 43mph

The tram that derailed in Croydon on Wednesday last week, killing seven people, was travelling more than three times the speed limit when it came off the tracks, an interim report has found. The Rail Accident Investigation Branch said the tram was moving at 43.5mph in a 12mph zone. There were no problems with the track or the braking system it added.

4. Chagos islanders will not be going home

Islanders deported from their Indian Ocean homeland of Chagos by Harold Wilson's Labour government in 1971 will be told today by the Foreign Office that they cannot return home. The residents were removed to make way for a US military base and now live in Mauritius and the UK. They have campaigned to return for 40 years.

5. Republicans stand firm over Trump advisor

Senior US Republicans have backed their president-elect's right to choose his staff after an outcry over his appointment of Stephen Bannon as chief strategist. Bannon is one of the founders of Breitbart, a right-wing political website which has published white extremism. Democrats have called on Trump to rescind the hiring of Bannon.

Donald Trump sued by two states over business links

6. Jo Cox accused claimed to be a 'political activist'

The man accused of murdering MP Jo Cox outside her constituency office had a bag of bullets in his pocket and appeared to have a pistol in his bag when he was stopped by police, the Old Bailey has heard. PC Craig Nicholls said that when they detained Thomas Mair after the shooting, he told them: "It's me" and said he was a "political activist".

7. Snapchat files for stock market flotation

The parent company of Snapchat, one of the newer social networks to have replaced Facebook and Twitter for many younger people, is seeking to float on the US stock market. Snapchat is estimated to be worth $20bn to $25bn (£16bn-£20bn). If this estimate is correct, the flotation will be the biggest in the US since Alibaba listed in 2014.

Snapchat 'to float on US stock market at record IPO'

8. Carrie Fisher reveals Star Wars affair

Carrie Fisher, the actor who played Princess Leia in Star Wars, has claimed she had an on-set romance with her co-star, Harrison Ford, mirroring the sexual tension between the pair on screen. The revelation comes in a new book based on journals Fisher kept during the 1976 shoot. Ford was 33 and married; she was just 19.

9. Clarkson stopped from flying in 'Falklands revenge'

After a filming trip, Jeremy Clarkson and the co-presenters of his motoring show were stopped from flying from Stuttgart to Heathrow by an Argentinian check-in agent, in revenge for a supposed prank about the Falkland Islands carried out in 2014, it has been claimed. Clarkson told The Sun that police were investigating the incident.

Jeremy Clarkson to become a character in Amazon Prime’s The Grand Tour Game

10. Briefing: Inside Donald Trump's Manhattan high rise

As Donald Trump prepares for the presidency, his New York residential and commercial complex, Trump Tower, is finding itself the focal point of protests and rallies. It has a minimalist facade and eye-wateringly lavish interiors - but what more is there to know about this towering, gold-tinged hallmark of the future president's public image?

Inside Trump Tower: Donald Trump's Manhattan high rise