Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 25 Nov 2016

1. EU leaders 'not bluffing' over free movement

Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who assumes the EU presidency in January, said the bloc is not "bluffing" when it says the UK cannot enjoy free trade without freedom of movement. He added the group also had to resolve issues surrounding the UK-Ireland border, security and the UK's final bill.

2. Ex-Newcastle United player says he was abuse victim

Claims of historic sexual abuse in football have spread to Newcastle United, with a former player telling police he was assaulted while in the club's youth training scheme. More than ten footballers or ex-players have now reported they were abused at several teams around the country.

Football sex abuse: Three more players speak out

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3. Major puts case for second EU referendum

Former Conservative prime minister Sir John Major said there is a "perfectly credible" case to be made for a second EU referendum on Brexit and Remainers should not be subject to "the tyranny of the majority". He accepted the UK would no longer be a full member of the bloc, however.

Brexit: Theresa May says ‘trust me’ to deliver

4. Immigration centres record 218 hunger strikes

A Freedom of Information request has revealed that UK immigration centres recorded 218 hunger strikers between July and September this year. Human rights campaigners say some of those wanted to die while others were protesting against being held. There were 649 people on suicide watch during this time.

5. Serial killer Steven Port given a whole life sentence

Serial killer Stephen Port has been given a whole life sentence for the murder of four young men. The 41-year-old, who was also convicted of a string of sex offences, lured his victims to his flat before poisoning them with lethal doses of a date rape drug GHB. He was described as "wicked and monstrous" by judge Mr Justice Openshaw.

6. One dead in attack on former missionaries' home

French police are searching for a man who broke into a retirement home for missionaries armed with a knife and a sawn-off shotgun and killed an elderly woman. The victim was found bound and gagged outside the home near Montpellier, in the south of the country. Police say there is no indication the attack was terror-related.

Woman dead in attack on retirement home for monks and nuns

7. Jill Stein raises $4.5m for US election recounts

US presidential candidate Jill Stein of the Green Party has raised $4.5m (£3.6m) to fund election recounts in battleground states Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, saying there is "compelling evidence of voting anomalies". Academics and activists claim foreign hackers may have interfered with the election systems.

8. Labour peer dies after mobility scooter crash

Peer Lord Taylor of Blackburn has died a week after he was seriously injured in a crash involving his mobility scooter outside the House of Lords. The 87-year-old Labour peer was hurt in a collision with a van on Wednesday last week but his injuries were initially not thought to be life-threatening.

9. Retailers braced for Black Friday rush

Retailers are braced for Black Friday, with those who saw their websites buckle under the pressure in 2015 ready for any problems this year. The massive shopping spree is a US tradition brought to the UK by online retailer Amazon. Shoppers are expected to spend £2.3m a minute.

The best Black Friday deals of 2019

10. Briefing: Gold price 'could fall to $1,150'

The gold price has closed in on its lowest level for ten months, hitting a nadir of $1,180 before recovering slightly. Having fallen in excess of 10% from a brief post-US presidential election high of $1,337, the precious metal remains under pressure ahead of an expected increase in US interest rates next month.

Gold price waits for rates clues from Jackson Hole

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