Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Saturday 11 Mar 2017

1. Theresa May could trigger Article 50 on Tuesday

Theresa May could trigger article 50 as early as Tuesday if the Brexit bill passes on Monday evening, according to government sources. The legislation is due to be debated by MPs on Monday, when they will have to decide whether to accept two amendments added by the House of Lords – on the rights of EU citizens and granting parliament a vote at the end of the process.

2. World faces worst humanitarian crisis since 1945

The UN says the world is facing its largest humanitarian crisis since 1945. Spokesman Stephen O'Brien said that more than 20m people faced the threat of starvation and famine in Yemen, Somalia, South Sudan and Nigeria. He said $4.4bn (£3.6bn) was needed by July to avoid a "catastrophe". Unicef has already warned 1.4m children could starve to death this year.

3. Tories thumped in opinion poll after tax reform

The Conservatives are facing a popularity crisis following the decision to increase National Insurance contributions for the self-employed. Almost half of those questioned by the Daily Telegraph said they are less likely to vote Tory because of the Budget, including one in seven Conservative voters. Just one in four of those polled now regards the Tories as a low-tax party.

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. Sanders says Trump lies to erode US democracy

Bernie Sanders says Donald Trump is a pathological liar who is driving America towards authoritarianism. "Trump lies all of the time and I think that is not an accident, there is a reason for that," said the senator who campaigned for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016. "He lies in order to undermine the foundations of American democracy."

5. Battle to retake Mosul reaches defining moment

Sky News said this morning that Iraqi forces were "just a street away" from storming Mosul's old quarter, in what is expected to be the defining phase for the battle for Iraq's second city. Islamic State jihadists overran Mosul as they spread across much of northern and western Iraq in 2014. The Iraqi operation was launched in October 2016.

6. White men 'endangered species' says Tesco chief

White men are becoming an "endangered species" in UK business boardrooms as firms try to recruit more women and people from minority ethnic backgrounds, Tesco’s chairman has said. John Allan told an audience panel: "If you are a white male, tough. You are an endangered species and you are going to have to work twice as hard." He later said his comments were meant to be humorous.

7. Ministers 'block the poor and young from voting'

The government has been accused of deliberately making it hard for 400,000 predominantly young and poor people to vote. Election chiefs say rules which prevent those without a permanent home from registering to vote online are unfair. The news comes as ministers change the law to allow wealthy expats to easily register and vote in UK elections.

8. Police 'plan to ignore' £100 shoplifters

Police in Hungerford say they will not pursue shoplifters unless they steal more than £100 worth of goods. The new approach was announced after the Berkshire town’s police station was closed down and put up for sale. One resident asked: "What sort of message does this send out? What are we paying our rates for if the police won’t turn up to arrest shoplifters? It’s crazy."

9. Abuse victim gives evidence using blink technology

A onetime vicar has been jailed for sexually abusing a choirboy who gave evidence using eye-tracking technology which turned his blinks into words. Cyril Rowe was jailed for four years for indecent assault at a London church in the 1970s. His victim, who suffered from motor neurone disease, died in a hospice before hearing the guilty verdicts.

10. Ed Sheehan takes 16 spots in top 20 singles chart

Ed Sheeran has 16 of the top 20 slots in the official singles chart, including nine in the top ten, thanks to the inclusion of streaming figures. Speaking about the unprecedented achievement, which comes a week after the release of his new album, the singer-songwriter told the BBC: "I don’t know if there’s some weird thing that Spotify and Apple Music are going to have to change now with streaming."