Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 22 Jun 2017

1. Council boss quits over Grenfell Tower fire

The chief executive of Kensington and Chelsea has quit over the Grenfell Tower fire, after being asked to step down by Communities Secretary Sajid Javid. Nicholas Holgate said he was "heartbroken". He claimed there was a "huge amount" for the council to do for the families affected and but said his presence would be a "distraction". Fire safety tests are now being carried out on 600 high rise blocks around the country.

'Twenty suicide attempts' since Grenfell Tower fire

2. May to outline fate of EU residents after Brexit

Theresa May is expected to sketch out the UK's plans for post-Brexit rights for EU citizens living in the UK today as she attends her first European Council summit since the general election. She has consistently refused to guarantee their status without a reciprocal pledge about the future of Britons living in other EU countries. The full plan is expected next week.

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

3. Finsbury Park mosque attack victim named

The victim of the Finsbury Park mosque attack has been named as 51-year-old Makram Ali, who died from multiple injuries, a preliminary post-mortem examination has found. His family described him as a "quiet, gentle man" who "spent his whole life without any enemies". A 47-year-old man, Darren Osborne, has been arrested on suspicion of attempted murder and terror offences.

4. Johnson suffers meltdown explaining Queen's Speech

Boris Johnson struggled to explain the Queen's Speech on BBC Radio 4's PM programme yesterday. The Foreign Secretary could be heard shuffling his papers and telling presenter Eddie Mair to "hang on a minute" when asked to discuss key points. At one point, he tried to return to a previous question, to which Mair said: "It’s not a Two Ronnies sketch – you can’t answer the question before last."

Boris Johnson and five more 'car-crash' political interviews

5. Prince Harry: None of us want to reign

Prince Harry says no one in the royal family "wants to be king or queen", but "we will carry out our duties at the right time". Speaking to Newsweek, he said the family performed their public roles "for the greater good of the people". He also discussed walking behind the coffin of his mother Princess Diana at the age of 12, saying "no child should be made to do that".

Prince Harry: No one wants to be king or queen

6. Fruit and veg farmers face labour shortage

Fruit and vegetable growers are finding it difficult to recruit pickers, says a BBC survey, with farmers blaming the weak pound and uncertainty over Brexit. More than half say they don't know if they will be able to recruit enough migrant workers to harvest their crops this summer. The industry employs around 80,000 seasonal workers a year, mostly from Romania and Bulgaria.

Brexit: Lords force Theresa May to give MPs single market vote

7. Portugal forest fire 'had criminal origins'

A forest fire that killed 64 people at Pedrogao Grande, Portugal, this weekend may have had "criminal origins", says the head of the country's volunteer firefighters. Jaime Marta Soares has called for an investigation to be held, saying he believed the lightning strike said to have started the blaze hit two hours after the fire began. A minute's silence was held for the victims yesterday.

8. French blogger killed by exploding cream dispenser

A fitness and travel blogger in France has been killed by an exploding whipped cream dispenser in her own home. Rebecca Burger suffered a cardiac arrest after being struck in the chest by part of the machine. French consumer groups have long warned the devices are dangerous and at least one manufacturer has issued a product recall, says the BBC.

9. Stolen supercars shipped to Thailand

British and Thai police are working to dismantle a complex fraud scheme that has seen dozens of Lamborghinis, Porsches and BMWs stolen in the UK and shipped to Thailand. Some of the cars were dismantled and shipped in parts to avoid taxes, while others were transported before loan repayments were made. Bangkok detectives have launched a series of raids against dealers.

10. Briefing: Should Europe have its own army?

One of Germany's most senior defence officials has become the latest public figure to call for a European army.

Hans-Peter Bartels, Germany's national defence commissioner, called on Nato's EU members to organise their armies into a single force. Integration was "inevitable", he said: "In the end, there will be a European army."

Britain has always blocked the idea of a single military force, but Brexit could mean it will no longer have a say.

Should Europe have its own army?