Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 27 Jun 2017

1. May criticised for 'shabby' DUP deal

Theresa May has been criticised over her £1bn deal to secure DUP backing in the Commons. Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones said the extra funding for Northern Ireland was a "straight bung", while Labour called it a "shabby and reckless" deal that would harm the peace process. The Tories said they had a duty to provide a government.

Tories-DUP agree 'confidence and supply' deal

2. Assad planning new chemical attack, says US

The US says Syria is planning another chemical weapons attack on rebel-held areas and warned President Bashar al-Assad there would be a "heavy price" to pay if it went ahead. The warning may also be aimed at Assad's backers in Moscow and Tehran, The Guardian says. In April, the US bombed a Syrian air base after a sarin attack.

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Syria 'planning a new chemical attack', US claims

3. Record European Commission fine for Google

Google has been hit with a record fine by the European Commission for prioritising its own comparison shopping services in its search results. The €2.4bn fine is more than double the previous highest penalty for competition law breaches. Google was found to have been abusing its market dominance after a seven-year investigation.

Google fined £2.1bn in record EU competition penalty

4. Cladding fire risk warning came in 2016

Ministers were warned by their own fire investigators last year that tower blocks were clad in flammable material, although the experts also said building regulations were "adequate", reports Sky News. More than 70 blocks so far tested following the Grenfell Tower have failed fire tests.

'Twenty suicide attempts' since Grenfell Tower fire

5. MP claims to be first Darren in Commons

Bristol North West's new MP says he is the "first ever Darren" to enter the Houses of Parliament. Labour's Darren Jones made the claim while delivering his maiden speech in the Commons following his victory against Conservative Charlotte Leslie in the general election this month. He added it was "deeply humbling" to represent the area where he had grown up.

6. Queen to receive £6m pay rise in 2018

The Queen will receive an extra £6m from public funds next year, taking her income to £82m after the Crown Estates posted a £24m rise in profits. A quarter of the estates' profits is returned to the Crown to pay for staff, travel and the upkeep of the royal palaces. The money will help cover repairs at Buckingham Palace, which are expected to cost £369m.

The Crown Estate: Are we paying a queen's ransom for the royal family?

7. IS 'using civilians as human shields in Philippines'

Islamic State militants in the Philippines are taking slaves from the civilian population and forcing them to act as human shields, government forces have claimed. Intense fighting is continuing in Marawi city, which was captured by IS earlier this year, although most of the 250,000 residents have fled.

8. Trump 'has confidence of less than 25% of world'

More than three-quarters of the world's population has little or no confidence in Donald Trump as US president, according to a poll by the Pew Research Centre, with his support in many countries being lower than for George W Bush during the Iraq invasion in 2004. Former president Barack Obama had the confidence of 64%.

9. Sturgeon resets timetable for IndyRef2

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon has "reset" her timetable for a second Scottish independence referendum and will not push for a vote until the terms of Brexit are clearer. She had called for a poll in 2018 or 2019 but says she will now focus influencing Britain's exit talks with the EU. The SNP lost 21 seats in this month's general election.

10. Briefing: May's 'settled status' plan for EU citizens

EU citizens will be granted "settled status" in the UK post-Brexit in plans unveiled by Theresa May today, but their exact rights promise to be a major hurdle during negotiations to leave the EU.

Under the government's 15-page proposal, European migrants who have lived in the country for five years will have the opportunity to achieve the same residency, employment, health, welfare and pensions rights as British nationals.

In addition, a new "light touch" online system to process applications will give them the same "indefinite leave to remain" status as many non-European nationals who have been in the country for five years or more.

What will happen to EU citizens after the December Brexit deadline?

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