Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Thursday 5 Oct 2017

1. Tory MPs plot to oust May after speech

The Daily Telegraph says as many as 30 Tory MPs are “plotting” to remove Theresa May from office after her party conference speech was overshadowed by a prankster handing her a “P45”, letters falling off the slogan behind her, and her persistent cough. Sky News, however, says Cabinet ministers called May to offer their support.

2. Vegas gunman’s girlfriend ‘had no idea’

The girlfriend of Stephen Paddock, who shot dead 58 people in Las Vegas on Sunday, says she had no idea he was planning violence. Marilou Danley was surprised by Paddock with a “cheap ticket” to the Philippines to visit her family two weeks ago. He later wired her $100,000, telling her to buy a house for her relatives, she claims.

3. Rail strikes under way across England

RMT members are on strike again today at Southern, Merseyrail, Arriva Rail North and Greater Anglia. The 24-hour walkout is in protest at plans to make train drivers operate doors themselves, rather than with the assistance of a train guard, which some staff say will compromise safety. Staff at South Western Railway have also voted to strike.

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4. Iraqi forces claim recapture of Hawija

Iraqi forces say they have recaptured the Hawija area from Islamic State, killing 196 militants. The region is one of the last strongholds of the extremist group in Iraq, under its control since 2014. Lieutenant General Abdel Amir Yarallah said his troops had “liberated the whole of the centre of Hawija and are continuing their advance”.

5. Glee actor had child sex abuse images

Actor Mark Salling, who appeared in US TV series Glee from 2009 to 2015 as Noah “Puck” Puckerman, has pleaded guilty to possession of images of children being sexually abused. The 35-year-old has yet to be sentenced but could face four to seven years in prison. He has been ordered to pay $50,000 (£38,000) to each victim.

6. US woman jailed for not vaccinating son

A woman in Michigan has been jailed for seven days after disobeying a judge’s order to have her son vaccinated. Vaccination is not compulsory in the US state, but Rebecca Bredow had been ordered to do so because of an agreement previously made with her former husband, the father of the nine-year-old boy, to do so.

7. Backlash against social media grows

A new survey suggests there is a growing backlash against social media among young people, with almost two-thirds of 5,000 schoolchildren saying they would not mind if the technology had never been invented. More than 70% said they had resorted to temporary “digital detoxes” to get away from social media, with many citing abusive comments.

8. Remains of British ship Athenia found

A wreck found on the Atlantic seabed off the coast of Ireland is believed to be that of the Athenia, the first British ship to be attacked during the Second World War. A German submarine torpedoed the transatlantic passenger liner, mistaking it for an armed cruiser, hours after war was declared. More than 100 people, including many Americans, died.

9. Injured pianist Lang Lang ‘borrows left hand’

The world-famous classical musician Lang Lang took part in a gala concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall on Wednesday, despite having an inflammation in his left arm which prevents him using it on the keyboard. The solution was to have a 14-year-old student of his play the left-hand part to the piece by George Gershwin that he performed.

10. Briefing: May struggles through ‘nightmare’ speech

As Conservative Party conference speeches go, Theresa May’s was a “British nightmare”, in the words of The Spectator’s Isobel Hardman.

“Excruciating to watch,” tweeted The Sunday Times political editor Tim Shipman, while The Sun’s Harry Cole agreed, “Not the images No. 10 were hoping for.” The Daily Mirror summed up the Prime Minister’s keynote speech in Manchester today as an “unmitigated, multifaceted disaster of epic proportions”.

May apologised to Conservative Party members for not securing the victory they had hoped for in June’s general election, and promised two new policy initiatives on housing and energy. But her address is more likely to be remembered for an interruption by comedian Simon Brodkin, who handed May a fake P45 form supposedly on behalf of Boris Johnson.

Theresa May struggles through ‘nightmare’ Tory conference speech