1. Stranded air passengers sleep on luggage belts
Hundreds of passengers were stranded at airports last night, thanks to snow and ice. At Stansted, where 300 were left without flights, a witness told Sky News that customers were sleeping on the luggage carousel belts. A weather warning is in place for ice this morning, after some motorists were forced to abandon their cars yesterday.
2. Corbyn rules out second EU referendum
Jeremy Corbyn has told the i newspaper that Labour is “not advocating a second referendum” on Britain leaving the EU, while insisting that the party’s position on Brexit is not “confusing”. Earlier this month, deputy leader Tom Watson said that, while he thought a second ballot was not “likely at all”, the party should rule nothing out.
3. ‘Greenest year’ for electricity generation
Britain enjoyed its ‘greenest’ year ever in terms of electricity generation in 2017, setting 13 new records for renewable power. In June, for the first time, more power was generated by renewables than gas and coal. In April, for the first time since the Industrial Revolution, there was a 24-hour period in which no power was generated by coal.
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4. Bishop accuses Christians of Trump ‘collusion’
Speaking to The Guardian, the Bishop of Liverpool has accused US religious leaders of colluding “with a system that marginalises the poor [and] builds walls instead of bridges” by “uncritically accepting” things said by Donald Trump and his allies. Paul Bayes said he did not believe it was possible to justify right-wing populist views.
5. Attacks on children ‘shocking’, says Unicef
The UN children’s fund, Unicef, has published a report in which it says the scale of attacks directed at children in the world’s conflict zones is “shocking”. Director Manuel Fontaine insisted that deadly attacks on children “cannot be the new normal”. Children suffered this year in Nigeria, Yemen, Ukraine and elsewhere, he added.
6. Robot job takeover ‘worst for the poor’
Respected left-wing think tank the IPPR is warning today that the replacement of jobs by robots and other machines in coming years will disproportionately affect the least well-off in society. The IPPR has calculated that jobs accounting for £290bn – one third of national pay – could be automated. It urged ministers to encourage workers to retrain.
7. Home and Away actor critical after crash
Australian actor Jessica Falkholt, who played Hope Morrison in TV soap opera Home and Away, is in a critical condition in hospital with her sister Annabelle. Falkholt, 27, and Annabell, 21, are the only survivors of a car crash on Boxing Day which killed their parents and another man. The crash happened near Ulladulla, New South Wales.
8. Russian satellite ‘launched from wrong spaceport’
Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister has admitted a £34m satellite was lost last month because it had been programmed to take off from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan, but was actually launched from Vostochnhy in Russia. Dmitry Rogozin blamed human error for the mistake. Other satellites launched at the same time fared better.
9. Giant penis mural painted-over in NYC
A four-storey mural of an erect penis which appeared on the side of a Manhattan building on Christmas Eve has been painted-over by order of the building’s landlord. The painting, by Swedish artist Carolina Falkholt, provoked mixed reactions locally, The Guardian reported. Falkholt said: “I usually paint giant vaginas, penises and c***s.”
10. Briefing: Heroes of 2017
From Ariana Grande to Colin Kaepernick - take a look back at the people who have provided some much-needed hope during this tumultuous year
Heroes of 2017
