Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 15 Jan 2018

1. Abbas: Jerusalem plan is ‘slap of the century’

Mahmoud Abbas has described US President Donald Trump’s decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel as the “slap of the century”. The Palestinian president said that as a result he would not accept any peace plan now proposed by the US – and accused Israel of ending the Oslo Accords, which began the peace process in 1993.

2. Trump: ‘I am not racist. I am the least racist’

Donald Trump has attempted to defuse the row over his use of the phrase “shithole countries” in a meeting on immigration, which he denies. The US president told reporters: “I am not a racist. I’m the least racist person you have ever interviewed.” During the Oval Office meeting last week, Trump questioned why the US should accept migrants from countries hit by disaster such as Haiti.

3. Contractor Carillion goes into liquidation

Major UK employer Carillion has gone into liquidation this morning, with a £300m funding shortfall. The Government has agreed to provide funding for major public services run by the contractor, which is involved in HS2, but has not agreed a full bailout. Thousands of jobs are at risk, says the BBC.

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4. Arctic winds to bring snow and hail to UK

The Met Office has issued a yellow warning of snow and ice in Scotland and Northern Ireland from 6pm today, predicting up to four inches of snow in higher areas. Arctic winds are forecast to drive the colder weather, and gale force gusts are expected in England and Wales. The bad weather is expected to continue for around three days.

5. UKIP leader Bolton leaves girlfriend over racist comments

UKIP leader Henry Bolton has left his 25-year-old glamour model girlfriend after it emerged that she sent racist messages to a friend. Jo Marney said black people were “ugly”, used the word “negro” and said Prince Harry’s fiancee, Meghan Markle, would “taint” the royal family. Bolton is facing calls to resign.

6. Crossbow murder suspect found dead

A 55-year-old man who was being sought by police investigating the murder of his neighbour with a crossbow, and the attempted murder of the neighbour’s pregnant girlfriend, has been found dead. Anthony Lawrence is said to have been found in a vehicle in North Yorkshire. The attack on Shane Gilmer and Laura Sugden took place in a village near Driffield.

7. Lady Lucan leaves estate to charity Shelter

The widow of notorious peer Lord Lucan, who disappeared after the family’s nanny was bludgeoned to death in 1974, cut her children out of her will and has left her estate to housing charity Shelter. Veronica, Dowager Countess of Lucan, died in September. A coroner ruled last week that she took her own life after wrongly self-diagnosing Parkinson’s.

8. The Guardian goes tabloid

The Guardian newspaper has relaunched today in a smaller, tabloid format, abandoning the “Berliner” size that it adopted in 2005 at a cost of £80m. Printing will now be outsourced to the Trinity Mirror group and the look of the newspaper has been redesigned to fit smaller pages. The decision was taken in an attempt to stem heavy losses.

9. Ryanair reduces cabin baggage allowance

Changes to Ryanair’s baggage policy kick in from today. Customers flying with the Irish budget airline will no longer be allowed to take two bags into the cabin unless they have paid extra for “priority booking”. Those travelling on the standard tariff can still take two bags onto the plane, but the larger one will be put into the hold for the duration of the flight.

10. Briefing: is there life on Mars?

Scientists may be a step closer to finding life on Mars as a new study says that massive sheets of ice have been discovered on the Red Planet.

Using images from a Nasa satellite orbiting the planet, the research discovered eight sites that appear to have “huge ice deposits”, according to The Independent. These could be easily accessed if humans were to land on them.

While scientists were already aware of the presence of ice, Science Mag says the large sheets are located much closer to the surface than was previously thought.

Is there life on Mars?