Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Sunday 11 Feb 2018

1. Trump says lives are ruined by 'mere allegation' of abuse

Donald Trump says lives are being "destroyed by mere allegation" after two White House aides quit amid accusations of domestic abuse. Taking to Twitter, the US President wrote: "There is no recovery for someone falsely accused." He added that allegations could result in a person's "life and career gone". His comments quickly drew opposition from Democrats and commentators.

2. Theresa May promises to set out 'road to Brexit'

Theresa May will deliver a major speech within the next three weeks outlining "the road to Brexit", reports the BBC. The Prime Minister is under pressure to set out her vision for Britain after it leaves the EU. Meanwhile, EU states reportedly fear that Brexit’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier is risking a UK walkout. Barnier has has "fractured" the coalition of 27 countries, claims the Sunday Telegraph.

3. Labour attacks the 'scandal' of private water companies

Labour says private water companies have paid out the "scandalous" sum of £13.5bn in dividends to shareholders since 2010, while claiming massive tax breaks and hiking prices for millions of customers. Shadow chancellor John McDonnell has promised total, "permanent" and cost-free renationalisation of water, energy and rail if Labour wins power at the next election.

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

4. New prostitution allegations hit Oxfam charity

Oxfam is facing fresh allegations that staff used prostitutes in Chad. The Observer says former staff who worked for the charity alleged that women believed to be prostitutes were repeatedly invited to the Oxfam team house there. "They would invite the women for parties, we knew they weren’t just friends but something else," said a source. A senior member of staff was allegedly fired for his behaviour in 2006.

5. Polish Jewry fears for future under new Holocaust law

Jews in Poland are fearing for their futures under the new Holocaust law, reports The Observer. Many believe there is a dose of antisemitism behind the controversial new law that criminalises the attribution to the Polish state or Polish nation crimes committed by Nazi Germany during the Holocaust. Around the world, scholars, Holocaust survivors and governments have condemned the law.

6. TGI Fridays is 'robbing Peter to pay Paul' says union

American restaurant chain TGI Fridays has sparked new controversy with its plan to redistribute card tips from waiters to kitchen staff to avoid a wage increase. All cash tips will continue to go to the waiter serving, but 40% of the total card tips will be given to back-of-house staff. "This is a blatant case of 'robbing Peter to pay Paul' – waiters, kitchen staff and bartenders are all losing out," said Unite.

7. Authors claim they have found Shakespeare's source

Two Shakespeare scholars say a 1500s manuscript may be the inspiration for some of his greatest plays. A Brief Discourse of Rebellion and Rebels, written in 1576 by George North, is a warning against rebellion. Dennis McCarthy and June Schlueter share their theory in a book to be published next week. The scholars do not suggest Shakespeare plagiarised, but that he was inspired by the manuscript.

8. Parental drinking's 'horrific' impact revealed by MPs

MPs say that more than one-third of child injuries and deaths through neglect are linked to parental drinking. A report for International Children of Alcoholics Week revealed the "horrific" impact of alcohol misuse by parents on their children. Liam Byrne, Labour MP and the chair of the All-Party Group for Children of Alcoholics who lost his father to alcoholism in 2015, has spoken of the "stigma" such children face.

9. Boris slammed for letting down Kurdish allies

Boris Johnson has been accused of failing to speak up for Britain’s Iraqi Kurd allies. In a report by the Commons Foreign Affairs Committee, the Foreign Office was slammed for an "incoherent" stance on the future of the Kurds in Syria, where Turkey has mounted a bombing campaign and there is a "high risk" of more bloodshed.

10. Syria: Netanyahu warns that Israel will defend itself

Benjamin Netanyahu has told Washington and Moscow that Israel will "defend itself from any attack and any attempt to hurt our sovereignty" after a flare-up between Israel and Syria. "Iran… violated our sovereignty, it inserted its drone into Israeli space from Syria," the Israeli prime minister has reportedly told US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Russian President Vladimir Putin.