Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 13 Mar 2018

1. May sets deadline for Russia over spy poisoning

Theresa May has said the Russia administration must explain its role in the nerve agent poisoning in Salisbury of former spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter by the end of today, or face diplomatic sanctions. Replying to the Prime Minister, Jeremy Corbyn provoked outrage by shifting the focus to Russian donations to the Tory party.

2. Chancellor to unveil optimistic spring statement

Chancellor Philip Hammond will read his spring statement on the UK’s finances today – and is expected to say that the economy is in better shape than expected. However, Hammond is unlikely to offer any significant extra spending on public services including the NHS, arguing that the national debt is still too high to end austerity.

3. Commuter wins payout for rail firm’s lateness

A commuter from Suffolk has won a legal case that he brought, via the small claims court, against Greater Anglia railway for continual lateness. Seph Pochin was awarded £350 compensation at an earlier hearing but Greater Anglia failed to pay. A judge has now issued a warrant for bailiffs to seize Greater Anglia property to sell to meet the debt.

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. Home Office keeping torture victims in detention

The Home Office is keeping torture victims in detention at Europe’s largest immigration removal centre despite accepting clear evidence of their vulnerability, prison inspectors say. At the time of the inspection at Harmondsworth, near Heathrow, last October, 23 people there had been held for more than a year.

5. Black cab rapist Worboys: victims in court

London Mayor Sadiq Khan will appear in the High Court today alongside two victims of black cab rapist John Worboys, to challenge the lawfulness of the parole board’s decision to release the 60-year-old. Worboys is believed to have attacked more than 100 women, often drugging them by giving them Champagne laced with sedatives.

6. Salty Chinese food ‘should carry health warning’

The charity Action on Salt says Chinese takeaways should carry health warnings, because many contain “astonishing and harmful” amounts of salt. Many dishes tested by the group had more than half an adult’s recommended daily intake, and some were as salty as five Macdonald’s burgers. The group wants food manufacturers to cut salt.

7. Trump caves in on gun control to NRA

Donald Trump appears to have backtracked on support for increased gun control measures that were opposed by the lobby group the NRA, despite having chided his fellow Republicans for being “petrified” of the organisation. The US president is believed to have withdrawn his support from measures to raise the age limit on buying a gun from 18 to 21.

8. ‘Copycat’ restaurant threatened by Nando’s

A peri peri chicken restaurant in Reading has been threatened with legal action by the global chain Nando’s, which asserts it is copying its brand. Asam Aziz, director of the Berkshire-based Fernando’s, insisted he was inspired by the name of the fictional island in the reality TV show Take Me Out, and was not copying Nando’s.

9. Winner of £403m lottery granted privacy

A US judge has ruled that a woman who won $560m (£403m) in a Powerball jackpot lottery can remain anonymous, despite state lottery rules insisting she must be identified. The judge said the woman would be “subject to an alarming amount of harassment, solicitation, and other unwanted communications” if she were identified.

10. Briefing: will Prince Charles ever head the Commonwealth?

Though he is likely to be head of state in the UK, Prince Charles is “by no means assured of being the next head of the Commonwealth”, says the Daily Express.

For years, it has been “widely assumed” that the Prince of Wales will become head of the 53-country organisation upon the Queen's death, the Daily Telegraph writes. However, the Commonwealth Secretariat insisted in February this year that a decision “would only be taken on her successor after the death of the 91-year-old monarch”, says the Daily Express.

Will Prince Charles ever be crowned king?