Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 28 May 2018

1. May under pressure on abortion in NI

Theresa May is facing calls to allow a referendum on liberalising abortion in Northern Ireland after the Republic voted overwhelmingly in favour of widening access to terminations. Around 160 MPs have backed a letter to the Prime Minister asking for a Commons vote to settle the matter – but the DUP is unlikely to allow that.

2. Call to impeach Italian president after veto

There are calls to impeach Italian President Sergio Mattarella after he took the unusual step of vetoing the appointment of a minister. Mattarella refused to allow a noted Eurosceptic, Paolo Savona, to become finance minister, citing investor concern. The veto dashed an attempt to form a ruling coalition by two populist parties.

3. Mutiny festival cancelled after drugs deaths

On police advice yesterday, the final day of the Mutiny music festival in Hampshire was cancelled. Two people have died, and a third is in critical condition, after taking unusually strong MDMA pills at the festival. Geogrina Jones, 18, was from Havant, as was Tommy Cowan, 20. At least 15 festival-goers were hospitalised on Saturday.

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4. Farming and food make Brexit demands

A group of 100 farming and food industry groups have drawn up a manifesto for Brexit and sent it to Theresa May. With much manual labour currently provided seasonally by eastern European migrants, the letter urges the Government to publish a white paper setting out its plans for immigration “as a matter of priority”.

5. Moon may attend Trump-Kim summit

The on-again, off-again summit between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un could feature a third man, if it happens: South Korean President Moon Jae-in may attend. The historic meeting – it would be the first ever between a sitting US president and a North Korean leader – is schedule for 12 June in Singapore.

6. England to enjoy hottest day of the year

The south coast of England is forecast to enjoy the hottest day of the year so far, with temperatures reaching 29C. Further thunderstorms are also expected, after torrential rain caused flash flooding yesterday, resulting in the M5 being closed. There will be more sustained sunshine in Scotland than south of the border – but it will not be as hot.

7. Police warn against visiting Birmingham

Thunderstorms yesterday brought heavy rains to the Midlands, causing flash flooding in Birmingham, with more than one month’s rainfall hitting parts of the city in just one hour. A Met Office amber warning is in place for the whole region and West Midlands police are warning people to avoid visiting the city if they possibly can.

8. UK’s ‘most scenic’ bus route: Leeds to Whitby

The 840 Coastliner from Leeds to Whitby has been named the “most scenic” in Britain by passengers’ group Bus Users UK. The service crosses the North Yorkshire moors from Pickering to Goathland, near the north sea. Bus Users UK highlighted that the service is under threat, like many in the country, due to local authority austerity.

9. WH Smith named UK’s worst retailer

Readers of consumer magazine Which? have once again ranked WH Smith as the worst retailer in Britain. The stationer and newsagent has come bottom or second-bottom in the annual poll for the past eight years. WH Smith said: “Only 184 people commented on WH Smith as part of this survey. We serve 12 million customers each week.”

10. Briefing: is Amazon’s Alexa listening to you?

An Amazon Alexa-equipped smart speaker has mystified a couple in Portland, Oregon, after the voice controlled assistant recorded a private conversation and sent it to a random contact.

The couple had fitted “every room” in their home with devices powered by the voice assistant and had joked that they were listening in to their conversations.

Is Amazon’s Alexa listening to me all the time?