Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Monday 3 Dec 2018

1. May facing contempt proceeding over Brexit

Theresa May is facing contempt of parliament proceedings, brought by Labour and other parties including Northern Ireland’s DUP, if she does not publish in full legal advice on her plans for Brexit. The DUP has also threatened to withdraw its support from the prime minister if MPs reject her deal with the EU and Labour brings a no-confidence motion against her.

2. Macron tells police chiefs to stop riots

French President Emmanuel Macron summoned police chiefs and ministers to the Elysee Palace yesterday and told them to “adapt” their methods in order to end the biggest riots in Paris since 1968. More than 400 people were arrested in the capital on Saturday, and 133 were injured. The protests were sparked by opposition to fuel tax increases.

3. Woman killed ‘leaning out of train window’

A woman who died after suffering serious head injuries on a Bristol-bound train between Bath and Keynsham this weekend may have been leaning out of the window, police say. The woman, who has not been named, was pronounced dead at the scene after paramedics were called at about 10.10pm on Saturday evening. Police are working to discover her identity and notify her next of kin.

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4. Service dog waits beside George H.W. Bush’s body

A service dog that helped George H.W. Bush cope with his Parkinson’s disease has been pictured lying next to the former US president’s flag-draped coffin. The photo of the loyal animal, named Sully, was tweeted by Bush’s post-White House spokesperson and is captioned “mission complete”. The 41st president died on Friday at the age of 94 and is lying in state in Washington DC before being buried later this week.

5. Trump: China will ‘reduce and remove’ tariffs

Donald Trump yesterday claimed that China has agreed to “reduce and remove” its 40% tariffs on imported US cars. The US president and Chinese leader Xi Jinping have called a temporary truce to the trade war that Trump started earlier this year, following talks at the G20 summit this weekend. The news boosted the financial markets in Asia this morning.

6. Home Office accused of ‘lack of decency’

Campaigners have accused the Home Office of a lack of “decency” over the department’s failure to attempt to contact 49 people unfairly deported to Ghana and Nigeria in 2017 during the Windrush scandal. The Home Office says it is up to Commonwealth citizens to seek information about their immigration status themselves.

7. Billy Connolly to retire from live performing

Scottish stand-up comedian and TV presenter Billy Connolly has told an interviewer that he will no longer perform live – but denied claims that Parkinson’s disease has “dulled” his brain. The 76-year-old Glaswegian, who lives in Florida, also spoke of his fear of Donald Trump’s “fascism” and repeated his opposition to Scottish independence.

8. Nigerian president: I am not a clone

Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has been forced to deny a rumour spread by his political opponents that he has died and been replace with a lookalike or clone from Sudan. The rumour began when Buhari spent several months in the UK this year being treated for an undisclosed illness. “It’s the real me, I assure you,” he assured Nigerians yesterday.

9. NYPD returns wedding ring to UK couple

A British couple who got engaged in New York City but then accidentally dropped the ring down a drain are to have the precious piece of jewellery returned to them thanks to the city’s police department. John Drennan and Daniella Anthony had returned home to Peterborough when the ring was found by US cops, who managed to trace them via a Twitter appeal.

10. Briefing: the diciest issues for G20

Representatives from the world’s major economies faced major diplomatic challenges as they met in Argentina last week for the annual G20 summit.

So what were the trickiest topics on the agenda?

G20 summit: the diciest issues on the agenda

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