Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Saturday 8 Dec 2018

1. Corbyn 'ready to step in' as he reaches out to DUP

Jeremy Corbyn says he has reached out to the DUP and said that Labour is “ready to step in and negotiate seriously” to find an alternative Brexit deal with Brussels. Speaking to Sky News, the Labour Party leader said the DUP “dislike the backstop for very good and sensible reasons”. He added that he is ready to “step in” without an election “straight away” by forming a minority government.

2. Mueller says Cohen tried to set up Putin meeting

Special counsel Robert Mueller has revealed that one of Donald Trump’s closest advisers spoke during the 2016 election campaign with a Russian offering help from Moscow and a meeting with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. It is also alleged that Trump directed the adviser, Michael Cohen, to make illegal payoffs to two women who claimed to have had sexual relationships with Trump, in contradiction of campaign finance laws.

3. Tommy Robinson enjoying support of foreign groups

Tommy Robinson is receiving “financial, political and moral support” from a range of non-British groups and individuals, reports The Guardian. The far-right activist, who is leading a “Brexit betrayal” march in London on Sunday, enjoys the support of US thinktanks, rightwing Australians and Russian trolls. His recent appointment as an official adviser to Ukip has caused uproar in the party, with several prominent members leaving.

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. Disappearance of UK backpacker treated as murder

The disappearance of a British backpacker in New Zealand is being treated as murder, police have announced. Auckland Police Detective Inspector Scott Beard said a 26-year-old man is being questioned in relation to Grace Millane's whereabouts. The 22-year-old from Essex - described by her father as "lovely" and "family-orientated" - was last seen in New Zealand a week ago.

5. Rudd says 'Norway plus' option is best plan B for Brexit

The UK should pursue the "Norway plus" option if Theresa May's Brexit deal is rejected by MPs on Tuesday, says the Work and Pensions Secretary. Speaking to The Times, Amber Rudd said she still supported the PM's plan - but added a that variation of Norway's set-up was the best alternative. The so-called Norway plus option would involved the UK remaining in the European Economic Area.

6. New allegations levelled at founder of Ted Baker

The founder of Ted Baker asked “if it was legal” when he said of a 17-year-old employee that he would like to “take her into the fitting room”, a former manager at the retailer has alleged. An investigation was launched last week after hundreds of Ted Baker staff signed a petition complaining about Ray Kelvin, accusing him of “forced hugging”, making sexual innuendos and “stroking people’s necks”.

7. Children among dead after stampede at Italian nightclub

Five children are among six people who have died in a stampede at an Italian nightclub, the authorities have said. Officials said people ran for the exits after someone sprayed a noxious substance at a disco in Corinaldo, where an Italian rapper was entertaining the crowd. In June last year about 1,500 people were injured in Turin after a firecracker sparked a stampede at a public screening of the Champions League final.

8. Abramovich one of six oligarchs targeted by UK intelligence

Roman Abramovich is among a group of six Russian oligarchs targeted by British intelligence as part of a bid to disrupt Vladimir Putin, says the Daily Telegraph. Theresa May has approved the list and the names will be circulated across Whitehall and shared with the UK’s allies in Europe and in North America in an attempt to disrupt their ability to travel and to maintain their business empires.

9. Paris prepares for another weekend of protests

France is braced for another weekend of anti-government protests, with nearly 90,000 security personnel deployed on the streets. Paris shops have been boarded up and sites like the Eiffel Tower have been closed as some 8,000 officers and 12 armoured vehicles are lined up in the French capital. Ministers claim the "yellow vest" movement, which began three weeks ago in opposition to a rise in fuel tax, has been hijacked by "ultra-violent" protesters.

10. Fiona Bruce takes over from 'hero' Dimbleby on Question Time

Fiona Bruce has been confirmed as the new host of Question Time. Bruce, 54, will take over from David Dimbleby in January. She will continue her other roles, including reading the news and anchoring the Antiques Roadshow and the art history series Fake or Fortune? The Times says this makes her “the face of BBC One”. She describes Dimbleby as “one of my heroes”.