Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Tuesday 22 Jan 2019

1. Ministers ‘will quit’ over no-deal amendment

As many as 40 ministers will leave the government if they’re told to vote against an amendment to Theresa May’s Brexit plans on Tuesday, newspapers say. The amendment is designed to block a no-deal Brexit. Labour has put forward another alteration to the bill, calling for MPs to vote on holding a second referendum.

2. France angered by Italy’s ‘colonisation’ claims

The Italian ambassador was summoned to France’s foreign ministry yesterday after remarks made by one of Italy’s two deputy prime ministers provoked outrage. Luigi Di Maio has called on the EU to impose sanctions on France over its continued “colonisation” of Africa, saying the country’s economic policies in former colonies create migration.

3. Zimbabwean president breaks off Davos visit

Zimbabwe’s president, Emmerson Mnangagwa, has broken off a trip to Europe where he was due to attend the Davos economic summit and returned home following violent protests and a police crackdown. His government accuses the opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) of engineering violence but human rights groups say at least 12 people have been killed by police.

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4. Gatwick drone closure costs EasyJet £15m

The chaotic and prolonged closure of Gatwick airport last month due to sightings of a drone (or drones) being flown over the airfield has cost EasyJet around £15m, it has been revealed. The budget carrier says it paid out £10m for “customer welfare” and lost £5m of revenue after the incident affected the travel plans of 82,000 customers.

5. Cosmetics ‘genius’ Brandon Truaxe dies aged 40

Brandon Truaxe, founder and former chief executive of the Canadian skincare company Deciem, has been found dead at the age of 40, just weeks after he was removed from his position because of erratic behaviour. Colleagues said Truaxe was the “genius” behind the affordable skincare brand The Ordinary, which was endorsed by Kim Kardashian and others.

6. Jacinda Ardern asked: ‘Will you propose to partner?’

New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern reacted with some surprise yesterday when the BBC interviewer Victoria Derbyshire asked her if she intended to propose marriage to her partner, a TV presenter. Ardern said she would wait for Clarke Gayford to ask her, if at all, prompting Derbyshire to ask her if she was a feminist.

7. Mentally ill people at risk of losing benefits

A York University study of data relating to 327,000 people has found that those with mental health problems, such as anxiety and low mood, were much more at risk of losing their benefits than those with physical health problems when they switched from Disability Living Allowance to the new system between 2013 and 2016.

8. ‘Disgruntled builder’ smashes up new Travelodge

Police are looking for the driver of a digger used to smash up the reception and other parts of a new Travelodge hotel in Liverpool on the day it was due to be completed. A video on social media suggests that the man behind the damage, who left the scene on foot, was angry because he believed he was owed £600 in wages.

9. Scots told: ‘Welcome Chinese with pot noodles’

Hoteliers and B&B owners in the Highlands of Scotland have been urged by tourism chiefs to welcome Chinese visitors with pot noodles and to try learning simple phrases in Mandarin. The introduction of direct flights from Beijing to Edinburgh last summer has led to a wave of tourists from China’s burgeoning middle class.

10. Briefing: will NK wage germ warfare?

North Korea’s biological warfare capabilities pose a more serious military threat than its nuclear programme, according to defence analysts in Washington and Seoul.

A study conducted by California’s Middlebury Institute of International Studies in December concluded that North Korea was “accessing the work of foreign researchers to develop its existing biotechnology skills and construct the equipment to produce more biological weapons”, The New York Times reports.

How significant is the North Korea germ warfare threat?