Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Wednesday 27 Feb 2019

1. Pakistan shoots down Indian jets over Kashmir

Tensions between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan have escalated sharply after the latter claimed to have shot down two Indian Air Force jets in the disputed Kashmir province early this morning. India has not confirmed the claim but said yesterday that it had carried out air strikes on an alleged militant training base in the Pakistan-controlled part of Kashmir. The two nations were last officially at war in 1971.

2. Michael Cohen to call Trump ‘racist conman’

Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer Michael Cohen is testifying before Congress today and is expected to say the US president is “racist”, a “conman” and a “cheat”. Cohen will claim Trump knew in advance that WikiLeaks would help his campaign for office by publishing hacked Democratic emails, and that the president had been in talks to build a Trump Tower in Moscow, according to reports.

3. ‘War’ in cabinet over possible Brexit delay

Senior ministers are “at war” after Theresa May said she would give MPs a series of votes on delaying Brexit if her deal is rejected in the Commons once again, The Times reports. The prime minister made the concession after pro-EU Conservative MPs threatened to resign. Chief Secretary to the Treasury Liz Truss has accused rebel MPs including Amber Rudd of “kamikaze” behaviour, the paper says.

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4. Trump and Kim to meet for Hanoi summit

Donald Trump and Kim Jong Un are meeting today in the Vietnamese capital today for a summit at which the US president hopes to persuade his North Korean counterpart to start denuclearising his secretive state. Little progress has been made on the issue since the pair first met in Singapore in June last year, despite continued diplomatic contact.

5. M&S to start home deliveries via Ocado

Marks & Spencer is set to deliver its food to customers’ homes for the first time, following a planned merger with Ocado. M&S will need to raise up to £600m from investors to help finance the project, which will see Ocado dump its existing partner, Waitrose, when their current deal expires in September next year.

6. London: fifth knife death in nine days

A man in his 20s was stabbed to death near Ilford station in east London last night - the fifth knife killing in the capital in just nine days. The victim was among several people stabbed yesterday in separate incidents in the city, but was the only one to die. Ilford South MP Mike Gapes said he was “shocked and saddened” by the death.

7. Wonga ‘causing problems from beyond grave’

Collapsed payday lender Wonga is damaging the finances of 10,500 borrowers “from beyond the grave”, MPs say. The cross-party Treasury Committee says the firm’s former clients have been “cast aside”, with many giving up hope of redress. The lender blamed a surge in compensation claims, in part, for its collapse.

8. UK’s richest man in £1bn oil and chemicals investment

Britain’s richest man, Jim Ratcliffe, has announced £1bn worth of investment in infrastructure to ensure that UK assets “continue to be world class… at an uncertain moment for our country”. It was reported this week that Brexit supporter Ratcliffe, who owns oil and chemicals firm Ineos, plans to become a tax exile in Monaco along with two of his top executives, saving them up to £4bn.

9. Firefighters battle ‘apocalyptic’ blaze in Yorkshire

Dozens of firefighters are working to subdue a massive fire that broke out on National Trust property near Marsden, on Saddleworth Moor, last night. Around 370 acres are thought to have gone up in flames.

10. Briefing: how do you start a political party?

The 11 breakaway MPs in the Independent Group are holding their first official meetings this week as they look to form a new political party.

The expectation is that the so-called TIG group “may pick a formal leader (and possibly even a policy or two), although nothing has been confirmed as yet”, says Politico’s Jack Blanchard. So what would they need to do to change their official political status?

How do you start a new political party?