Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 17 January 2022

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1. PM ‘was warned about key party’
2. UK arrests over synagogue attack
3. Isolation cut to five days
4. Richest men doubled wealth
5. Djokovic offered early reprieve
6. PM hit BBC ‘to save his skin’
7. Warning on fuel poverty surge
8. Ayatollah’s niece arrested in Iran
9. Elderly couple attacked in Derbyshire
10. Covid drink problems could last

published 17 January 2022

1. PM ‘was warned about key party’

Boris Johnson is facing a new wave of criticism after The Mirror revealed that he attended a leaving party for his defence adviser in the run-up to Christmas 2020, where he also gave a speech. Meanwhile, Sunday Times columnist Dominic Lawson claimed at least two people advised Johnson to cancel the 20 May “bring your own booze” gathering. He said Johnson had been warned that the invitation to staff made it clear that the event was to be a party, questioning the credibility of the PM’s claim in the Commons that he thought it was a work event.

Two teenagers have been arrested in England as part of the investigation into a hostage incident at a synagogue in the US on Saturday. Malik Faisal Akram, a 44-year-old British citizen from Blackburn, was shot dead after a standoff with police in Colleyville, Texas. Greater Manchester Police said the two teenagers were arrested “as part of the ongoing investigation into the attack” and were being held in custody. US President Joe Biden called the hostage-taking an “act of terror”.

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From today, the minimum self-isolation period for people testing positive for Covid-19 in England has been cut to five full days following a review of the medical evidence, to help ease staff shortages. The Times said that face masks are likely to remain a legal requirement on public transport and in indoor spaces, but work from home guidance and vaccine passports are set to be scrapped at the end of the month.

The world’s ten richest men have more than doubled their collective fortunes since March 2020, according to Oxfam. Danny Sriskandarajah, the charity’s chief executive, said “something is deeply flawed with our economic system” because “there’s been a new billionaire created almost every day during this pandemic” while “99% of the world’s population are worse off because of lockdowns” and 160m more people have been “pushed into poverty”.

Novak Djokovic could return to Australia sooner than expected following his deportation, the country’s prime minister said. The tennis star was deported on Sunday after losing a visa battle. Although Australia’s immigration laws dictate that Djokovic cannot be granted another visa for three years, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he could be allowed entry sooner under the “right circumstances”. This means the 34-year-old could potentially take part in the Australian Open tournament next year.

Johnson has been accused of targeting the BBC in what The Mirror described as a “desperate bid to save his own career”. After the culture secretary Nadine Dorries announced that the BBC licence fee will be abolished in 2027 and the broadcaster’s funding frozen for the next two years, Lucy Powell, the shadow culture secretary, said “the prime minister thinks those reporting on his rule-breaking should pay consequences, whilst he gets off free”. Ian Murray, the shadow Scottish secretary, described the announcement as “a last-ditch attempt [by Johnson] to save his failing premiership”.

A study has found that millions of families in England will be forced into fuel poverty overnight when energy bills soar this April. The Resolution Foundation said the number of households who will find the bills unaffordable is to treble to 6.3m when the price cap lifts. Nigel Pocklington, chief executive of Good Energy, a green energy company, said ministers had a “burning deadline” in the next three weeks to decide how to offset the rise in bills.

Security forces in Iran have arrested the niece of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei after she spoke out in favour of the ousted pro-Western royal family. Farideh Moradkhani was detained outside her house and taken to the Evin prison, according to human rights activists. The Telegraph said the 35-year-old has been a “thorn in the side” of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s family for many years, campaigning for liberal causes that “rub against the strict theocracy imposed on the nation by her uncle”.

A murder investigation has been launched after an 86-year-old woman was killed and her 88-year-old husband was left fighting for his life after being injured at their home in the Derbyshire village of Langwith Junction. Neighbours said the couple, named locally as Freda and Ken Walker, were “devoted to each other”. Police have cordoned off the couple’s home, which backs onto several allotments. A spokesperson warned residents to lock their doors and windows while officers are continuing to hunt for the killer.

An expert said millions of Britons have developed drink-related problems during the Covid pandemic. Drinking at home “can go on for hours” and people are not aware of how much they’ve drunk because “the drinks are not coming in units”, said Professor Julia Sinclair of the addictions faculty at the Royal College of Psychiatrists. She said drink-related problems caused by the crisis could continue for five years because “people won’t just suddenly flip back to where they were – none of us suddenly flips back”.

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