Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 6 July 2022

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1. PM: it’s ‘business as usual’
2. Bills ‘to rise above £3,000’
3. Man charged over 4 July attack
4. Boosters for over 50s
5. Turkey ‘should face charges’ over Yazidi
6. Charles: religious freedom is a ‘right’
7. Bank boss warns of low savings
8. Inquiry hears Grenfell stories
9. Show to consider colonial links
10. Kyrgios charged with assault

published 6 July 2022

1. PM: it’s ‘business as usual’

Many in the Conservative Party believe the “end is nigh” for the PM, said The Guardian, after two of his top ministers attacked his leadership and resigned in an apparently coordinated move. A number of junior ministers and aides also left after chancellor Rishi Sunak and health secretary Sajid Javid quit within ten minutes of each other yesterday afternoon. When asked by an aide whether he would step down in the wake of the departures, Johnson said: “f*** that” and insisted it was “business as usual”, The Times reported.

“All types” of household energy bill will exceed £3,000 a year this winter, according to analysis seen by the BBC. The government said it does “not recognise” the projected rise, which is 7% more than the latest cost of living support package announced by the Treasury six weeks ago. It is also £200 higher than predicted by energy watchdog Ofgem in May. National Energy Action said there are “few signs of energy prices becoming affordable this winter” as the cost of living crisis continues.

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A man accused of opening fire on a 4 July parade near Chicago has been charged with seven counts of murder. Robert Crimo, 21, would be punished “for the killing spree he has unleashed against our community”, said the Lake County State Attorney, following the attack which left seven dead and more than 30 others injured. USA Today said that although investigators have interrogated the suspect and reviewed his social media posts, there is no clear motive for the attack, which they describe only as “random”.

All over-50s are expected to get another Covid booster in the autumn after the outgoing health secretary, Sajid Javid, warned the cabinet about rising infections. As an Omicron sub-variant continues to power a rise in cases and hospital admissions, an extra six million middle-aged people are expected to be offered a fourth dose of a Covid vaccine. The news comes as the World Health Organisation warned that the pandemic is far from over, with more than 100 countries reporting an increase in cases.

An investigation endorsed by top human rights lawyer Helena Kennedy has concluded that Turkey should face charges in front of the international court of justice for being complicit in acts of genocide against the Yazidi people. The report has also found that Syria and Iraq failed in their duty to prevent the killings. The Guardian said it is “widely accepted” that genocide was attempted against the Yazidis, a religious minority group, from 2013 in Iraq and Syria. Geoffrey Nice QC, chair of the Yazidi Justice Committee, described the genocide of the Yazidi people as “madness heaped on evil”.

Freedom of religion is a right that must be “embedded” in all areas of life including “government education, business, the media, and social media, and right across our communities”, said Prince Charles. In his opening remarks at the International Ministerial Conference on Freedom of Religion or Belief, the Prince of Wales said the world stands “at a crossroads” and “there is a choice to be made between totalitarian and liberal societies”. The Archbishop of Canterbury, the Chief Rabbi and the foreign secretary also addressed the conference.

The boss of Lloyds Bank said 80% of customers have less than £500 of savings in their accounts. Charlie Nunn said the lender saw customers with persistent debt problems increase by a third in the first six months of this year. However, he added, many customers have increased their balances in the last few years and are in a healthier position than they were before the pandemic. Nunn told the BBC that credit card spending was up significantly, driven by the return of the travel industry.

Relatives whose loved ones died at Grenfell Tower have gathered to finally hear in public the stories of how each of them perished. The public inquiry heard that one man, Mohamed Neda, 57, who fled the Taliban in 1998, fell to his death, after refusing to escape to stay with four women who were stranded because two of them were disabled. Shortly before he died he sent his brother-in-law a voicemail to say: “I am leaving this world, goodbye.” The latest wave of hearings came five years and 21 days since a fire engulfed the west London tower block, killing 72 people.

The BBC is asking would-be third-party producers of Antiques Roadshow to be mindful of how references to the British Empire will be handled on the show. In a document seen by The Times, the corporation said there was “reputational risk” in discussing colonial history. Last year, Dan Hicks, a professor of contemporary archaeology at Oxford University, accused the programme of glossing over how a Mughal ring “found its way” to a charity shop.

Tennis player Nick Kyrgios has been charged with assault. The charge relates to an alleged attack on a former girlfriend in December 2021. A policing spokesperson in Canberra, Australia, said “a 27-year-old Watson man is scheduled to face the ACT Magistrates court on 2 August in relation to one charge of common assault”. According to the Canberra Times, it is understood that the charge relates to an allegation that the tennis star grabbed his former partner, Chiara Passari. A legal representative for Kyrgios said he is “committed to addressing any and all allegations once clear”.

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