Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 11 September 2022

1. Crowds to line Queen’s coffin’s route

Thousands of people are expected to line the route as the Queen’s coffin makes the six-hour journey from Balmoral to Edinburgh today. It will rest at Edinburgh’s Holyroodhouse - the monarch’s official Scottish residence - to allow staff to pay their respects, then move to the city’s St Giles Cathedral on Monday. A bank holiday across the UK has been approved by King Charles III for Monday 19 September, the day of the funeral of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

2. Surprise appearance from royal couples

William, Kate, Harry and Meghan made an unexpected joint appearance at Windsor Castle yesterday to greet well-wishers during the second day of national mourning. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex arrived with the Prince and Princess of Wales at Cambridge Gate in what is thought to be the first time the couples have been seen in public together since March 2020. Both couples, who were dressed in all black, then spent 40 minutes speaking to members of the public.

3. Kaba family demand suspension

The family of Chris Kaba has called for the immediate suspension of the Metropolitan police officer involved in his fatal shooting. The 24-year-old was shot dead by a firearms officer in Streatham, south London, on Monday evening. The Independent Office for Police Conduct has launched a homicide investigation into his death. Yesterday, thousands of protesters marched through Whitehall demanding justice for Kaba. Sky News has apologised after it reported that the march was a procession in support of the Queen.

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4. Truss’ energy support ‘not enough’

Most voters think Liz Truss’s plan to cap energy bills does not go far enough, according to a new poll. The new PM has promised to control prices so that a typical household pays no more than £2,500 a year but a survey by YouGov found that just 24% of people believe the policy provides the right amount of help, with 56% saying it is too little. Meanwhile, British Gas owner Centrica plans to voluntarily cap soaring profits in a bid to defuse public outrage.

5. ‘Significant’ Ukrainian advances

Moscow’s forces have withdrawn from key eastern towns, as a Ukrainian counter-attack makes further gains. President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said Ukraine’s armed forces have retaken around 2,000 square kilometres (770 square miles) of territory from Russian forces since their surprise north-eastern counteroffensive began. The Ukrainian advances - if held - would be “the most significant since Russia withdrew from areas around Kyiv in April,” said the BBC.

6. Home Office told to watch trashy TV

The new home secretary has told Home Office officials she wants to ban all small boats crossing the Channel and told departmental staff to watch “trashy TV” to help their “mental wellbeing”. A source said Suella Braverman specifically suggested that staff watched Channel 4’s Married at First Sight and First Dates. She reportedly said: “It’s important for people to look after their wellbeing. Best antidote is trashy TV.” A civil service source said her ambition to stop all boat crossings is “pie in the sky”.

7. Cancer’s link with pollution discovered

Scientists have discovered how air pollution causes lung cancer in “groundbreaking research that promises to rewrite our understanding of the disease,” said The Observer. Prof Charles Swanton of the Francis Crick Institute said the findings outline how fine particulates contained in car fumes “awaken” dormant mutations in lung cells and tip them into a cancerous state. He said the study is a “wake-up call” about the damaging impact of pollution on human health.

8. Hong Kong therapists jailed

Five speech therapists in Hong Kong have been jailed for 19 months after being found guilty of publishing “seditious” children’s books. Authorities argued that the books - about sheep trying to hold back wolves from their village – were a metaphor for Hong Kong and the Beijing government. Lorie Lai, Melody Yeung, Sidney Ng, Samuel Chan and Marco Fong were found guilty of “conspiracy to print, publish, distribute, display and/or reproduce seditious publications”. The judge called the defendants’ actions “a brainwashing exercise”.

9. Fresh arrest in Pratt-Korbel case

A 37-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender after the death of Olivia Pratt-Korbel. The nine-year-old girl was shot by a gunman who chased another man into her Liverpool home on 22 August. The latest suspect, from West Derby in Liverpool, is the ninth arrest in the investigation. Nobody has yet been charged over Olivia’s death. The schoolgirl’s funeral is due to take place in Dovecot on 15 September.

10. Cause of Danesh’s death announced

The pop star Darius Campbell Danesh died as a result of accidental inhalation of chloroethane, a medical examiner has ruled. The former Popstars and Pop Idol contestant was discovered dead in his apartment in Rochester, Minnesota, on 11 August. An autopsy found “toxic effects of chloroethane” as well as “suffocation” as contributing factors. His death was ruled an accident. He had been suffering from chronic pain at the time of his death, following a car accident in 2010 that left him with a broken neck.