Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 14 March 2023

1. PM plans mini nuclear reactors

Rishi Sunak is preparing to announce plans to make the UK self-sufficient in energy and accelerate the drive to net-zero carbon emissions. During the next three weeks the prime minister will publish an “energy security strategy”, including the development of miniature nuclear reactors. Carbon capture technology, which removes and stores CO2 created by industry and by energy producers, will also be proposed. “Britain’s dependence on global energy networks” was “exposed by the Russian invasion of Ukraine last year”, said the i news site.

How carbon capture and storage works

2. Police drop complaints

New data shows that complaints about police officers’ treatment of women are highly unlikely to result in action. Only 13 police officers have been sacked out of more than 1,500 investigated for allegations of violence, sexual abuse or misconduct against women in a six-month period, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council. It “comes at a time of unprecedented crisis of confidence in British policing”, said The Telegraph following the Sarah Everard and David Carrick cases. Maggie Blyth, the National Police Chiefs’ Council coordinator for violence against women and girls, said the figures “reinforce the urgency and importance of our current mission to lift the stones and root abusers and corrupt individuals out of policing”.

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How did Met Police officer David Carrick get away with it for so long?

3. May against boats plan

The government’s plans to tackle small boat crossings will not solve the issue of illegal migration, said Theresa May. The former PM told MPs, that, under the proposals, modern slavery victims would be “collateral damage” and denied support. Meanwhile, says The Telegraph, May is to publish a book about “corruption and self-enrichment” at the heart of government in a memoir that “pulls no punches”. The former premier said the book would investigate how public institutions “abuse their power rather than seek the truth”.

Stop the boats: will immigration define the next election?

4. Beijing says pact ‘hurts peace’

The prime minister said the UK, US and Australia will work together “keeping our oceans free” with a new generation of nuclear-powered attack submarines. Rishi Sunak met US President Joe Biden and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in California to announce the next stage of the Aukus partnership plan. The allies will work to create a new fleet using cutting-edge tech, including UK-made Rolls-Royce reactors. The announcement came 18 months after the creation of the Aukus partnership to “counter China’s growing influence in the Indo-Pacific region”, said USA Today and Beijing has warned that it “hurts peace and stability”.

Aukus: does pact herald an Indo-Pacific Nato?

5. Wine price ‘to rise after Budget’

The cost of a bottle of wine will rise by around 45p due to an alcohol tax raid to be announced in tomorrow’s Budget, said The Telegraph. Despite cost of living pressures, the Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, will announce a new system for taxing alcohol, which will mean around 90% of all still wines will be hit with a tax increase and the rises are expected to be passed on to consumers in higher prices. The Wine and Spirit Trade Association said it would be the biggest duty increase for wine in more than 50 years.

Budget 2023 predictions: what will Jeremy Hunt announce?

6. President says Mexico ‘safer than US’

Mexico is a safer country than the US, the Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has said. Despite the kidnapping of four Americans last month, López Obrador said “Mexico is safer than the United States” and “there is no issue with travelling safely through Mexico”. Days after the Texas Department of Public Safety advised that residents avoid travel to Mexico, citing the risk of cartel violence, he said: “In the past few years…more Americans have come to live in Mexico. So, what’s happening? Why the paranoia?” It comes after López Obrador faced protests earlier this month over controversial electoral reforms and his increasingly autocratic tendencies.

Mexico’s controversial electoral reforms heralding a return to one-party rule

7. Warning over ‘Turkey teeth’

A dentist has warned the public over “Turkey teeth” after treating a woman left toothless by a botched dental procedure abroad, reported The Independent. Dr Sahil Patel has warned people to do their research before taking a trip abroad to get their teeth done after he treated a patient who had travelled to Turkey in search of a “Love Island smile”. The procedure to remove and replace eight front teeth in Turkey cost her £5,000 but her implants got infected “past the point of no return” within three months of returning to the UK, and she was left toothless.

8. Councillor calls Wright ‘black hypocrite’

A Conservative politician has come under fire after she called ex-footballer and TV pundit Ian Wright a “typical black hypocrite”. Alexis McEvoy, a councillor in New Forest, sent the tweet, about the former Arsenal star’s support for Gary Lineker, to her 500 followers on Twitter on Saturday. Speaking to the Advertiser and Times she said that her comments had been “taken out of context”, adding: “I’m not really going to comment on it. I've had enough of it, quite frankly.” She has reported herself for an investigation and suspended herself from the Conservative party.

How Gary Lineker furore could spark BBC social media revolution

9. Glitter back in prison

Gary Glitter has been recalled to jail after allegedly being caught trying to access the dark web just 38 days after being freed. The disgraced pop star, 78, was seen browsing on a smartphone in a bail hostel, breaking the licence conditions of his release. As he was driven away from the hostel under a brown blanket, residents cheered, according to The Sun, with one saying: “Good riddance! We don’t want him back.” The singer, whose real name is Paul Gadd, was freed in February after serving half his 16-year jail term for sexually abusing three schoolgirls.

10. Charles to appear on flower stamps

The first stamps to feature King Charles’s silhouette are to be released on a special set celebrating the nation’s favourite flowers. The image of the king’s uncrowned profile features on a collection of 10 stamps with images including the sweet pea, the sunflower and the purple iris. They are likely to be the first stamps showing the King’s profile that will be widely seen by the public. Royal Mail said: “Britain is a nation of gardeners, and a love of flowers runs deep in our collective consciousness.” The stamps will go on sale in April.