Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 6 August 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
- 1. Prison costs rule scrapped
- 2. ‘Chilling’ Trump message flagged
- 3. CCTV car fines in doubt
- 4. Khan calls for Pakistan protests
- 5. Kyiv claims Russian war crime
- 6. Sex offender stabbed in jail
- 7. ‘Disturbing divide’ uncovered
- 8. Tehran ‘biggest threat to UK’
- 9. GP appointment data criticised
- 10. Hiroshima marks nuclear anniversary
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
1. Prison costs rule scrapped
The government has scrapped a rule that saw living costs deducted from compensation paid to wrongly imprisoned people. Ministers announced the change after widespread outrage over the case of Andrew Malkinson, who spent 17 years in jail for a rape he did not commit. His release from prison was “quickly soured” when he was ordered to pay back living costs for his time in jail and told that there would be a deduction from any compensation for his board and lodging while behind bars, said The Observer.
2. ‘Chilling’ Trump message flagged
Prosecutors in the US have flagged a social media post from Donald Trump in a court filing, saying that it suggests he might intimidate witnesses. Writing on his Truth Social site, the former president said, “IF YOU GO AFTER ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU!”, a day after he pleaded not guilty to charges of orchestrating a criminal conspiracy to overturn his 2020 presidential election loss to Joe Biden. Speaking to CNN, former Trump White House Press Secretary Stephanie Grisham said the message was “chilling”.
3. CCTV car fines in doubt
Fining motorists by post using CCTV camera evidence has been ruled “illegal”, reported The Telegraph. The ruling, by a panel of lawyers, means drivers may be entitled to refunds for millions of pounds of penalty charge notices. A special test case found that Transport for London (TfL) breached government guidance by using CCTV rather than traffic wardens to enforce road rules. Data suggested TfL issues about 435,000 PCNs of all types a year, which if paid in full at £160 would net £69m.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
4. Khan calls for Pakistan protests
Imran Khan has called for nationwide protests after he was handed a three-year jail sentence over corruption allegations. The former prime minister of Pakistan was found guilty of not declaring money earned from selling gifts he received in office. Pakistan Today said Khan “urged the people to stand up for dignity and real freedom and break the shackles of slavery” because this was a “battle for their rights and freedom”, which “could not be offered in the plate”. He has been taken into custody from his home in Lahore.
5. Kyiv claims Russian war crime
A Russian guided air bomb has struck a blood transfusion centre in north-eastern Ukraine, killing and injuring people, claimed Kyiv. “Defeating terrorists is a matter of honour for everyone who values life,” said Volodymyr Zelensky, as he announced that rescuers were trying to tackle a blaze after the strike on the Kupiansk community in the Kharkiv region. He described the reported strike as a “war crime”. Russia has yet to comment on the claims.
6. Sex offender stabbed in jail
Disgraced singer Ian Watkins has been stabbed in prison, said The Mirror. The 46-year-old Lostprophets frontman is serving a 29-year jail term for sexual offences, including serious crimes against young children and babies. He was taken hostage by three other inmates on Saturday morning and was freed by prison officers six hours later. He is said to be in a “life-threatening condition” following the incident at HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire.
7. ‘Disturbing divide’ uncovered
“Top bosses” whose businesses have “fuelled the cost-of-living crisis” have “raked in” more than £100m in “pay and perks”, said the Mail on Sunday. Analysis of salaries and bonuses given to chief executives at banks, energy firms and supermarkets shows they “continue to cash in excessively” despite their customers “struggling with spiralling food, fuel and mortgage bills”, said the paper. There is a “disturbing divide” between “multi-millionaire business chiefs” and “hard-pressed families weathering the biggest squeeze on household finances for 40 years”, it added.
8. Tehran ‘biggest threat to UK’
Iran is now the biggest threat to Britain’s national security, believes the home secretary. Suella Braverman fears that the nation’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps is stepping up its activities, following intelligence reports that Tehran’s spies are trying to recruit members of organised crime gangs to target regime opponents. “The Iranian threat is the one that worries us the most”, a source close to Braverman told The Sunday Times.
9. GP appointment data criticised
One in six GPs are failing to give patients face-to-face appointments, said The Telegraph. Despite repeated NHS and government commitments, polling shows one in six family doctors do not provide in-person appointments to all who seek them, with many saying that the doctor knows best about whether a meeting is necessary. Patients’ groups said the situation was “totally unacceptable”. Prior to the Covid pandemic, around 80% of GP appointments across England were held in person.
10. Hiroshima marks nuclear anniversary
The Hiroshima mayor has described nuclear deterrence a “folly” on the 78th anniversary of the US atomic bombing of the city. “Leaders around the world must confront the reality that nuclear threats now being voiced by certain policymakers reveal the folly of nuclear deterrence theory,” said Kazumi Matsui. A “moment of silence” was observed at 8:15am, said the Japan Times, the exact time when the bomb was dropped by the US bomber Enola Gay and detonated over the city.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
All about Zealandia, the Earth’s potential 8th continent
The Explainer The secret continent went undiscovered for over 300 years
By Devika Rao Published
-
A reckoning over looted art
The Explainer Thousands of artifacts in U.S. and European collections were stolen from their countries of origin. Should they be sent back?
By The Week Staff Published
-
A surge in surge pricing
Feature And more of the week's best financial insight
By The Week Staff Published
-
Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 30 September 2023
The Week’s daily digest of the news agenda, published at 8am
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 29, 2023
Daily Briefing House committee starts Biden impeachment inquiry, court rejects Trump's request to delay civil fraud trial, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 28, 2023
Daily Briefing Republican rivals clash as absent Trump tries to upstage debate, the Senate approves a formal dress code, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 27, 2023
Daily Briefing A New York judge rules Trump defrauded banks, Biden visits auto workers on picket line, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 26, 2023
Daily Briefing Congress returns to work with shutdown looming, Ukraine says it killed Russia's Black Sea Fleet commander, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 25, 2023
Daily Briefing GOP leaders pressure far-right holdouts to help prevent a shutdown, Hollywood writers reach tentative deal to end strike, and more
By Harold Maass Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 24, 2023
Daily Briefing Nagorno-Karabakh's Armenian population to leave region amid fears of persecution, Atlantic coast remains under flood warnings from Ophelia, and more
By Justin Klawans Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 22, 2023
Daily Briefing Zelenskyy visits Washington as Biden unveils more Ukraine aid, Rupert Murdoch steps down at Fox and News Corp., and more
By Harold Maass Published