Anglo-French ties were being strengthened today as Rishi Sunak and Emmanuel Macron met to discuss global issues including support for Ukraine and security in the Indo-Pacific, as well as a crisis closer to home.
The summit in Paris ends a week that has seen Sunak attempting to draw a line under debate about his new Brexit deal, with a pledge to tackle one of his five key priorities for 2023 – the number of migrants crossing the English Channel by boat.
The newly unveiled Illegal Migration Bill allows the detention of illegal migrants for 28 days without access to bail or judicial review, followed by deportation. The controversial legislation sets the Conservative Party on a potential collision course with the House of Lords, Labour, the courts and humanitarian groups, and according to some pundits, may become one of the defining issues of the next general election.
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The world of politics is facing further turmoil as Matt Hancock’s leaked Whatsapps continue to generate headlines. But while the former health minister remains in the firing line, questions have also been raised about the ethics and motives behind journalist Isabel Oakeshott’s decision to hand over the tranche of messages to The Telegraph.
To find out how closely you’ve been paying attention to the latest developments in the news and other global events, put your knowledge to the test with our Quiz of The Week
1. Donald Trump’s 2024 pitch includes a promise to do what?
Finish his border wall
Prevent WWIII
Invest billions in AI technology
Slash taxes for the middle class
2. Which US state is considering exonerating accused witches?
Connecticut
Massachusetts
New Hampshire
New York
3. TV producers feared which broadcaster would catch avian flu while filming his latest series?
Bear Grylls
Ray Mears
David Attenborough
Chris Packham
4. Which of the following items of clothing has reportedly become the latest status symbol for men “of a certain position”?
Quarter-zip jumpers
Turtleneck sweaters
Desert boots
Anti-magnetic watches
5. TikTok is being credited with boosting sales of what genre of novel?
Historical fiction
Horror
Romance
Fantasy
6. What kind of alcohol is Brad Pitt’s co-owned brand Fleur de Miraval?
Rosé Champagne
Prosecco
Sauvignon Blanc
Riesling
7. Which Premier League team suffered a 7-0 defeat by Liverpool a week after winning the Carabao Cup?
Manchester City
Manchester United
Chelsea
Arsenal
8. Which country has shelved a new Russian-style “foreign agents law” following mass protests?
Iran
Georgia
Belarus
Jordan
9. Who has reportedly moved into Frogmore Cottage following the eviction of the Duke and Duchess of Sussex?
Prince Andrew
The Duke of York
Princess Eugenie
The Earl of Wessex
10. Which English city is England’s pothole capital, according to a new analysis of local authority data?
Birmingham
Newcastle upon Tyne
Plymouth
Bristol
1. Prevent WWIII
Trump told supporters this week that he could settle the Russia-Ukraine war in “one day”. Speaking at the Conservative Political Action Conference in Maryland, he added: “I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent – and very easily – World War Three.”
2. Connecticut
The state judiciary is considering the move after hearing testimony about a House Joint Resolution that would exonerate the total 34 people accused of witchcraft in colonial Connecticut between 1647 and1697, of whom 11 were executed.
3. David Attenborough
The 96-year-old broadcaster was due to get up close to shearwater chicks on Skomer Island, off the coast of Wales, for his documentary Wild Isles, which debuts on BBC One and iPlayer this Sunday. But the plan was abandoned following reports of a bird flu outbreak on a neighbouring island.
4. Quarter-zip jumpers
According to The Guardian, high-profile fans of quarter-zip jumpers – polo necks with a zip that runs from neck to chest – include Rishi Sunak, David Beckham and Prince Harry, as a growing number of men “ditch the shirt and tie aesthetic”. John Lewis has sold 62% more quarter-zips than crewnecks since the start of the year.
5. Romance
Sales of romantic fiction novels have risen by 110% in three years to an annual total of £53m, according to industry data. Publishers have attributed the rise in part to the #romancebooks hashtag on TikTok, which is the biggest sub-genre within the BookTok community, with billions of views.
6. Rosé Champagne
The actor’s champagne will be the official celebratory fizz at the Oscars on Sunday, for the second year in a row, after taking over from Piper-Heidsieck at the 2022 awards ceremony. Pitt’s bubbly, which costs around $400 a bottle, will also be served at the Governors Ball after-party.
7. Manchester United
The Red Devils ended a six-year trophy drought by beating Newcastle 2-0 to win the Carabao Cup, but suffered their joint-biggest ever loss in a competitive game at Anfield on Sunday.
8. Georgia
Thousands of people attended protests in capital Tbilisi earlier this week, after Georgia’s ruling party passed the initial reading of the bill. The now-ditched legislation would have required NGOs and media outlets funded from abroad to register as “agents of foreign influence” – a move that critics both at home and abroad warned threatened press freedom.
9. Princess Eugenie
Prince Andrew was initially expected to take over the royal residence, on the Windsor estate, after King Charles asked his youngest son to give up the property. But instead, Andrew’s youngest daughter has reportedly set up home there with her husband, Jack Brooksbank, and two-year-old son, August.
10. Bristol
Research by Compare the Market found that 78.5% of Bristol’s roads were damaged. The next-worst locations for potholes were Blackburn with Darwen (76%), Cheshire West and Chester (72%) and Derbyshire (71%).
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Jamie Timson is the UK news editor, curating The Week UK's daily morning newsletter and setting the agenda for the day's news output. He was first a member of the team from 2015 to 2019, progressing from intern to senior staff writer, and then rejoined in September 2022. As a founding panellist on “The Week Unwrapped” podcast, he has discussed politics, foreign affairs and conspiracy theories, sometimes separately, sometimes all at once. In between working at The Week, Jamie was a senior press officer at the Department for Transport, with a penchant for crisis communications, working on Brexit, the response to Covid-19 and HS2, among others.
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