WeekDay AM: 10 Things you need to know this morning
Chagos deal, Mangione faces death penalty, and the link between gangs and fly-tipping

 
today's international story

Trump gives green light to Starmer's Chagos deal

What happened
Donald Trump has formally signed off on Keir Starmer's deal to hand the Chagos Islands over to Mauritius, according to Downing Street.

Under the proposed agreement, Mauritius would gain sovereignty over the islands while the US and UK could maintain the Diego Garcia military base on one island for 99 years, funded by British taxpayers.

Who said what
A Downing Street spokesperson said: "We are now working with the Mauritian government to finalise the deal and sign the treaty."

Getting Donald Trump to agree to the Chagos Islands deal is a "big win for Number 10", said Sky News, and a "vindication of Sir Keir Starmer's softly, softly approach to the unpredictable president".

But the deal remains controversial. Critics argue that the £18 billion agreement unnecessarily leases back a key airbase that the UK already owns, despite a ruling from the International Court of Justice that the islands belong to Mauritius. Due to the ICC intervention, the UK "has come under growing international pressure" to return the islands in recent years, said the BBC.

Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, said the government was "appeasing the whims of left-wing lawyers and activists over standing up for British national interests", and accused Starmer of "surrendering" the islands.

What next? 
In a statement, the Mauritian government said it was "currently working to finalise this agreement".

 
 
today's crime story

US to seek death penalty for alleged CEO killer Mangione

What happened
US prosecutors will reportedly ask for the death penalty for Luigi Mangione, the man accused of fatally shooting United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson in Manhattan.

Who said what
"Luigi Mangione's murder of Brian Thompson – an innocent man and father of two young children – was a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America," US Attorney-General Pam Bondi wrote in a statement.

Court papers allege that the suspect spent months planning the attack, writing in his notebook about a plot to "wack" (sic) a medical insurance executive alongside furious rants against the industry.

What next?
Mangione (pictured above) has pleaded not guilty to state charges and has yet to enter a plea for separate federal charges of using a firearm to commit murder and interstate stalking.

He is currently awaiting trial in a New York prison. If convicted on all the state counts he faces life without parole, but the federal charges could make him eligible for the death penalty.

 
 
Today's mystery story

Loch Ness monster camera resurfaces

What happened
A robotic submersible has found something deep in Loch Ness – but not the monster.

While undergoing trials, the National Oceanography Centre's Autosub discovered a Nessie-hunting camera trap, believed to be one of six put there in 1970 by Roy Mackal of the Loch Ness Investigation Bureau.

Who said what
It was an "ingenious" trap consisting of a clockwork camera with an inbuilt flash that took four pictures when the bait line was taken, said Adrian Shine (pictured above), who founded the Loch Ness Project during the 1970s and helped to identify the camera. He added that it was "remarkable" the housing had kept the camera dry at 180 metres underwater.

"While this wasn't a find we expected to make, we're happy that this piece of Nessie-hunting history can be shared," said Sam Smith of the National Oceanography Centre.

What next?
The camera, trap and developed film will be displayed at the Loch Ness Centre in Drumnadrochit.

 
 

It's not all bad

Schools in England will begin teaching pupils how to spot online spending risks – including in-game purchases and influencer scams – in a new financial literacy program. The 80-lesson package, developed by Oak National Academy, aims to help children navigate digital spending, understand money management and avoid financial pitfalls. Covering topics from budgeting to cryptocurrency, the lessons come as a response to the growing concerns over children unknowingly racking up large bills online, ensuring they're better prepared for the real world.

 
 
under the radar

Organised crime's unexpected link to fly-tipping

Foam mattresses, broken fridge-freezers and unwanted furniture are scarring the landscape in Britain, and the culprits aren't just lazy or irresponsible householders.

Waste has become "big business", said The Telegraph. A "network of organised criminals" is now "operating in the shadows", preying on customers who are "acting in good faith" and unaware that their household waste is being dumped at unauthorised sites.

Local authorities in England dealt with 1.15 million fly-tipping incidents in 2023-24, up 6% from the year before. But although the "junk heaped on our highways" might suggest this is "a country of indolent, thoughtless householders" with "scant regard" for the environment, "the truth is a little more nuanced".

Illicit waste disposal "generates billions of pounds" for gangs, said The Guardian. These range "from low-level criminals offering to take waste away on the cheap and then dumping it" to sophisticated criminal organisations "infiltrating legitimate waste disposal companies and gaining contracts".

The Environment Agency says that almost a fifth of English waste is now handled by criminals at some point in the chain and describes serious waste crime as "the new narcotics". In 2019, the National Crime Agency said it was aware of 20 organised groups linked to waste crime in the UK.

Organised crime's involvement in rubbish disposal has surged "in tandem with the incremental rise in landfill tax", added The Telegraph, and it's thought that "the public purse" lost out on £100 million due to landfill tax evasion in the 2022-23 tax year alone.

 
 
on this day

2 April 2005

John Paul II, the first non-Italian pope in 455 years, died in the Vatican City at the age of 84. He was succeeded by Benedict XVI, who resigned in 2013 – the first pope to do so in 600 years. Benedict's successor Francis, 88, is currently recovering from pneumonia that reportedly nearly killed him.

 
 
Today's newspapers

Firms have been told "to brace" for the "impact" of Donald Trump's tariffs, says The Times. The Mirror says there could be "carnage" when the US president unveils his measures today. Palestinian paramedics, who were shot by Israeli forces, had their hands tied, according to eyewitnesses in The Guardian. The accounts add to an "accumulating body of evidence" of a "war crime". "Charity boss bullied by Meg trolls" is The Sun's headline, as it covers the latest developments in the controversy that has hit the charity founded by the Duke of Sussex.

See the newspaper front pages

 
 
tall tale

Off-key offenders

Buskers aren't everyone's cup of tea, but one judge has ruled that their music in central London is akin to "psychological torture". Global Radio took Westminster Council to court over the noise, which it said forced some of its staff to work in cupboards. The judge in the City of London Magistrates' Court agreed that employees were being subjected to "industrially amplified daily concerts". "While the volume is the principal mischief, it is clear that the nuisance is exacerbated by the repetition and poor quality of some of the performances," he said.

 
 

Morning Report was written and edited by Arion McNicoll, Harriet Marsden, Ross Couzens and Chas Newkey-Burden, with illustrations by Julia Wytrazek.

Image credits, from top: Pictures From History / Universal Images Group / Getty Images; Steven Hirsch – Pool / Getty Images; Andy Buchanan / AFP / Getty Images; Illustration by Julia Wytrazek / Getty Images.