UK: Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Sunday 31 Mar 2019
Police are being handed greater stop and search powers to tackle rising knife crime. Home Secretary Sajid Javid has moved to make it easier for officers to search people without reasonable suspicion in places where serious violence may occur. Campaigners said the move is “disappointing and regressive” and will “further damage the relationship between the black community and the police”.
Theresa May will be warned today that her government faces total collapse unless she passes her Brexit deal. Meanwhile, as clamour grows for a general election, ministers and MPs say the party would be “annihilated” at the polls. Foreign Office minister Alan Duncan said: “If we have a general election before Brexit is resolved, it will only make things worse.”
A teenage Islamic State recruit from Coventry has become first Briton to be executed by the group as a spy. Mohammed Ismail was murdered after admitting that he disclosed the movements of Nasser Muthana, who became a leading IS recruiter and propagandist. Ismail was nicknamed Osama bin Bieber because of his youthful appearance.
Teachers at a London primary school have volunteered to take a £7,000-a-year pay cut to save the jobs of colleagues. As schools across the country face drastic cutbacks, at Furzedown primary school, in Wandsworth, five teachers have agreed to take a salary reduction of up to £7,000 a year – enough to save the jobs of two classroom assistants.
Sir Elton John has supported George Clooney's call to boycott hotels owned by Brunei, after new laws there made gay sex punishable by death by stoning or whipping. Writing on Twitter, the singer joined Clooney in “taking a stand against the anti-gay discrimination and bigotry taking place in the nation of #Brunei - a place where gay people are brutalized, or worse - by boycotting the Sultan's hotels”.
The Rolling Stones have postponed their tour of the US and Canada because Mick Jagger is ill. The band said that doctors had advised the iconic frontman not to tour because he needs to receive medical treatment. The news has led to speculation. The Daily Star leads the way stating there are “fears for Jagger” but the lead singer insists he will be “back on stage as soon as I can."
The Queen has agreed to give up driving on public roads on the advice of her security staff after Prince Philip’s car crash earlier this year. The Sunday Times says the monarch’s decision is “likely to have been a reluctant one”. It is thought the Queen may continue to drive on private roads. Buckingham Palace declined to comment.
The Saudi government hacked Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos’s phone, the company security chief has claimed. Gavin de Becker said he had concluded his investigation into the publication of leaked text messages between Bezos and Lauren Sánchez, a former television anchor who the National Enquirer claimed Bezos was dating.
EU bosses will let Britain delay Brexit again to allow time for a second referendum or a general election, claims The Independent. The bloc has called a summit on 10 April and sources say that in the absence of a credible plan to get a majority for the withdrawal agreement, the UK would be given more time only for an election or second referendum.
The investigation into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann might be abandoned as leads dry up and government funding runs out, says the Mail on Sunday. The Home Office provided £150,000 cash last October to fund the inquiry until the end of this month. Although detectives have applied for a further £300,000, officials last night admitted no decision on future funding has been made.
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