Plus, the film that outranked The Godfather on IMDB
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| PM faces questions over MPs' second jobs plan |
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| | | As Sir Keir Starmer revealed Labour’s position on MPs' second jobs, which would see all but "public service" roles or professions requiring registration banned if they got into power, the prime minister announced his own plans. They are not too dissimilar from the Labour leader’s, in that Boris Johnson would also stop MPs taking on some roles. His plan to prevent MPs from working as paid consultants will be discussed in Parliament later. Mr Johnson will face questions amid a growing backlash from Tory MPs about a lack of consultation on the proposal, and the extent of the restrictions. This move stems from the government’s initial idea to overhaul the system which found Tory Owen Paterson had broken lobbying rules as a paid consultant. It was voted through, a backlash forced a U-turn on the bid to block Mr Paterson’s suspension, he stood down as MP and the process has been shining a light on additional roles held by MPs. Sir Keir claims the prime minister’s plan is a "significant victory" for Labour. The party's put forward a motion for the debate but instead of MPs voting on that, an amendment's been put forward by ministers saying a ban would be a "viable approach". Labour says the government’s "watering down" its own proposals, accusing it of playing "dirty tricks" by using less specific language. It's a pretty clear admission from No 10 that its response to the handling of sleaze allegations has been messy, our political correspondent Laura Kuenssberg says, and, as many MPs on their own side freely worry about, not good enough. Whatever the outcome of this debate, the standards watchdog warns of new Westminster lobbying scandal relating to MPs sitting on informal committees. | |
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| After a record heatwave over the summer - which killed more than 500 people and caused wildfires - and a tornado seen for the first time in five decades, British Columbia in Canada is facing further turmoil from the weather. A deadly storm described by officials as the worst in a century is sweeping across Vancouver. A woman has died in a highway landslide and at least two other people are missing, rescuers say. Thousands have left their homes and road and rail links are blocked. Part of a highway that connects Vancouver to the rest of the country is submerged under water, while a section of another road has crumbled into floodwaters. Shipments of food, fuel and other goods have been suspended via rail at the port of Vancouver because of flooding and landslides. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says he’s monitoring the situation, adding: "We'll be there to help in any way, shape or form." | |
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| Treating cold-like symptoms |
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| It’s that time of the year when you’re most likely to catch a cold or a bug of some kind. It’s probably going to be more likely this year than last because coronavirus restrictions have eased and we’re mixing with other people again. And with that comes a worry from the UK Health Security Agency about how cold-like symptoms are treated. It’s warning of a "hidden pandemic" of antibiotic-resistant infections, saying that taking antibiotics for those symptoms aren’t the answer. While they protect against infection and should only be taken when needed, they are sometimes prescribed to treat coughs, earache and sore throats, and have little or no effect. They could encourage harmful bacteria to evade treatment so serious antibiotic-resistant infections "will rise once again if we don't act responsibly", according to the agency’s chief medical adviser Dr Susan Hopkins. "We do not come out of Covid-19 and enter into another crisis", she adds. | |
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| | | | | Scientists and leading climate experts have voiced concerns about the outcomes of the COP26 climate conference, in Glasgow. Those who spoke to the BBC praised the conference for getting countries to agree to meet again next year to pledge deeper emissions cuts. And they welcomed agreements on forests, innovation and especially methane - from fossil fuel extraction and livestock. But the scientists fear politicians won’t deliver. And they say the hope of holding temperature rises to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels is far too unambitious anyway. The experts say that with a temperature rise so far of just 1.1C, the world is already in a state of dangerous heating, with record temperatures, wildfires, floods and droughts. Prof Sir David King, former UK chief scientist, told me: "Even if we cut emissions completely we’d still be in a difficult place because of the amount of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere already." | |
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| | Roger Harrabin | Environment analyst | |
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| | | | "Cricket’s shame" appears on the front page of the Daily Mirror and variations of those words feature in the other papers too. It follows a testimony from former Yorkshire bowler Azeem Rafiq who told MPs about the racist treatment he faced in the sport. There’s "poison at the heart of cricket" says the Metro and the Daily Express quotes Rafiq saying "racism ruined my career". The paper’s main story is the latest development about Liverpool bomber Emad Al Swealmeen, which leads some of the other front pages this morning. It claims he abused the "broken" asylum system and the Daily Telegraph reports the Church of England faces questions over its role in converting asylum seekers to Christianity, to help them avoid deportation. Read the newspaper review in full here. | |
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| | | Liverpool Bomber was refused permission for asylum appeal |
| | | | Trade UK announces plan to boost annual exports |
| | | | Dispute Staff at 58 UK universities will go on strike in December |
| | | | New York Revellers allowed at New Year's Eve celebrations |
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| If you watch one thing today |
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| If you listen to one thing today |
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| If you read one thing today |
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| Need something different? |
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| If you love films, you’ll know classics like The Shawshank Redemption and The Godfather are up there when it comes to ratings on the Internet Movie Database - or IMDB as it’s more commonly known. Well, that was until a hard-hitting Indian film was released this year. Jai Bhim has surpassed all the other user ratings to take the top stop. Find out here why people are hooked. Readers have been hooked by author Zadie Smith's best-selling books White Teeth and On Beauty, and now she’s made a move into playwriting… by chance. She agreed to take part in Brent’s bid to be London Borough of Culture not thinking it would win. It did, she needed an idea, looked at her bookshelf and her journey began. Here’s more about the play she describes as her accidental adventure. And finally, to an adventure of a different, well smaller, kind. A man’s driving from John O'Groats to Land's End - 874 miles (1,407km) - in the world's smallest car, which broke down after a few hundred yards. Take a look. | |
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| | | | 1997 More than 60 people are killed in an attack on a group of foreign tourists visiting the temple of Hatshepsut in southern Egypt. |
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