Ten Things You Need to Know Today: 14 September 2023

1. Labour plans asylum response

People smuggling should be treated "on a par" with terrorism, Keir Starmer has said.  The Labour leader will seek a new agreement with the EU's policing body, Europol, during a trip to The Hague, and he hopes the deal will include a replacement for the EU's live police data and intelligence-sharing system. The Telegraph said Labour is considering taking a share of asylum seekers reaching Europe as part of a deal in which the EU would "take back" asylum seekers who entered the UK illegally after crossing the Channel.

Does Labour now have the upper hand on immigration?

2. Sunak denies hospital claim

There were warnings of a "catastrophic" risk to patient safety after Rishi Sunak blocked plans to rebuild five hospitals "riddled with crumbling concrete" three years ago, claimed The Guardian. Only two of the seven hospital rebuilding projects requested by the Department for Health were signed off by the Treasury at the 2020 spending review when Sunak was chancellor. The hospitals include Frimley Park hospital, in Surrey and the Queen Elizabeth hospital in King’s Lynn, Norfolk. A government spokesperson said the claims are "untrue" and "the funding was not rejected by the Treasury".

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The RAAC concrete crisis: fears spread to hospitals, homes and theatres

3. Sharif's relatives arrested

Sara Sharif's father, stepmother and uncle have all been arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of the 10-year-old. Surrey Police said the relatives were arrested at Gatwick airport on suspicion of murder "after disembarking a flight from Dubai". They were taken to Guildford police station. Sara's body was found at her home in Woking in August. The three adults, who lived with her, left the UK for Pakistan the day before police found Sara's body, reported the BBC.

Sara Sharif 'seen with injuries at school' before her death

4. 'Mild' recession may have started

The economy shrank "surprisingly sharply" in July, said The Independent, as retailers and construction projects were "knocked by wet weather", sparking "fresh fears of a recession". Although analysts had forecast a 0.2% decline in gross domestic product, official data showed it contracted by 0.5%. Experts said that Britain was "walking a tightrope" and some went as far as saying a mild recession may have already begun. Jeremy Hunt insisted that there were "reasons to be confident" about the future, but Labour described it as another "dismal day" for the economy.

Inflation crisis: is a recession the only answer?

5. Kim and Putin hail 'comradeship'

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and Vladimir Putin met in Russia for about five hours, according to Russian media. The pair "hailed one another" as the war in Ukraine continues, glorifying their "comradeship" as Western sanctions against both of their nations persist, said Al Jazeera. Putin said later that they discussed "possibilities" for military cooperation, and indicated he would help Pyongyang develop satellites. Washington believes Moscow is attempting to buy weapons to support its war on Ukraine.

Inside the luxury bulletproof train taking Kim Jong Un to Russia

6. Cash bounces back

Payments made with cash rose for the first time in a decade last year as consumers grappled with the cost of living crisis. Revealing that the number of cash transactions went up by around 400,000 to 6.4 billion last year, industry body UK Finance said the increase came as more people relied on notes and coins to help them budget as prices rose. "It's something we do tend to see in times of falling consumer confidence and economic uncertainty," said a spokesperson. However, the number is "still dwarfed" by debit card use, which accounted for half of all payments, its highest ever level, noted the BBC.

The pros and cons of ditching cash

7. Met pays out to vigil women

The Metropolitan Police has paid settlements to two women arrested at the 2021 Clapham Common vigil for Sarah Everard, who was murdered by an officer. Dania Al-Obeid and Patsy Stevenson and took legal action against the force over their arrests at the south London protest during Covid restrictions, and "substantial" damages have now been paid, said their lawyers. The Met said settling was "the most appropriate decision, to minimise the ongoing impact on all involved". The new Metropolitan police commissioner, Mark Rowley, will hope the settlement "draws a line under one of the darkest periods of the Met's recent history", said The Guardian.

8. Smaller population 'positive'

Population growth will lead to a decline in living standards, said the chief forecaster of the government’s spending watchdog. Although the Office for Budget Responsibility has previously said that lower birth rates and longer life expectancy would create a £250bn hole in government finances by the mid-2070s, the OBR's Prof David Miles CBE has now said that dwindling populations could be positive for leading economies. Forecasters said that by 2070, the total population figure will be around one million lower, at 66 million.

What declining birth rates mean for our future

9. Spain sexism row deepens

Police in Spain have arrested a man on suspicion of sexually assaulting a journalist after he allegedly groped her while she was live on TV. Isa Balado was reporting on a robbery in Madrid when the man walked up and appeared to touch her bottom. When confronted, he denied touching her but as he walked away, he tried to tickle her head. This episode comes amid a "sexism row in Spain", said the BBC, which was sparked by the former Spanish FA president Luis Rubiales kissing World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso on the lips.

Luis Rubiales and Spanish football’s MeToo moment

10. California could open cannabis cafes

Amsterdam-style cannabis cafés are expected to open in California after the state legislature passed a bill hailed by supporters as a "lifeline for the struggling marijuana industry", said The Times. "Lots of people want to enjoy legal cannabis in the company of others," said Matt Haney, the San Francisco assembly member who wrote the bill, "and many people want to do that while sipping coffee, eating a scone or listening to music". The legislation will now go to Gavin Newsom, the state governor, for approval.