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Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Sunday 11 Oct 2020

Professor says UK is at Covid ‘tipping point’

A leading scientist says the UK has reached a “tipping point” in the Covid-19 crisis similar to that last seen in March. Prof Jonathan Van-Tam, England’s deputy chief medical officer, said more deaths will follow a rise in cases over the coming weeks. He warned that “the seasons are against us” and the country is running into a “headwind” ahead of winter.

Downing Street switches attention from Trump to Biden

A panicked Number 10 has told ministers to forge links with the White House frontrunner Joe Biden after “writing off” Donald Trump’s chances of re-election. Private polling and computer models shown to Boris Johnson last month put Biden’s chances of victory at more than 70%. Diplomats say Biden remains annoyed by Johnson’s 2016 comments about Barack Obama and “the part-Kenyan president’s ancestral dislike of the British Empire”.

Avocado farm owners accused of murder and other abuses

The British owners of an avocado farm in Kenya that supplies leading chains including Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Lidl are being sued over a series of alleged human rights abuses. The Sunday Times says the accusations include battering a 28-year-old man to death for allegedly stealing avocados, the rapes of 10 women, and attacks on villagers. Former employees of the firm are among the claimants.

Lawyers say Priti Patel inspired armed attack on London firm

Leading lawyers say a knife attack at law firm last month was inspired by Priti Patel’s rhetoric. On 7 September a man with a large knife entered a London law firm and launched a “violent, racist attack” that injured a staff member. He was found to be carrying far-right literature. A few days before, the home secretary had claimed “activist lawyers” were hampering the removal of migrants.

Mexico tells Pope to apologise and return manuscripts

Mexico’s president has demanded that Pope Francis apologises for the Catholic church’s role in the oppression of indigenous people in the Spanish conquest 500 years ago. Andrés Manuel López Obrador is also asking the Vatican to temporarily return ancient indigenous manuscripts held in its library, ahead of next year’s 500-year anniversary of the Spanish conquest of Mexico.

Labour level with Tories after losing three-point lead

Labour and the Tories are neck-and-neck again, according to the latest Opinium poll for The Observer. The two parties recorded 40% support, with Labour’s three-point lead from a fortnight ago evaporating. The public is also split over who they prefer as prime minister, with 32% opting for Boris Johnson and 33% backing Keir Starmer. Some 42% think Johnson is out of his depth handling coronavirus.

Deaths as train collides with Buddhist bus in Thailand

A train has collided with a tour bus in Thailand killing at least 17 people and injuring 30 others. The bus had 65 passengers on board as it crossed a railway track in Chacheongsao, 50 miles east of Bangkok. It was travelling from Samut Prakan province to a Buddhist temple in Chachoengsao. Thailand regularly tops lists of the world’s most lethal roads.

Red wall Tory voters ‘betrayed’ by Boris Johnson

The prime minister has been accused of betraying red wall voters over lockdown cash. Andy Burnham, the mayor of Greater Manchester and a former health secretary, said Boris Johnson could be vulnerable to court action on grounds of discrimination, particularly against people in low-paid hospitality jobs across the north. Downing Street is expected to announce new lockdown rules for the north-west and north-east on Monday.

White House doctor says Trump no longer infectious

Donald Trump is no longer a transmission risk to others, the White House physician has claimed. Sean Conley’s memo is the first update on the US president’s health since Thursday. The doctor said the latest tests on the president revealed there was “no longer evidence of actively replicating virus”, and that his viral load was “decreasing”.

Meghan says she was ‘the most trolled person in the world’

The Duchess of Sussex has described herself as “the most trolled person in the world”. Speaking on the Teenager Therapy podcast, she said the unrelenting abuse that she suffered last year had left her feeling “isolated” and “othered”. She said that what was “manufactured and churned out” was “almost unsurvivable”. The podcast was recorded with three teenagers to mark World Mental Health Day.

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Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Saturday 10 Oct 2020

Johnson to announce new restrictions on Monday

Boris Johnson is to make a statement to MPs on Monday setting out details of new restrictions to slow the spread of coronavirus in England. A letter from the prime minister’s chief strategic adviser to MPs in the north-west of England seen by the BBC states “it is very likely that certain local areas will face further restrictions”. However, experts have told the Daily Telegraph that stricter measures are “too hasty”.

Rashford and Berry on Queen’s Birthday Honours list

Footballer Marcus Rashford and fitness coach Joe Wicks are among those recognised in the Queen’s Birthday Honours list, as both become MBEs. The chef Mary Berry and actress Maureen Lipman are made dames, while actor David Suchet and veteran entertainer Tommy Steele are both knighted. The list was postponed from June so that individuals who played crucial roles in the first months of the coronavirus crisis could be added.

Election debate cancelled after Trump refuses to take part

The Commission on Presidential Debates has cancelled the second debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden after the president declined to take part in a virtual debate. However, Trump has announced his first in-person events since his Covid-19 diagnosis, including a speech at the White House later today and a campaign rally in Florida on Monday.

Barnier calls for flexibility as time runs out for deal

Time is running out for a Brexit deal as the European Union signals that Boris Johnson may need to be flexible on his deadline. The prime minister had said he wants an agreement secured by the European Council summit next week but Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator, has told member states that a deal is unlikely to be agreed in time.

Sunak announces new help for workers hit by lockdowns

Employees who work for companies forced to shut by law because of Covid-19 restrictions are to get two-thirds of their wages paid for by the government. The new scheme could cost hundreds of millions of pounds a month. The mayors of Greater Manchester, North Tyne, Sheffield and Liverpool said the move was only a “start” and more help was needed “to prevent genuine hardship, job losses and business failure this winter”.

Fuel tank explosion heard all across Beirut

A fuel tank has exploded inside a building in Beirut, killing four people and injuring several others. The cause of the blast in the western neighbourhood of Tariq al-Jadida last night is not known but the state-run national news agency said the fire erupted inside a bakery in the basement. Local residents said the explosion could be heard across the city.

Armenia and Azerbaijan agree a ceasire

Azerbaijan and Armenia have agreed to a ceasefire in Nagorno-Karabakh after two weeks of fighting that marked the worst outbreak of hostilities in the region in 25 years. Representatives of the two countries said the truce is intended to exchange prisoners and recover the dead. The latest fighting broke out on 27 September and left hundreds of people dead in the biggest escalation of the decades-old conflict.

Hurricane Delta makes landfall in Louisiana

Hurricane Delta has hit the US state of Louisiana becoming the 10th named storm to make US landfall so far this year and breaking a record that has stood since 1916. Delta arrived in Creole, Louisiana as a Category 2 hurricane with winds of 100 mph (155 km/h). The state is still recovering from the damage caused by a previous hurricane in August.

Darren Grimes investigated by police over interview

Right-wing commentator Darren Grimes is being investigated by police over an interview with the historian David Starkey that he conducted. Grimes has been asked to attend a police station to be interviewed under caution after publishing a podcast in which Dr Starkey said slavery was not genocide because there are “so many damn blacks”. He is under suspicion of stirring up racial hatred

Pelosi sounds warning on UK approval of Covid vaccine

Nancy Pelosi, the speaker of the House of Representatives, has criticised the UK’s vaccine testing safety regime, declaring that London’s approval of a vaccine would not automatically mean it was safe according to the US’s own procedures. The Guardian says Pelosi’s comments appear motivated by concern that hasty British approval of a vaccine might be embraced by Donald Trump for political gain, perhaps even before the election.

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Instant Opinion: ‘can the world survive four more years of Donald Trump’?

Donald Trump at the G7
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Your guide to the best columns and commentary on Friday 9 October

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PHILIPPE WOJAZER / POOL / AFP

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Donald Trump at the G7

Your guide to the best columns and commentary on Friday 9 October


Reaction

The Week Staff

Friday, October 9, 2020 – 2:44pm

The Week’s daily round-up highlights the five best opinion pieces from across the British and international media, with excerpts from each.
1. Ryan Heath on Politico

on the US president’s global threat

Can the world survive four more years of Donald Trump?

“A world order designed to function through slow consensus and underwhelming compromise, on a good day, has had virtually no coping mechanism for the American president’s disruption. In the name of putting America first, Trump has pulled out of one global deal after another, unpredictably reversing course on some of America’s biggest global priorities and moral commitments. He has snubbed democratic leaders and longtime allies while cozying up to Vladimir Putin and other autocrats. While the most important Western institutions – NATO, the European Union, the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the World Health Organization – are still standing, it’s an open question whether they will be able to survive another four years of pummeling and disinvestment by the world’s superpower.”

2. Yiannis Baboulias in The Atlantic

on Golden Dawn’s twilight

How to Beat the Nazis in 2020

“The experience of Golden Dawn – from riding high to effectively destroyed in a matter of years—offers lessons… It had openly sought to undermine democracy, yet it was largely using the tools of democracy that it was defeated – through the justice system, and at the ballot box. The party is financially broken, and in recent months has been forced to close dozens of offices across Greece. At least partly as a result, its electoral support has more than halved since it first entered Parliament, with Golden Dawn failing to meet the 3 percent support threshold required to win seats in 2019 legislative elections.”

3. John T. Bennett in The Independent

on Trump’s growing desperation

As his Fox interview this morning proved, Trump knows he’s losing and he’s panicking about it

“As he ranted and raved as the sun rose in a list of key East Coast and Rust Belt swing states, the president did not exert confidence about a November victory. Trump’s every word, tweet and action since he was airlifted to the military medical facility suggests projecting the kind of strength a high school football coach uses to fire up teenagers on Friday nights. It is the last club left in his reelection golf bag.”

4. Ann Treneman in The Times

on the sound of silence

We’re bereft of all the hubbub of normal life

“I am not sure what the auditory equivalent of ‘a sight for sore eyes’ might be called but you know what I mean. This refers to those sounds of everyday life that we no longer hear in lockdown, or semi-lockdown, or whatever this is (very hard to tell most days). Now the New York Public Library has come up with a brilliantly evocative way of reminding us what life used to sound like, with a digital album called Missing Sounds of New York. Its eight tracks, described as ‘an auditory love letter to New Yorkers’, include sounds from a baseball game, a busy restaurant and (apparently a favourite) ‘The Not-Quite-Quiet Library’.”

5. Nate Anderson on Fox News

on America’s ‘forever wars’

In Afghanistan, as we enter our 20th year, it’s time to come home

“The war in Afghanistan is officially in its twentieth year. It’s difficult to appreciate how so much time has gone by as we remember those first news clips of warplanes launching from aircraft carriers, and grainy night vision images of the first Americans on the ground bringing retribution for the September 11, 2001, attacks. Yet as someone who volunteered for service, fought in Afghanistan, and watched good friends give their lives for the mission there, it’s difficult to accept that 19 years hasn’t been enough.”

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The Week Unwrapped podcast: Banksy, intervention and refugee art

Is Banksy a hypocrite? Could ‘active bystanders’ stop police violence? And are Syrians well served by a theatrical protest?


Analysis

Friday, October 9, 2020 – 12:56pm

Olly Mann and The Week delve behind the headlines and debate what really matters from the past seven days.

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To get six free issues of The Week magazine and a moleskine notebook visit theweek.co.uk/offer and enter promo code: POD25
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In this week’s episode, we discuss:

Heroic bystanders

A growing number of American police forces are signing up to the Active Bystander in Law Enforcement programme, in an attempt to prevent police brutality. The idea is that officers will be encouraged to challenge their colleagues if they see bad behaviour – speaking to them directly but non-confrontationally rather than reporting incidents to watchdogs (or staying silent).

Street art

Prints by Banksy have smashed estimates in recent auctions, and an upcoming sale of his 2005 painting Show me the Monet is tipped to top the record £9.9m paid for another of the street artist’s works last year. But is this commercialisation of urban art severing the genre’s anti-establishment roots?

Refugee art

The theatre group behind War Horse is planning to parade a giant puppet of a refugee girl across Europe in an attempt to raise awareness of the plight of asylum seekers. But is a lack of awareness really the problem, and how might their efforts be put to better use?

You can subscribe to The Week Unwrapped on the Global Player, Spotify, Apple podcasts, SoundCloud or wherever you get you get your podcasts

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US election: what exactly are Donald Trump and Joe Biden’s policies?

Trump vs. Biden
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The two candidates are pushing radically different agendas amid all the name-calling and campaign chaos

Credits
JIM WATSON and SAUL LOEB / AFP

Alt Text
Trump vs. Biden

The two candidates are pushing radically different agendas amid all the name-calling and campaign chaos


Analysis

Arion McNicoll

Friday, October 9, 2020 – 2:18pm

The 2020 election cycle has been characterised by personal attacks, record spending and a disorderly opening presidential debate that at times descended into farce.

Donald Trump has dubbed Joe Biden “the destroyer of American greatness”, while the Democratic contender has dismissed the president as a “fool” and a “clown”.

But what political platforms are the 45th US leader and his rival pushing as voters prepare to go to the polls?

Donald Trump’s key 2020 policies

If re-elected, Trump proposes to pursue an agenda that will focus on “jobs, taxes and the economy”, The Telegraph says.

He has also attempted to position himself as a “law and order” president who will put down the violence and protesting that has gripped the US in the wake of George Floyd‘s death at the hands of a white police officer.

But the rest of the pledges in his ten-point agenda “are a little more loosely worded”, says the newspaper, which points to his pledge to continue to “drain the swamp”.

Job creation

Trump is promising to create ten million new jobs in ten months, and to help launch a million new small businesses.

Eradication of Covid

Trump has launched “Operation Warp Speed” in a bid to swiftly find a viable coronavirus vaccine, which he has vowed to deliver by the end of the year. He has also promised that any viable vaccines developed in the US will be distributed with an America-first approach before being made available to other countries.

Health care

Trump last month laid out his “vision” for health care in America, but according to CNN, his plans “fall far short of a comprehensive proposal”.

The president has pledged to sign an executive order to protect Americans with pre-existing conditions, yet Republicans have spent much of his first term trying to tear down the Affordable Care Act that already safeguards these people.

He has also promised to reduce drug prices and reduce overall health costs, but again, his plans have tended to “lack detail”, says the AP news agency.

Joe Biden’s key 2020 policies

Biden has been in politics for almost 50 years and “is using his long experience in Washington to portray himself as a steady hand able to calm a country in chaos”, The Telegraph says.

Barack Obama’s former vice-president has promised to reverse many of the Trump administration’s decisions, including the Republican leader’s signature tax cuts and withdrawal from the Paris Climate Accord.

Trade

Donald Trump’s election in 2016 “led to the biggest shift in US trade policy” since the Second World War, “as he piled on tariffs and eschewed alliance-building”, The Wall Street Journal reports.

But Biden has promised a U-turn in a bid to “woo allies battered by Trump trade sanctions, rethink the use of tariffs and try to create a united front to confront China”, the paper says.

Energy and environment

While Trump has frequently questioned the veracity of climate change data, Biden is a staunch supporter of the need for urgent environmental action.

Whereas Trump has vowed to continue pursuing fossil fuels and a deregulatory agenda, his Democratic challenger has promised “a Clean Energy Revolution” through which he aims to turn “this threat into an opportunity” by “harnessing all of our energy and talents, and unmatchable American innovation”.

Biden has also promised to achieve a 100% clean energy economy and reach net-zero emissions by 2050, but has not backed the Green New Deal advocated for by some in his party.

Economy

Boosting the middle class is “one of the main pillars of Biden’s campaign”, says CNN.

He has spoken of creating an economy that “rewards work, not just wealth”, and is pushing for a $15 minimum hourly wage, along with plans to expand access to affordable education.

Ultimately, however, more than any “ideological or policy particulars”, Biden’s core promise is “to end the perpetual chaos of The Trump Show”, says The New York Times.

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