News Daily: Brexit talks and tension in Kirkuk
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-41639756 Version 0 of 1. Hello. Here's your morning briefing: Brexit deal efforts 'should accelerate' Prime Minister Theresa May and European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker had a "constructive and friendly" dinner in Brussels on Monday night - where the main thing on the menu was Brexit, with a side order of how to get the UK's divorce negotiations back on track. Both politicians reviewed the process and agreed to "accelerate" discussions in the coming months, according to a joint statement. However, the BBC's Europe correspondent Kevin Connolly said the communique was a "a masterpiece of uncommunicative communication" and that it "recorded formally that Brexit negotiations are taking place between the EU 27 and the UK - a statement of the obvious that may hint at Brussels' displeasure with British attempts to talk directly to individual member states as well." BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg writes that we should now expect to hear the word "accelerate" repeated across Westminster by loyal Conservative MPs, as they claim there is progress in the Brexit talks, just days after the chief negotiator on the EU side declared a deadlock. Thousands flee Kirkuk as Iraqis enter Thousands of people have fled Kirkuk, after Iraqi government forces took over key buildings, amid tensions over a controversial independence referendum by the region's Kurds. Voters in Kurdish-controlled areas, including Kirkuk, overwhelmingly backed breaking away from Iraq when they went to the polls on 25 September. While Kirkuk is outside Iraqi Kurdistan, Kurdish voters in the city were allowed to take part. Iraq's prime minister has rejected the result of the referendum, which he says was unconstitutional, and insisted Monday's operation was to "protect the unity of the country". However, the government of Iraqi Kurdistan says the vote was legitimate. The US has appealed for clam amid the escalating tensions. Get our morning briefing direct to your inbox, each weekday morning Homeless given one-way train tickets The BBC's Victoria Derbyshire programme has learned that some councils in England are routinely giving homeless people one-way train tickets out of their towns. While local authorities say they do this to reunite rough sleepers with family members in different parts of the country - one man told the programme he was sent to a city he had never been to before. Twenty councils with the highest number of rough sleepers in England were asked - some by Freedom of Information request - how many homeless people had been offered the "reconnection" policy of a one-way train ticket between 2012 and 2017. Of the 11 that responded, 10 said they had bought such tickets, with Manchester City Council saying it had spent £9,928 on reconnecting homeless people in six years. It said it did not keep a record of how many people this involved. Facebook buys app for teens to be nice It's called tbh (which young people know means "to be honest"), it's cost the social media giant "less than $100m" to buy, is nine weeks old and run by four people, but it's an app that essentially enables teenagers to be nice to each other online. Facebook says it has bought tbh because of its polling and messaging features and how it builds "positive experiences". BBC North America technology reporter Dave Lee says the firm's achievement "has been to create an anonymous app that hasn't descended into a cesspit of trolling and harassment - something many apps before it have dramatically failed to do". Our correspondent adds that Facebook didn't want to be left in the lurch over the next big thing like it did with social platform Snapchat, which it missed out on buying, and is the network of choice among US teenagers. 'My #MeToo experience is sadly typical' By Rajini Vaidyanathan, BBC News The recent conversation about Harvey Weinstein has prompted countless conversations among my female friends about where the line stops in these situations, and when you should say something. Do you have to be touched for it to count? What if you are friends with them? When does harassment start, and when does it end? The Weinstein case has shone the light on the appalling practices in Hollywood, but it is of course a very depressing reflection of what women from all walks of life, from all corners of the globe, have to experience on a daily basis. Read Rajini's story in full What the papers say Pink-tinged skies dominate Tuesday's front pages, as the newspapers reflect on the day ex-Hurricane Ophelia came to our shores, bringing with it sand whipped up from the Sahara along with dust and ash from wildfires on the Iberian peninsula. Away from the eerie gloom of Monday, several papers reflect on the impact the storm has had, leaving three dead as it swept across Ireland. Elsewhere, the Times reports on a proposal to limit members of the House of Lords to a fixed term of 15 years, in a bid to cut numbers in the Upper House. And the Sun splashes with a picture of several police officers - in full patrol uniform - enjoying a ride on the dodgems at a fairground. Under the headline "A Fair Cop", the paper says the Humberside force claims it is "skint" and "overstretched". Read our paper review in full Daily digest Childline Charity receives record number of calls from children over suicidal thoughts Catalan referendum Spanish judge remands two key members of independence movement in jail Tube One dead and two hurt in London Underground stabbing Bombardier Plane maker to partner Airbus on jets If you watch one thing today BBC Four: The Real White Queen and Her Rivals If you listen to one thing today Asian Network Presents: Orchestral Special If you read one thing today The police mistakes that sank a murder case Today's lookahead 09:30 Office for National Statistics publishes the Consumer Price Index for September, with economists predicting inflation will peak at 3%. 11:00 The OECD publishes its review of the UK economy. 21:45 Winner of the 2017 Man Booker Prize is announced at the Guildhall in the City of London. On this day 2000 Four people are killed after a passenger train derailed at Hatfield, Hertfordshire. 1980 The Queen makes history after becoming the first British monarch to make a state visit to the Vatican. 1968 Black US athletes Tommie Smith and John Carlos stage a silent protest at the Mexico Olympics to protest against racial discrimination. From elsewhere From 10 days to non-stop: How London to Australia flights have changed (CNN) UK psychiatrists have issued a historic admission of the harm done to gay people by aversion therapy (Buzzfeed) A Michelin star restaurant in Bristol is offering a five-course meal with wine for just £1 (Bristol Post) Rebus and roll: Ian Rankin's new gig as a 'dad rock' singer (The Guardian) |