Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Friday 1 Jun 2018

Donald Trump’s huge tariffs on steel and aluminium have been
criticised by the EU, Canada, Mexico and top congressional
Republicans. As affected nations planned tit-for-tat tarrifs,
French President Emmanuel Macron told the US President by phone
that the move was “illegal” and that European Union will respond in
a “firm and proportionate manner”. UK trade secretary Liam Fox says
the tariffs are “disappointing” and “absurd”.

Italy is set for a populist administration after law professor
Giuseppe Conte agreed to take on the role of prime minister.
Italian President Sergio Mattarella gave Conte a second mandate to
form a populist government in the eurozone’s third largest economy.
Ministers will be drawn from both the anti-establishment Five Star
and the right-wing League, bringing an end to four days of
political and constitutional crisis.

Torrential rain and severe thunderstorms have caused flooding
and travel disruption in large parts of the UK. Fire crews are
being called out to flooded homes as river levels rise and airlines
have been forced to cancel flights. A Met Office amber warning
– meaning a potential risk to life – was in force across Wales and
the south west of England overnight.

The Conservatives accepted a £50,000 donation from a former
Kremlin aide’s wife on the same day Theresa May blamed Moscow for
the Skripal poisoning, reports the Mirror. Lubov Chernukhin’s
husband is the former deputy finance minister of Vladimir Putin.
Labour and the Liberal Democrats described the acceptance of the
payment as “hypocrisy”. The Kremlin has denied involvement in the
poisoning.

A blood test for 10 types of cancers could eventually allow
doctors to screen for the disease before patients show symptoms.
The liquid biopsy test screens for cancer by detecting traces of
DNA released by cancer cells into blood. It is hoped the test,
described as a “holy grail” by one expert, will become part of a
“universal screening” to detect cancer in patients.

The head of Ofsted will say today that children are starting
their school years unable to speak properly, dress themselves or
even use the toilet. Speaking to nursery leaders, Amanda Spielman
will encourage daycare staff to step in and help children by
teaching them basic skills. She will say the “family culture” for
some youngsters means they do not have bedtime stories or nursery
rhymes.

The president of Ecuador has said Julian Assange’s asylum status
in the country’s London embassy is under threat if he breaks
conditions. Speaking to Deutsche Welle, Lenín Moreno said his
government would “take a decision” if Assange didn’t comply with
the restrictions, which prevent him from voicing political opinions
or intervening in the politics of other countries.

Jamie Oliver has been criticised for using an animated creature
to promote a 436-calorie muffin while campaigning against cartoon
characters encouraging children to eat junk food. After he called
for the end of the use of cartoon characters such as Tony the
Tiger, the Frosties mascot, he released a Facebook video featuring
the Furi Moshi monster character to encourage children to bake
muffins.

Muslim leaders want a Tory MP who shared a fake story from an
anti-Muslim website to be made a test case for how the party deals
with Islamophobia. Bob Blackman shared a tweet by the notorious
website ShankhNaad, which read: “BREAKING: Hindu woman Tina Rajawat
stabbed to death by her Muslim driver Naeem Khan for rejecting
marriage proposal in #Udaipur! #LoveJihad.”

Chelsea football club has halted plans to build a new stadium
after owner Roman Abramovich withdrew his application to obtain a
UK investor visa. The club announced that the £500m project had
been put “on hold” because of the “current unfavourable investment
climate”. UK authorities are enforcing new and extensive checks on
the sources of visa applicants’ wealth.