Top story: ‘dangerous, cold war thinking’
Good morning, Graham Russell here with what’s going on today.
The White House has drafted a significantly more hawkish nuclear policy that would create low-yield warheads that were more “usable”, a move arms control advocates say makes a war more likely. The nuclear posture review envisages modifying Trident D5 submarine-launched missiles to deter Russia from using tactical warheads in a conflict in eastern Europe, according to Jon Wolfsthal, who was special assistant to Barack Obama on arms control and nonproliferation. The review, the first in eight years, also expands the circumstances in which the US might use its nuclear arsenal, including a non-nuclear attack that caused mass casualties, or one aimed at critical infrastructure.
Wolfsthal said the review “makes clear that any attempt by Russia or North Korea to use nuclear weapons would result in a massive consequence for them and I think that’s actually moderate, centrist and probably very much needed”.“Where they go overboard, is where they say that in order to make that credible the US needs to develop two new types of nuclear weapons.”
Football sexual abuse – Former football coach Barry Bennell was a “devious paedophile” who subjected boys from Manchester City’s and Crewe Alexandra’s youth system to hundreds of sexual assaults over a period of years, the opening day of his trial has heard. One boy who raised the alarm after leaving Crewe was sent a letter by Bennell saying “football was a small world and that trouble-causers did not go far”, Liverpool crown court was told. Bennell has admitted seven charges of sexually abusing three boys, aged 11 to 14, but denies 48 other counts relating to 11 boys from 1979 to 1991. The trial is scheduled for a minimum eight weeks.
Crisis PR – Philip Hammond and David Davis have appealed to German business leaders to help forge a Brexit trade deal for the financial services industry, invoking the 2008 crash as a reason to work together. The pair travel to Germany on Wednesday, having argued in an article for the Frankfurter Allgemeine newspaper: “The 2008 global financial crisis proved how fundamental financial services are to the real economy, and how easily contagion can spread from one economy to another without global and regional safeguards in place.” Their trip comes weeks after the EU warned that a City deal was not on the table as long as the UK insisted on leaving the single market.
California mudslides – At least 13 people have been killed when heavy rain sent mud and boulders sliding down hills stripped of vegetation by southern California’s recent wildfires. The mud was reported to be up to 1.5 metres deep in places. Several houses have been destroyed, and residents remain unaccounted for in some hard-to-reach neighbourhoods. Most deaths were believed to have occurred in Montecito, a wealthy enclave that is home to celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Rob Lowe and Ellen DeGeneres, said a Santa Barbara county spokesman. At least 25 people have been injured.
Fired and fury? – Steve Bannon and Breitbart News have parted ways in the wake of his explosive comments about Donald Trump and his son in Michael Wolff’s book Fire and Fury. His remarks led Trump to call him “Sloppy Steve” and White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Breitbart should “consider” ousting Bannon. Announcing the departure, Breitbart quoted Bannon as saying. “I’m proud of what the Breitbart team has accomplished in so short a period of time in building out a world-class news platform.”
Better to be left holding the baby – Pacific walruses and Indian flying foxes have been found to prefer keeping offspring on the left hand side, just like we do, suggesting an ancient origin to the bias. One theory is that it optimises processing of social information, because what we see in our left field of vision is processed in the right hemisphere of our brains, which controls recognition of faces and emotions.
Lunchtime read: the addictive qualities of ‘slow TV’
A three-hour program featuring a train travelling through outback Australia is either an award winner or “like watching paint dry” depending on who you ask. It is indisputable, however, that the experimental documentary The Ghan has become TV channel SBS’s most-watched program of the past 12 months, showing that Australians have got on board with the Norwegian-pioneered concept of slow TV. The idea has become increasingly popular across Europe, with meditative, marathon documentaries such as an eight-hour broadcast of a fireplace, or 12 hours of a sweater being knitted. SBS has confirmed an extended 17-hour cut of the 54-hour train trip from Alice Springs and Katherine on what is the world’s longest passenger train.
Sport
Manchester City have had to fight through their semi-final first leg of the Carabao Cup, emerging 2-1 victors over Bristol City with an Aguero 91st-minute winner. The club have also made a £20m offer to Alexis Sánchez, who faces an uncertain future at Arsenal. The Football Association’s chief executive, Martin Glenn, suggested female footballers might be less tolerant of “banter” than their male counterparts on the day the governing body announced plans to adopt the “Rooney rule” in an attempt to improve inclusivity. Joe Marler has been ruled out of England’s first two Six Nations matches against Italy and Wales after receiving a six-week suspension. And, as the Boston Celtics prepare to play in London, Jaylen Brown tells Donald McRae about race, the NBA and the death of his friend.
Business
The National Audit Office has criticised the government’s management of the UK’s largest rail franchise, saying policy decisions had had a negative impact upon millions of passengers. Travellers on the Thameslink, Southern and Great Northern franchise had suffered the worst disruption on the network since services began in September 2014, the NAO said.
The World Bank has warned financial markets could be vulnerable in the event of sharply higher interest rates triggered by better than expected growth in the global economy this year.
The pound is buying $1.352 and €1.132
The papers
It is a Monday-like variety of front pages today, with the biggest theme being a picture of Meghan Markle visiting a youth radio station in Brixton and looking what is described as blushing, happy or bashful.
The Guardian goes with its exclusive from Julian Borger on the latest draft of the US nuclear posture review which advocates developing low-yield but more usable warheads. Picture story is the former football coach who is accused of hundreds of instances of child sexual abuse.
The Times says cancer patients are facing chemotherapy delays and the terminally ill cuts to their treatment because of a chronic shortage of specialist nurses. Meghan Markle looms large but there is room for a story about the 5p plastic bag levy being extended to include small shops.
The FT and Telegraph look to Brexit for their inspiration. The FT says the EU is warning a host of industries of a bleak future in the event of a no-deal Brexit. The Telegraph says Germany’s Angela Merkel is against British plans for a “managed divergence” Brexit trade deal. Markle gives us a big smile.
The Express warns of a pensions crisis after a report found millions are living on a state pension of £7,000 a year.
The Mirror focuses on the inquest into the death of Lady Lucan, reporting that she took at fatal overdose after wrongly self-diagnosing Parkinson’s disease. “Lady Lucan: the final tragedy” is the headline. The i says “Pay row women silenced by BBC” in reference to the Carrie Gracie gender pay dispute.
The Mail goes with “Massacre of the middle-aged men” over Theresa May’s appointment of women and people from ethnic minorities in her reshuffle.
The Sun splashes with “Code of toad hall”. The story is about May’s promise that “perv” ministers will face sack at the slightest hint of inappropriate behaviour.
For more news: www.theguardian.com
Sign up
The Guardian Morning Briefing is delivered to thousands of inboxes bright and early every weekday. If you are not already receiving it by email, you can sign up here.