News Headlines - 15 January 2014
Two François Hollandes appeared before the world’s press today. One of them, the statesman and would-be saviour of France, refused to comment on the nocturnal escapades of the private man.
He was allowed to get away with it, more or less, by the 600 journalists packed into the glittering Chambre de Fêtes of the Elysee Palace. It is difficult to imagine the leader of any other democratic country escaping so lightly.
▽George Osborne warns the EU to 'reform or decline' - Channel 4 News
The chancellor will tell a conference on EU reform that the biggest economic risk to the European Union is "failure to reform or renegotiate".
He will also reiterate Prime Minister David Cameron's pledge that the renegotiated terms of Britain's membership to the EU will be put to the British public in an in/out referendum if the Conservatives return to power at the next general election.
▽Ed Miliband to switch focus from cost of living to banking reform | Politics | theguardian.com
Proposals to cap the size of banks and introduce greater banking competition are set to be a central feature of a major speech by Ed Miliband on Friday as the Labour leader moves on from the cost-of-living agenda he set at the last Labour conference.
Labour will try to lay the ground for the new policy agenda later on Wednesday by calling a Commons vote demanding the government cap the size of bankers' bonuses in state-owned RBS, saying it is a national embarrassment that it has been left to the European Union to try to cap British bankers' bonuses. Critics said Labour is uniquely trying to hobble RBS.
▽BBC News - Boeing 787 aircraft grounded after battery problem in Japan
Japan Airlines has grounded a Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft after detecting smoke or gases that may have come from faults with the main battery.
The problem was discovered during routine maintenance, and is a reminder of the battery faults that grounded all 787s for three months last year. The airline said engineers noticed smoke, and then warning lights flashed signalling a battery fault.
▽Japan self-defense ship, fishing boat collide; two in critical condition | Reuters
A Japanese Self-Defence Force ship and a leisure fishing boat collided off the coast of Hiroshima in western Japan, leaving two of the fishing boat's crew in critical condition, the country's defence minister said on Wednesday.
The fishing boat, with four crew, capsized after the collision with the vessel "Osumi" at around 8 a.m. (2300 GMT). The cause of the collision is still being investigated, the Japanese Coast Guard said.
