The VICE UK Morning News Bulletin

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The Morning Bulletin

The VICE UK Morning News Bulletin

Budget backflip, Dutch declaration, river rights, and much more.

(Photo: Peter van der Sluijs, via)

UK NEWS

Spirit Levels
Chancellor Philip Hammond has defended making a U-turn on increasing National Insurance contributions for some self-employed workers. Writing in The Sun, Hammond said that he and the Prime Minister agreed that the increase was against the "spirit" of the 2015 Conservative pledge. – BBC

Electoral Dysfunction
A dozen police forces have passed files to the Crown Prosecution Service over allegations that up to 20 Conservative MPs broke spending limits at the last general election. Prosecutors will soon decide whether to charge the MPs or their agents. – Guardian

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Too Little Too Late
A parliamentary inquiry has warned that suicide prevention services are stalling due to a lack of funding. MPs on the House of Commons Health Select Committee said funding for suicide prevention was currently "too little, too late" and called for an overhaul of the government's suicide prevention strategy. – Independent

Scot Free
Theresa May has appealed to Scots not to allow what she has called Nicola Sturgeon's constitutional game-playing to "break the deep bonds" of the Union's shared history and shared future. Angus Robertson, the Nationalist leader at Westminster, has warned the PM not to break what he called her "promised agreement" to consult with Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland ahead of triggering Article 50. – Scotland Herald

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Geert Outta Here
Far-right European populism has suffered a huge blow, with conservative party leader Geert Wilders coming in a distant second to Prime Minister Mark Rutte in the Dutch election. The Netherlands election was being closely observed, considered a litmus test for European voter sentiment. – CNN

Yahoo Serious Allegations
An indictment of four people involved in a 2014 attack on Yahoo Inc has provided the clearest detail yet of the symbiotic relationship between Moscow's security services and private Russian hackers. A US intelligence official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said employing criminal hackers helps "complement Kremlin intentions and provide plausible deniability for the Russian state". – Reuters

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History Repeats Very Quickly
A federal judge in Hawaii issued a nationwide order on Wednesday evening blocking President Trump's ban on travel from parts of the Muslim world, dealing a stinging blow to the White House and signaling that Trump will have to account in court for his heated rhetoric about Islam. – New York Times

Damascus Terror
At least 31 people have been killed in a suicide bomb attack at the main court complex in the centre of the Syrian capital, Damascus, officials say. The bomber blew himself up after police tried to stop him entering the Palace of Justice, near the Souk al-Hamidieyh. – BBC

EVERYTHING ELSE

Contents May Be Hot
It turns out that hot people are bad at long-term relationships. Good-looking people may make more money in their fields compared to less-attractive workers, and they may receive more attention at school and work, but a new study suggests they may have shorter relationships and be more likely to divorce. – Broadly

Rapper'd Response
Donald Trump has hit back at Snoop Dogg for a new music video in which the rapper points a toy gun at a clown named "Ronald Klump" and pulls the trigger, firing a "bang" flag. "Can you imagine what the outcry would be if @SnoopDogg, failing career and all, had aimed and fired the gun at President Obama? Jail time!" tweeted the man who currently commands the world's largest nuclear arsenal. – Atlantic

This One Came Before the Lab-Grown Egg
The word's first lab-grown chicken finger has been unveiled by Memphis Meats, a tech startup. The cultured meat was grown in a lab, and is being referred to as "clean chicken", potentially revolutionising the entire meat industry. – Munchies

Old Man River
A river in New Zealand has become the first landmark in the world to be recognised as a living entity, after a 170-year battle. The Whanganui River, which flows 145 kilometres from the central North Island to the sea, was given legal personhood by the country's parliament on Wednesday. – ABC

The Soundtrack of Your Doom
The soundtrack to the perennially-popular video game Doom played a not-insignificant role in the game's success, offering up a moody and intense score as you blast interdimensional demons to smithereens. Composer Mick Gordon has now revealed how the music was made, and the process will blow your puny human brain clean away. – Motherboard

Warners Chooses Blue Pill
Warner Bros is looking to reboot one of its most popular franchises, with screenwriter Zak Penn in talks to write a sequel to The Matrix. At the moment, there is no direct involvement from the Wachowskis, who created the series, although that may change in the future. The studio is thought to be considering Creed star Michael B Jordan for the lead role. – Hollywood Reporter