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Monday briefing: MPs condemn 'hounding' of Caroline Flack

Top story: Presenter’s death throws spotlight back on media

Morning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and this is your run-down of the top stories this Monday.

Media coverage of Caroline Flack has been widely condemned after the death of the Love Island presenter at the weekend, weeks before her trial for assaulting her partner was due to begin. Labour leadership hopeful Keir Starmer said some stories had “amplified” damaging social media posts about the 40-year-old star, who is believed to have taken her own life, and that he would push for ways to “diversify” the press if he was party leader. The Lib Dem MP Daisy Cooper said Flack had been “hounded” by parts of the media. The cabinet minister Grant Shapps, speaking on Sky News, argued that there was a duty of care for everybody involved in such cases, including the crown prosecution service, which has been criticised for pushing ahead with the assault case. Prominent barristers have also highlighted the strain placed on defendants in domestic abuse cases.

ITV has also been criticised for failing to stand by Flack when the charges were laid as the case turns the spotlight back on tabloid intrusion. The station cancelled its episode of Love Island last night but will air a tribute to Flack tonight. Laura Whitmore, who succeeded Flack as host of Love Island, suggested on Five Live that media coverage had contributed to her friend’s death. Our TV writer Tim Jonze says Flack’s fragility and openness made her the perfect fit as Love Island host. And you can read our obituary of her here.

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Dennis deluge – A record number of flood warnings have been issued across the country after Storm Dennis lashed Britain with heavy rain and strong winds, inundating thousands of homes and causing widespread disruption to transport. Only a week after Storm Ciara brought a similar deluge, major incidents were declared in south Wales and parts of England. Pontypridd, north of Cardiff, was under water and faced being cut off for several days after roads were blocked by rising waters and landslides. Hundreds of flights were cancelled across Britain and roads and railways were submerged, with commuters facing a chaotic journey to work for the second Monday in a row.

A boy wades through a flooded alleyway in Pontypridd.
A boy wades through a flooded alleyway in Pontypridd. Photograph: Neil Munns/EPA

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Japan warning – Japan is facing a deepening crisis over the coronavirus outbreak after 70 more cases were detected on the Diamond Princess cruise ship, along with six new cases on the mainland. Experts say the country, which is the worst affected after China, is still in the “early stages” of the outbreak with 59 confirmed cases along with 355 on the ship. The health system is straining to cope, with a hospital near Tokyo forced to stop accepting new patients on Monday. The outbreak, which has now infected more than 71,000 people worldwide and killed 1,775, could also force the Tokyo Marathon set for 1 March to be scaled down. Chinese competitors have been asked to defer entry until next year. In China an activist has been arrested for criticising president Xi Jinping and in Hong Kong an armed gang has stolen a shipment of toilet rolls as panic-buying grips the city.

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Rogue surgeon – A private healthcare firm is under scrutiny after a second case emerged of a doctor who subjected patients to unnecessary operations that left many of them in pain. Spire Healthcare was already in the spotlight after an independent inquiry into rogue breast surgeon Ian Paterson, who is serving 20 years in jail for mistreating patients. The Guardian reveals today that Michael Walsh, a shoulder surgeon, was sacked by Spire after patients and colleagues raised concerns about his work. An investigation uncovered examples of Walsh harming patients by performing surgery on them unnecessarily or badly. Walsh has now retired.

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Cummings’ ‘misfit’ – Labour has called for a government adviser to be sacked after his controversial views about pregnancy, race and women’s sport came to light. Andrew Sabisky, 27, was made an adviser at No 10 as part of Dominic Cummings’ trawl for “misfits and weirdos” to help him shake up government. Sabisky wrote in 2014 that women should be forced to have contraception to stop unplanned pregnancies. He also claimed African Americans have a lower IQ than whites and compared women’s sport to the Paralympics. Jon Trickett, Labour’s shadow cabinet office minister, said there were “no words” to describe Sabisky’s appointment.

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Ring cycle – An American woman has hailed the “good people in the world” after a ring she lost 47 years ago in Portland, Maine was returned to her in the post after being unearthed by a metal detectorist in a forest in Finland. Debra McKenna expressed her delight at the return of the ring, which was given to her by her late husband when they were at high school. The ring was inscribed with the school’s name, a graduation date and her husband’s initials, enabling sheet metal worker Marko Saarinen to track her down.

Today in Focus podcast

Tom Phillips, the Guardian’s Latin America correspondent, is back in Venezuela a year after the start of a dramatic, but so far unsuccessful, attempt to topple Nicolás Maduro. While conditions in Caracas appear slightly improved, outside the capital conditions in schools and hospitals are appalling – and getting worse.

Lunchtime read: James Taylor on The Beatles, Joni and Trump

James Taylor
James Taylor

We have an astonishingly frank interview today with singer-songwriter James Taylor in which he discusses his turbulent childhood, his heroin addiction and his relationship with Joni Mitchell. Promoting his new album in London, he recalls hanging out with the Beatles (“I was a bad influence”), life in Hollywood’s legendary Laurel Canyon (“It really was a perfect moment”) and, of course, Trump (“It’s like the Confederacy has won the civil war”).

Sport

Mikel Arteta has said Pep Guardiola and Manchester City are “suffering” after Uefa handed the club a two‑season ban from the Champions League and a €30m (£25m) fine. The club could also face sanctions in the Premier League, potentially being docked points, as the ramifications of the ruling reach far and wide. Arteta’s Arsenal team cut loose in the second half to beat Newcastle 4-0 in the Premier League at the Emirates Stadium, while Son Heung-min capitalised on Bjorn Engels’ error to score a late winner for Tottenham as they beat Aston Villa 3-2.

A superb innings from Eoin Morgan reeled in South Africa in an extraordinary run chase that gave England a 2-1 T20 series win. Lisa Keightley’s England will consider themselves contenders for the Women’s T20 World Cup in Australia, which begins at the end of the week, despite the hosts’ status as clear favourites. England fly-half George Ford has predicted Ireland will be firing at Twickenham when the two sides meet in the Six Nations on Sunday. And the BBC has said it will no longer use the pundit Craig Ramage after the former midfielder criticised Derby County’s “young black lads”, saying they needed “bringing down a peg or two”.

Business

The housing market is experiencing its most optimistic conditions for several years after the latest survey suggested the average asking price for a home rose £2,500 in the past month to £309,399 in February, just shy of its all-time record. Rightmove said buyers and sellers have been invigorated by renewed economic confidence, described as a post-election bounce. The FTSE100 is expected to rise by around 0.25% this morning while the pound is at $1.30 and €1.20.

The papers

The front pages are divided mainly between three stories this morning. Caroline Flack’s picture is featured on most of them and her death is also the lead in the Mail – “Flack feared a ‘show trial’” – and the Metro – “My heart is broken”.

The floods also feature strongly and lead the Mirror –“We have lost it all” – and the i – “Storm Dennis sets flood alert record”. The Times splashes with “Europe talks tough on trade” and the Express has the same story – “EU threat of Brexit trade bloodbath”.

The Guardian leads with “Doctor at rogue breast surgeon firm accused of harming patients”, while the Telegraph also has a health-related lead: “Dementia patients dumped in hospitals”. The FT goes with “Vision Fund chief pushes equities vehicle after SoftBank stumbles”.

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