The News Matrix: Thursday 7 November 2013

MPs reject Labour call for price freeze

The Government last night voted down a Labour motion calling for a 20-month price freeze on soaring energy bills. The motion, put forward by the Shadow Energy secretary, Caroline Flint, was defeated by 295 to 237. On Tuesday, Ed Miliband said defeat would “show the British people this government is on the side of the big energy companies, not hard-pressed families”.

Disabled fund’s axing ‘unlawful’

Almost 20,000 people with serious disabilities were given hope yesterday after the Court of Appeal ruled the Government’s decision to abolish the Independent Living Fund was unlawful. Five disabled people had argued that there was a lack of proper consultation. MORE

Father gets life for double axe murder

A four-year-old girl was left for at least 12 hours with the bodies of her mother and sister in their home after her “jealous and controlling” father killed them in an axe and knife attack in Leeds. John Miller, 38, was given a life sentence and must serve a minimum of 15 years.

Yasser Arafat ‘was probably poisoned’

The discovery that the remains of the Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat contained 18 times more radioactive polonium than normally seen will stoke suspicions he was poisoned. Swiss scientists who tested tissue samples said they were up to 83 per cent sure he had been poisoned. MORE

Minister’s return is blow to peace talks

Hard-right politician Avigdor Lieberman is free to continue as Foreign Minister after being cleared of corruption charges. Mr Lieberman, 55, is known for stoking racism against Israel’s Arab minority, so his return could hamper peace negotiations with the Palestinians. MORE

New York mayor will push liberal policies

New York mayor-elect Bill de Blasio will push forward a liberal agenda to improve the lives of the working-class and minority groups, after becoming the first Democratic mayor of the city since 1993. MORE

Mirror Group set to face more claims

The Mirror Group newspapers are expected to face 55 fresh claims of alleged phone hacking after a judge rejected an attempt by the publisher to throw out preliminary cases brought by claimants. Legal sources told i that a slew of “high-value” damages claims will be filed imminently against the publisher. MORE

Meteor blast greater than Hiroshima

A meteor that exploded over Chelyabinsk in February released more than 30 times the explosive energy of the Hiroshima bomb. Two independent studies, published in the journals Nature and Science, agree on the strength. The study in Nature states that the frequency of such incidents has been underestimated.