The News Matrix: Monday 18 April 2011

Cameron: UN made our mission harder

David Cameron admitted yesterday that the constraints imposed by the UN resolution on Libya were making the international campaign there more difficult. But, he added, the restrictions were necessary.

Seven tourists die mysteriously

Thai authorities have been baffled by the deaths of up to seven tourists since February. The deaths have been attributed to food poisoning, but the victims’ families believe they are linked and want a new inquiry. MORE

Liberal Democrats offer Clegg for £25k

The Liberal Democrats are offering lobbyists face-to-face meetings with ministers – including Nick Clegg – if they pay £25,000 a year. MORE

Police too reliant on ‘kettling’, says Liberty

Civil rights group Liberty found the police too reliant on “kettling” when it observed the TUC march in central London last month. It found that the use of kettling seemed to be a question more of “when” than “if”. MORE

Doctors still fear a thalidomide repeat

Severe morning sickness is going untreated by doctors fearful of a repeat of the thalidomide disaster, which saw babies born with birth defects due to the use of the drug in the late 50s and early 60s. MORE

Nuclear plant crisis may last nine months

The owner of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant has admitted that it could take three times longer than previously estimated to bring the plant under control. Tepco says it will take three months to reduce radiation and up to six months more to bring the reactors completely under control. MORE

Paris and Rome fall out over Tunisians

Tensions between Rome and Paris over Tunisian migrants have risen with France closing its border to trains from Italy. The arrival of thousands of migrants has led to protests from the French authorities.

Man pops the cryptic question in puzzle

An American man has proposed to his beloved by a puzzling method – he put his question in the clues to the crossword in The Washington Post. The plan, cooked up with the help of the newspaper, worked: his girlfriend said yes. MORE

Guidance on food labels to be clarified

Clearer “best before” date labels could help to cut the £680-worth of food thrown away unnecessarily by the average household each year, the Government said yesterday. Guidance will be issued to help to explain better the difference between “best before” dates and “use by” dates.

‘New particle’ may change physics

The standard model of physics could be about to be turned on its head, according to American scientists. Work on a collider in Illinois may have revealed a new sub-atomic particle which could overturn 30 years of accepted scientific wisdom. MORE

Bellydancing cuts wife’s alimony deal

A New York woman who was getting a total of £521 a month in alimony payments because of a supposed disability has been caught bellydancing. The discovery by Dorothy McGurk’s ex-husband Brian prompted a judge to reduce her payments by half.

Britons plan to get away next week

If you are working between Easter and the royal wedding you will notice almost a quarter of your co-workers will not be. A poll by YouGov for lastminute.com found that 23 per cent of working adults have booked extra holidays to turn the two bank holidays into an ideal time for a getaway.

‘Dilbert’ creator is on the defensive

The creator of the hugely popular Dilbert comic strip has been rumbled pretending to be someone else to defend himself on internet messageboards. In some of the postings Scott Adams referred to himself as a “certified genius”.

Macca publishes ‘testament to Linda’

Sir Paul McCartney has picked his favourite photographs taken by his late wife Linda for a new book – Life In Photographs – which he hopes will be a “lasting testament” to her. The photographer Annie Leibovitz helped the McCartney family to select from an archive of over 200,000 images.

The Foo Fighters dethrone Adele

Adele’s record-breaking hold on the charts has been broken. Wasting Light, the new album from the Foo Fighters, is in the number one slot with Adele’s 21 dropping down to number two.