Your morning briefing: What you should know for Monday, December 16th

 
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Jason Collie16 December 2019

Johnson to kick off new Government by meeting new MPs

Boris Johnson will address his new intake of Tory MPs today as they prepare to vote on his Brexit deal after his landslide victory.

The Prime Minister will welcome the more than 100 newly-elected colleagues, many of them from former Labour areas across the north and Midlands, to the House of Commons.

Mr Johnson has pledged to bring his Withdrawal Agreenment Bill back before the Commons before Christmas but it is not yet known when MPs will begin voting on it.

Mr Johnson is understood to also be preparing to start a minor Government reshuffle today to fill gaps left by departures before making more radical changes in February.

Tamara Ecclestone devastated after £50m jewellery raid

The burglars broke into the heiress’ home in Kensington, west London, on Friday night – just hours after she had left the country for her Christmas holidays.

Thieves are believed to have broken in through the garden before breaking into safes hidden in the bedroom she shares with her husband Jay Rutland, according to the Sun.

A spokesman for Ms Ecclestone said the socialite was both angry and devastated at the raid.

New Zealand's silent tribute to volcano victims

Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said wherever people were in New Zealand or around the world, it was an opportunity to stand alongside those who had lost loved ones in the tragedy.

Two bodies have yet to be recovered from the White Island eruption site after land and sea searches have so far come up empty-handed. Police have said they will continue looking.

That has left the official death toll at 16, although authorities believe 18 people died.

William: It's important we teach George and Charlotte about homelessness

William revealed how he and Kate teach George and Charlotte about life beyond the palace walls in scenes that will be aired as part of Mary Berry's festive show tonight.

During a visit to The Passage, a homelessness charity based in London, which the duke supports as royal patron, William made cups of tea with former Great British Bake Off judge Berry.

A Berry Royal Christmas also sees the TV star show Kate how to decorate cakes and mix a non-alcoholic cranberry juice cocktail.

Stokes wins Sports Personality of the Year award

Ben Stokes ended a sensational 2019 by claiming the BBC's Sports Personality of the Year prize last night, promptly thanking those who had helped him through a 2018 to forget.

Stokes' sizzling summer performances in the World Cup final and the third Ashes Test helped him seal the public vote for the prestigious award, ahead of six-time Formula One world champion Lewis Hamilton and world 200 metres champion Dina Asher-Smith.

Stokes spoke about his road to redemption after being cleared of affray charges and paid tribute to those who had supported him.

On this day…

1653: Oliver Cromwell made himself Lord Protector, becoming an uncrowned ruler for the next four years.

1773: The Boston Tea Party, in which Samuel Adams and 150 "Sons of Liberty" protested against British taxes on tea and other goods, took place.

1775: Novelist Jane Austen, whose works include Emma and Pride And Prejudice, was born in Steventon, Hampshire.

1850: The first immigrant ship, the Charlotte Jane, arrived at Lyttelton, New Zealand.

1899: Noel Coward, playwright, composer, lyricist, actor, producer and director, was born in Teddington, Middlesex.

1929: The first all-talking feature film was made in Britain. Called The Clue Of The New Pin, it featured a young actor, John Gielgud, as the villain.

2010: Rare first editions of Ian Fleming's James Bond spy book sold for almost £30,000 when they went under the hammer at Dominic Winter auctioneers in Gloucestershire. The book that introduced 007 to the world, Casino Royale, sold for £19,000.

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