In this Friday’s Mirror Daily Digest, we’ve pulled together the biggest stories of the day from Donald Trump’s F-bomb about Elon Musk to the latest Easter travel chaos as 20 million people take to the road
Welcome to the Mirror’s Daily Digest, where we’ll be pulling together all the best stories of the day from our News, Showbiz, Politics teams and more. This Good Friday, we’re bringing you the top stories straight from the newsroom, with coverage on Donald Trump’s heated Elon Musk rant to the latest travel chaos as millions of Brits head off on their Bank Holiday breaks.
Our Showbiz team has been closely following David Beckham’s war with his neighbours over plans for a new barn at his Cotswolds retreat. Elsewhere, our News team reported that a hospital is urgently tracing patients and staff who came into contact with a person infected with mpox. We’ve also got the latest on the family of Captain Sir Tom Moore, who have been forced to slash the asking price of their country mansion for a second time.
Donald Trump and Elon Musk fallout confirmed
This morning, our Politics team broke the news that Donald Trump dropped the F-bomb in a heated rant about Elon Musk. Amid mounting concerns over the Tesla boss’ business ties with Beijing, the President reacted angrily to the news of Musk attending a government meeting on China.
According to Axios, Trump told staff: “What the f**k is Elon doing there? Make sure he doesn’t go.” The contents of the meeting remain unknown, but Trump’s intervention comes at a critical moment in the ongoing trade war between the US and China.
While the President seemed happy to involve Musk in crucial government matters as a special employee, officials say this meeting crossed a line. One government official told Axios: “POTUS still very much loves Elon, but there are some red lines. Elon has a lot of business in China, and he has good relations there, and this briefing just wasn’t the right thing.”
David Beckham at war with neighbours
There’s never a dull moment for the Beckhams, and today is no different as David is at war with his neighbours over plans for a new barn at his rural Cotswolds retreat. Our Showbiz team has been exclusively covering the England legend’s fallout after seeking planning permission for the timber-clad structure at the £6m property.
He has asked planners at West Oxfordshire District Council for the right to create an “agricultural storage barn for hay/straw and agricultural equipment”. Meanwhile, angry villager Harriet Jones has told the council in a letter of objection: “This is just the latest in a long line of applications to build new structures on this land, plus a giant lake.
“Why do famous people move out to the country and then clutter up their land with endless buildings and make silly alterations? It makes no sense.” Planners will decide on the merits of the application in the coming weeks.
Easter travel chaos with strikes and station closures
As millions of Brits head off on their Bank Holiday breaks, our News team has been working around the clock to cover the latest travel chaos, with major rail engineering works, strike action, heavy traffic and possible flooding. The live blog has been giving readers immediate updates on the disruption, as nearly 20 million people will travel by car on Good Friday alone.
Meanwhile, more than 300 engineering projects will be carried out by Network Rail across Britain between Good Friday and Easter Monday, prompting warnings for passengers to check their journeys in advance. At Gatwick Airport, more than 100 members of the Unite union who work for ground handling firm Red Handling are expected to strike across the weekend in a dispute over pensions and pay.
They include baggage handlers, check-in staff and flight dispatchers for airlines including Norwegian and Delta. And there are also warnings of potential flooding in the South West with drivers urged to take extra care in affected areas.
UK hospital urgently tracing anyone in contact with A&E patient with rare virus
In other news, a hospital is urgently trying to trace patients and staff who came into contact with a person infected with mpox after they showed up in A&E. Our News team covered the breaking story this afternoon, as health chiefs at Addenrbooke’s Hospital in Cambridge contacted around 30 patients and 20 members of staff whose contact with the infected individual put them at risk of infection.
A spokesperson for Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Addenbrooke’s, said: “We are in contact with around 30 patients and 20 staff as a precautionary measure after a patient with Mpox visited our emergency department on Saturday evening (12 April).
“The aim is to establish factors such as their proximity to the patient which, coupled with known factors like their age and vulnerability, helps determine whether they are offered a vaccine, or given advice around symptoms to look for and what to do. The UK Health Security Agency has been informed and the patient is now isolating at home and under the care of their GP.
“We would reassure patients who visited A&E on Saturday there is no need to contact us – we will contact them if we think there was any possibility of exposure.”
Captain Tom’s family hit by another major blow
Finally, the Mirror revealed today that the family of Captain Sir Tom Moore has been forced to slash the asking price of their country mansion for a second time. The lockdown hero’s loved ones had tried to shift the sprawling seven-bed mansion for a whopping £2.25m using his name last year.
They strategically placed a photo of Captain Tom being knighted by the late Queen in 2020 in an online listing. But when it struggled on the market, they slashed £250,000 off the price.
Now, just three months later, they have cut another £50,000 in a desperate bid to offload it. A source said: “It’s a blow for the family who have been trying to sell the property for months.”
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