What You Need To Know

The UK is heading for a long deep recession with grim predictions by the Bank of England of soaring costs across the board. The dreadful forecast 
places huge pressure on the next prime minister to do more to not just improve the lives of millions, but do all they can to protect them. So how does this increased economic threat affect the two candidates fighting in The Race For Number 10? Will they...

Ayman al-Zawahiri helped Osama bin Laden plan the 9/11 attacks and was among America’s most wanted men - until the US tracked the al-Qaeda leader to a safe house in Kabul and took him out with a drone strike. So what could be the repercussions of his death? And more than two decades on from the attacks on the Twin Towers where does the terror group sit now among the world’s biggest threats? Global...

From gas to grain, the impact of the Russian war in Ukraine goes well beyond the brutal bombardment of its neighbour’s cities and towns - and affects us all. So how is Russia waging supply wars with the West? What impact are cuts already having? And what effect could Vladimir Putin’s changing aims in Ukraine have once summer’s over and winter really starts to bite? ITV News Political Correspondent...

Rishi Sunak appears to have it all to do if he's going to win over the Tory Party members and become Britain's next prime minister. So from key policy U-turns to his toned-down debate style, can he turn things around? Has Liz Truss defied expectations over her presentation skills? And why are both candidates seen by some Tories to be doing Labour's future campaigning for them? Our top political po...

11 started. Nine have fallen. Two remain. But only one will be our next prime minister. The latest polling of Tory members suggests it’ll be Liz Truss. So how’s Rishi Sunak going to persuade them otherwise? 
And can the new frontrunner survive more public scrutiny than she’s ever faced before? Entertainment Reporter Rishi Davda braves the political spotlight to put those questions to Political Cor...

The next prime minister will definitely be a Conservative - but is the biggest winner in this race Sir Keir Starmer? It certainly looks like the Labour leader will have been watching the blue-on-blue attacks in the Conservative leadership race with glee and noted down some of the many attacks flying around. So where have those brutal blows and media briefings left the current contest? What damage...

The weather in Britain has been scorching and the Tory leadership race is undoubtedly heating up as the five remaining candidates battle for a place in the final two. Rishi Sunak and Penny Mourdant are out in front, followed narrowly by Liz Truss. So is it two from those three? Kemi Badenoch and Tom Tugendhat hope not. So who's briefing against who? How nasty are the attacks getting? And why are s...

Britain is baking right now - and for the first time in our history 40C heat is projected to hit these shores. It’s not a definite but even the sheer possibility has got meteorologists hot under the collar. So what’s the impact of that kind of blistering heat? What measures are being taken to protect people? And what can you do to cope? ITV Weather presenter Lucy Verasamy tells Faye Barker what yo...

The UK will have a new prime minister by September - giving Tory MPs and party members up to seven weeks to select the replacement for Boris Johnson. So is it this going to shape into a battle between Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak or could an alternative upset the current favourites? Are the emerging attacks on the former chancellor justified? And why are the leadership hopefuls so keen to talk tax an...

After weeks of speculation about whether Boris Johnson will survive, now comes weeks of speculation over who will replace him. The Conservative Party is about to elect its fourth leader in six years. Whoever wins, will become the next prime minister. And right now, the contest looks wide open. With their ear to the ground for all key developments, private tweets and Westminster gossip, Daniel Hewi...

***This episode was recorded before reports of Boris Johnson's resignation emerged*** A wave of resignations rocked Boris Johnson’s government - and yet the prime minister remained in office and vowed to fight on. He has now bowed to pressure and will resign. So why did the Chris Pincher issue prove so damaging compared to previous scandals? And who’s primed to replace him? Amid the flurry of resi...

The Horn of Africa’s facing its worst ever hunger crisis. And many are blaming Russia's invasion of Ukraine. So why is war in Europe proving so catastrophic for millions living 3,000 miles away? And why aren't more African leaders blaming Vladimir Putin? Having gone to east Africa to find out, ITV News International Affairs Editor Rageh Omaar tells you what you need to know…

When Russian tanks rolled over the border back in February some predicted Ukraine would be toppled in a matter of days - particularly in the Kremlin. How wrong they were. With key targets missed, more than 100 days passed and no end in sight in this grinding, gruelling conflict: just how long is Russia willing to wage its grim war? ITV News Political Correspondent Carl Dinnen and News Editor Emma...

In the latest episode, ITV News Political Reporter Shehab Khan and US correspondent Emma Murphy discuss what comes next for the US after its highest court scrapped the constitutional right to abortion. Does it mean abortion is now illegal? Could other rights be rolled back? And what happens if a woman wants an abortion, but the state she lives in has outlawed it? Here's what you need to know.

ITV News Economics Editor Joel Hills and Political Correspondent Carl Dinnen come together on the week’s second day of rail strikes, where once again workers called for better pay and conditions. Carl and Joel give you a sense of where it'll all go in the next few months, as there are concerns the UK could experience a repeat of the late 1970s' 'winter of discontent', when over 2,000 strikes erupt...

America is at a point of reckoning after two of its most shocking recent attacks. One gave us images we thought we’d never see - the Capitol riots on January 6 2021 - the other tragic scenes that are all too familiar - children left massacred by a gunman in their own classroom. So after all the talk and condemnation - what chance of action or change? From Washington DC - the city where he filmed t...

The first long burst of summer sunshine has hit Britain. So are we set for wave upon wave of heatwaves this year? How high could temperatures get? And how does it fit in with the extreme heat being seen across the globe? ITV weather presenter Lucy Verasamy tells Faye Barker what you need to know about our changing weather patterns and unpredictable seasons - plus why we're more likely to see snow...

Seven asylum seekers were about to be sent more than 4,000 miles away to Rwanda, before an 11th hour court decision meant they could get off a plane that was minutes from departing. The government was determined to press ahead with its controversial plan but an intervention from the European Court of Human Rights has put that on hold. So what is the Rwanda plan, why is it struggling to fly, and wh...

Few have ever seen her compete, and yet trans cyclist Emily Bridges is now one of the most talked about athletes in Britain. She’s at the centre of a polarising, and too often toxic, debate on transitioning that sport is struggling to reconcile. The one voice missing has been hers - until now. In this exclusive conversation for What You Need To Know, Emily sits down with ITV News Sports Editor Ste...

Boris Johnson says his backing by Tory MPs was "convincing" with 59% coming out in support of their elected leader in his hour of need. But the PM's critics point out both John Major and Theresa May got more support when they faced confidence votes in 1995 and 2018. And we all know how their reigns ended. So are the PM’s days effectively numbered? Or can he survive to face the ultimate vote of con...

Pageants, parades, street parties and a pop concert will celebrate the Queen’s historic 70 year span on the throne. Happy and glorious it may be - but will we ever see the likes of it again? And what big challenges lie ahead for the royals in the next few years? From outside Buckingham Palace, Royal Editor Chris Ship tells Mary Nightingale what you need to know about the Queen's Platinum Jubilee,...

The Archbishop of Canterbury has told ITV News that Prince Andrew is seeking to “make amends” having settled his sexual abuse lawsuit and we must “learn to be a more open and forgiving society”. The Most Revd Justin Welby was questioned in an interview with News At Ten Anchor Tom Bradby about whether the upcoming Jubilee celebrations offer the public the opportunity to unite and forgive the Duke o...

Dozens of cases of monkeypox have been confirmed across the UK, a number that is expected to keep on rising. So what are the signs to look out for? How is it transmitted? Could it be deadly? And can it be stopped? Health Editor Emily Morgan urges calm as she tells Carl Dinnen what you need to know.

From wine stains on the walls and drunken altercations to failures of leadership and judgement - the Downing Street parties report is in and it's damning. Boris Johnson says he's humbled by civil servant Sue Gray's findings, but is he? People think he's got away with it, but has he? From the ITV News Westminster studios, UK Editor Paul Brand and Political Editor Robert Peston tell Carl Dinnen what...

For several decades no male professional footballer in England dare do it. Now it has taken a 17-year-old to accept national if not global attention into his life by declaring a simple personal truth: he’s gay. So why did it take this long? What difference could Jake Daniels' declaration make? And can football really be inclusive when the World Cup is hosted where homosexuality remains illegal? Sp...