News diary 25 April-1 May: TalkTV launch, Boris Becker sentenced for bankruptcy offences and New Zealand reopens

Piers Morgan studio TalkTV — Piers Morgan Uncensored studio in Ealing. Picture: TalkTV

Foresight News rounds up the key events that need to be in your news diary this week…

MONDAY

TalkTV, the latest attempt by Rupert Murdoch to disrupt the UK media landscape, launches tonight with a slate of big names and the promise of a bombshell interview to lure viewers in. The channel has hired several familiar faces, including longtime Sun political editor Tom Newton Dunn, former GB News presenter Daisy McAndrew, and ex-GMB host Piers Morgan.

Morgan’s inaugural primetime show, Piers Morgan Uncensored, features an exclusive interview with former US President Donald Trump that reportedly shows Trump abruptly leaving the interview following a tense exchange over the 2020 US Election. Trump’s communications team has claimed the promo video was “deceptively edited”.

[Read more: Everything you need to know about TalkTV]

Earnings season continues with tech giants, drugmakers and more among companies reporting Q1 results this week. Firms to look out for include Tamiflu manufacturer Roche (Monday), Google parent Alphabet Inc. and Microsoft (Tuesday), Facebook owner Meta (Wednesday), Elon Musk target Twitter, Amazon and Apple (Thursday) and Covid vaccine maker AstraZeneca (Friday).

TUESDAY

Serving Metropolitan Police Officer David Carrick goes on trial at Saint Albans Crown Court, charged with a series of sex offences. Carrick, who served in the parliamentary and diplomatic protection unit, faces counts including rape, sexual assault, and coercive and controlling behaviour against a total of 11 women. A previous hearing at the Old Bailey heard the offences are alleged to have taken place over a 17-year period.

The UEFA Champions League enters the semi-final stage with English champions Manchester City taking on Real Madrid on Tuesday at the Etihad as they attempt to reach the final for a second consecutive year. City comes into the tie against a rampant Madrid side with potential injuries to defenders Nathan Ake and John Stones and Kyle Walker already ruled out. Premiership rivals Liverpool face Spanish underdogs Villarreal at Anfield on Wednesday.

WEDNESDAY

Former chief Brexit negotiator Lord Frost delivers what is sure to be a significant intervention on the Northern Ireland Protocol in a speech to the Policy Exchange think tank. Frost continues to insist that the Protocol must be re-negotiated in order to deliver the promised benefits of Brexit, and this speech comes just days after a ministerial-level threat to unilaterally change the terms of the agreement.

The Supreme Court hands down its judgment in a legal challenge to the government’s Voter ID pilot schemes which ran during the May 2019 local elections. As part of the pilot, voters were not allowed entry to polling booths unless they were in possession of a physical form of identification. The case has been brought by retired voluntary worker Neil Coughlan, who argues the requirement to produce ID will ultimately lead to members of the electorate being denied the right to vote.

THURSDAY

The CBI brings together political leaders from Northern Ireland for an in-person audience in Belfast to discuss the parties’ various ambitions for the country’s economy after next month’s elections. Economic output in Northern Ireland was positive in the last quarter, though it increased at a slower rate than before the pandemic, and both the DUP and Sinn Fein have promised higher growth in their manifestos.

Back in Westminster, Trade Secretary Anne-Marie Trevelyan is scheduled to face a grilling from MPs on the International Trade Committee on the Government’s free trade agreement (FTA) with Australia. The deal, which was signed last December amid claims it will unlock £10.4 billion of additional trade, has particular symbolic importance as the first “from scratch” trade agreement of the post-Brexit era. However, farming groups have expressed concerns that their Australian counterparts, who face lower environmental and animal welfare standards, will be able to undercut British farmers.

FRIDAY

Former tennis star Boris Becker is sentenced at Southwark Crown Court after being convicted of four offences under the Insolvency Act. Becker was found guilty earlier this month of charges including removal of property, concealing debt and failing to disclose estate. The former Wimbledon champion’s case related to his 2017 bankruptcy, though he was cleared of a further 20 alleged offences following a trial.

In New York, sentencing takes place in the case of Alexanda Kotey, one of the so-called ISIS ‘Beatles’ who pleaded guilty in September last year to multiple terror offences relating to the murders of American hostages Kayla Mueller, James Foley, Steven Sotloff and Peter Kassig in Syria. Kotey changed his plea after an agreement with the US Department of Justice that he would not face the death penalty if found guilty; he is now expected to be given a life sentence.

SATURDAY

The women’s undisputed lightweight boxing champion Katie Taylor fights unified featherweight champion Amanda Serrano at Madison Square Gardens in New York, marking the first time a women’s match has taken top billing at the iconic venue. The Irishwoman is ranked as one of the world’s best female boxers and has said she considers the bout to be the biggest fight in female boxing history.

SUNDAY

For the first time since the early days of the pandemic, Britons will be able to visit New Zealand as part of the gradual easing of border controls in the country. New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern imposed the toughest border restrictions of any country in the world back in March 2020 and received widespread praise early on for her management of the crisis. However, she was ultimately forced to abandon her “zero Covid” strategy amid the spread of the hyper contagious Delta variant.

The news diary is provided in association with Foresight News.