Ten Things You Need to Know Today: Wednesday 14 Nov 2012

Workers across the European Union staged a series of strikes and street protests today against austerity measures which, they say, are only causing unemployment and social anxiety. There were general strikes in Spain and Portugal and widespread protests in Italy, Belgium, France and Greece. Spanish and Portugese airlines cancelled hundreds of flights.

David Cameron said last night that he was "completely fed up" about the release on bail of Abu Qatada after the Muslim cleric won his appeal against deportation to Jordan. "He has no right to be here," said the PM, and the government would "move heaven and earth" to deport him. A smiling Qatada arrived back at his London home yesterday.

Nearly half of all mail handled by the Royal Mail is now junk – or 'direct marketing'. The increase comes after a cap on three junk letters per household per day was removed a year ago. It partly explains why Royal Mail's operating profits in the six months to September were £144m, compared with £12m in the same period last year.

Doctors claimed yesterday to have halted an outbreak of the 'superbug' MRSA at the Rosie Hospital in Cambridge by cracking the bacterium's genetic code, which enabled them to trace the outbreak to a single staff member who spread the infection. Dr Julian Parkhill said: "We think this is the first case where whole genome sequencing has led to an actual clinical intervention".

Chelsea and the FA were last night accused of a "cover-up" after the Met Police dropped its investigation into allegations that referee Mark Clattenburg used racist language to two Chelsea players because the club refused to make a formal complaint. "It sounds remarkably like a football cover-up," said Society of Black Lawyers chairman Peter Herbert.