Newsmonk

66 min: Another Inter booking. They're commiting lots and lots of little fouls, designed, as ever, to abort any momentum that Marseille might generate. This time it's Chivu for a late barge on Amalifitano.

Inter change: Zarate off, Obi on.

62 min: Ferocious snapshot from the edge of the area by Morel. Ferocious, but nowhere near the target.

59 min: Feint signs that Inter are starting to strain to contain Marseille, as Zarate gets a yellow for knocking over A Ayew.

55 min: Stankovic gets a booking for bowling over Valbuena. In fairness to him, at least he gave me an incident to report. "I have just checked into a crappy hotel in Leeds," announces Karl Gibbons, in case any of you were wondering where he is. Or, indeed, who he is. "I'm catching up on the game and glad I haven't missed much. I was interested to see Deschamps this evening as I have not seen him in a couple of years - my, he has piled on the pounds! He is like a modern day Gerard Depardieu (sans peeing on a plane I hope). I can concur that the velodrome is an intimidating place to play. I say this from only being a supporter in the away stand when bolton were in Europe (halcyon days, and I am not even a bolton supporter!)."

52 min: If Loic Rémy is not back for Marseille in the second leg it is difficult to see Marseille scoring in this tie. Mind you, given that he might be back, Inter should consider doing more to nab an away goal tonight. "As a PSG supporter, it is my duty to hate Marseille," foghorns Mister Justin. "But, as I like unfavoured teams by default, I have a moral dilemma. Have you any advice?" In what sense are Marseille unfavoured? They have some of the most passioante fans in the world. Or do you mean that they no longer benefit from the favours that Bernard Tapie used to arrange for them?

49 min: Inter, hitherto solid, fail to cope with a OM corner. And Diawara fails to take advantage, slicing badly wide from 18 yards. "We have a nice expression in Scotland for someone who is particularily tight fisted; 'he could peel a tangerine in his pocket' is that what DD is doing?" wonders Neil Munro. That is indeed a nice expression. Thanks.

46 min: Something to report! Inter have made a substitution. The injured Maicon has been replaced by Nagatomo.

46 min: We have resumption. Nothing else to report so far, sadly. And no good emails either. The glory, glory nights are truly here.

Half-time: Inter will be plenty satisfied so far. They've mainly kept OM at arm's length while occassionally threatening on the counter-attack, with Forlan and Cambiasso looking especially threatening.

44 min: Inter break. Forlan again peels off the centrebacks and then controls the ball superbly before nipping it out to the overlapping Cambiasso, whose shot is deflected into the arms of Mandanda.

42 min: Cheyrou produces his second absymal freekick of the night, again prodding it meekly into the wall. Zut alors!

41 min: That was less assured by Inter: Sneijder's pass was intercepted in midfield and Valbuena played the ball through to Brandao, who was taken down by Samuel on the edge of the area, giving OM a threatening freekick.

40 min: Inter are defending well and in numbers and Marseille lack the invention to prise them open. Valbuena looks their most likely source of inspiration but the players in front of him are not giving him many options.

37 min: Sneijder threads a dainty ball through to CAmbiasso, who pulls it back from the by-line to Zarate, who attempts to place his shot from 12 yards past the keeper but lacks accuracy, allowing Mandanda to save.

32 min: Valbeuna attempts an overhead cross from the by-line, possibly just to bring some levity to a humdrum game. "I see we're on a youth kick today< warbles Paul taylor. "'Nine of the starting eleven are over thirty'. 'He looks like your weird uncle'. I hope you know your demographic and that it doesn't include anyone old enough to actually BE that weird uncle. Anyhow, aren't all uncles weird, at least in the eyes of their young observers? Mine sure were, we still gripe about the one who … well, I can't really say that online. Plus, the word 'uncle' itself is weird, isn't it? I think it's a type of 'carbuncle', which is gross and to be avoided at all costs." I didn't write either of those things, but you're right about 'uncle' being an odd word. It sounds like something you might suffer if you fell into a dark pit.

29 min: Valbuena curls in a freekick from the right, the officials ignore the fact that about four OM players are offside and Brandao and Diawara conspire to bundle it wide from five yards.

26 min: Diawara clomps down Zarate to concede a freekick some six yards outside the OM area, a little to the left. Sneijder waste it, blasting straight into the wall.

24 min: They may have declared their determination to perform better than in the United game this time last year but OM are currently not looking good enough to fulfill their ambitions. Inter are keeping them at bay without much ado and, as I just said, looking dangerous(ish) on the counter. But it's not much of a spectacle, in truth. Which makes the following email all the more annoying: "In case anyone is wondering, Basel have already been denied by both post and bar," toots Alex Bennett in reference to the other game in this competition tonight (Basel v Bayern). "They look amazing, wide open game."

22 min: Inter, playing on the break, look menacing. And they'd look even ore menacing if Forlan could find a finish to match his shrewd runs. He has just faffed wide from t he edge of the area after being put through by Sneijder.

18 min: Lucio errs. Brandao attempts to profit but errs too. And Inter are able to clear. But OM eventually regain it and Azpilicueta decides to have a pop from distance, his effort droping just over the bar.

16 min: Zarate, who still looks like a member of Spandau Ballet, hurtles down the right to retrieve his own pass, taking Morel by surprise. OM have to scramble to clear the ensuing cross.

14 min: OM are flitting purposefully around the field but they peter out too often when they get near the box.

11 min: Forlan's third touch is almost a goal! Inter moved well down the left before Cambiasso delivered a devislishly inviting cross. Forlan took it first time but failed to direct his shot away from Mandanda, who should not have been given the chance to tip the ball over the bar.

8 min: Inter striker Forlan has had two touches of the ball so far, both deep in his own half. Meanwhile, do you know Michael Angus? Me neither, but he is determined to tell you how to spend your money. Here's his reasoning: "I'd be putting the old house on Marseille tonight. I've based that on what has to be considered a seriously bad Inter side; the front two have scored one goal between them all season, the highest scoring Inter player on the pitch is Cambiasso with a mighty four goals all season, and nine of the starting eleven are over thirty."

6 min: OM are looking good, fizzing the ball around nicely. Inter's only venture forward came a moment ago when Zarate embarked on a speedy run ... straight into Diawara, who dispossessed him easily.

4 min: Cheyrou produces a pathetic freekick, dabbing it pointlessly into the wall.

3 min: Inter are struggling to contain Marseille's attacking vim at the moment, though Lucio did stretch just enough a moment ago to deflect a Cheyrou shot out for a corner. But from that corner Zarate brings down Azpilicueta to concede a freekick five yards outside the area.

1 min: Marseille produced a dismal damp squib at in the home leg against Manchester United in this stage last year but have started this match as if determined to atone for that. They've launched straight into the attack, though Andre Ayew was was a bit too eager and ultimately fouled Maicon in the Inter box.

7:40pm: Only three sides of the Vélodrome are open tonight due to revamping work but the local berserkers have still managed to create an atmosphere that makes it one of the most intimidaing places to play in Europe (I'd say. I haven't actually played there myself, you understand. Never got beyond Tolka Park really.).

Teams:
OM: Mandanda; Azpilicueta, Diawara, N'Koulou, Morel; Diarra, Cheyrou; Amalfitano, Valbuena, Ayew; Brandao
Subs: Bracigliano, Gignac, Kaboré, Traoré, J Ayew, Fanni, Sabo

Inter: Julio Cesar; Maicon, Lucio, Samuel, Chivu; Zarate, Stankovic, Cambiasso, Zanetti; Sneijder; Forlan.
Subs: Castellazzi, Pazzini, Poli, Obi, Milito, Ranocchia, Nagatomo.

Ref: C Cakir (Turkey)

Paul will be here from 7.30pm.

In the meantime, read Gregg Roughley's preview …

Didier Deschamps, the Marseille manager, probably cursed his luck when the draw was made for the last 16 in December. Inter were fifth in Serie A and enjoying a run of three wins that would stretch to seven. Claudio Ranieri, who had struggled to find his feet in an up-and-down start since taking over as manager on 22 September, seemed to be finally getting his ideas across. Fiorentina, Genoa and Cesena had been efficiently swept aside without Inter conceding a goal. Some even whispered that Inter were finding the rhythm and consistency that was a mark of José Mourinho's treble-winning side.

Skip forward two and a half months and they still are consistent. Consistently bad. The 3-0 home defeat to 16th-placed Bologna at the weekend was preceded by a 1-0 home defeat to 19th-placed minnows Novara. And before that Roma handed them their backsides in a 4-0 thrashing at Stadio Olimpico. Their winless streak stretches back five matches. They are now seventh in Serie A, 14 points adrift of the leaders, Milan.

It is fair to say Deschamps is probably feeling a lot more optimistic about the tie now. The bookies have Marseille as favourites, but the Frenchman is having none of it. "We're not in the same category as them but we still have a chance to qualify," he said. "Inter are one of the seven or eight big European clubs whose objective is to be European champions. Our aim was to get to the last 16 in the winter, and then, if we got further, we'd have exceeded our ambitions." Deschamps's caution is understandable. Marseille had their own disastrous run of games at the start of the season. After six matches they were rock bottom. Since then they have steadily improved, climbing to fourth in Ligue 1 – their best position all season – yet they have drawn their past three matches. If they have an achilles heel it is their inability to see out games. In five of their nine draws they have thrown away the lead. And three were goalless.

Goals may be a problem again on Wednesday night after a thigh injury ruled out their much sought-after forward Loïc Rémy. The Brazilian striker Brandão, who has recently recovered from injury, is likely to start at the tip of a front three with André Ayew on the left and Morgan Amalfitano on the right. Mathieu Valbuena has been moved into a deeper creative role in recent weeks and it is his success in this position that may determine whether Marseille assume control. After disappointing in a 0-0 draw with Manchester United at this stage of the competition last season, Marseille have promised to play with much more energy against Inter. The home fans at a raucous Stade Vélodrome will expect nothing less.

If Inter are to have a hope of reversing their fortunes, Ranieri needs to find a way to get the best out of Wesley Sneijder. Since the Holland international's return from injury he has been used as a winger and a striker but not in his preferred position – as a lone trequartista behind two strikers, where he has thrived in the past. But Ranieri believes this is not an option. "With Sneijder playing behind two strikers, we lose a man in midfield," he said. "Losing the battle in midfield often means losing a match." With Marseille playing only three in midfield Ranieri could afford to let Sneijder pull the strings and get their toothless attack firing again. In a pre-match training session Ranieri paired Diego Forlán and Giampaolo Pazzini in attack. This would be an odd choice. Forlán has not scored since September, while Pazzini is without a goal in over a month. The only Inter player to score in recent weeks is Diego Milito. With his job perhaps riding on success in Europe, the Tinkerman needs to live up to his name and find the right formula fast.

This marked route runs through the core of the ancient woodland of the Caledonian pinewoods in Glen Affric. In the lower parts, I trod carefully over the wet, glistening rocks along the banks of the river Affric and heard the roar of the falls long before I reached them. The falls are not high but the narrow, rocky gorge forms an impressive torrent of foaming water as it hurtles downwards. The long, narrow bridge below is over a large, peaty stained pool on a broad, shallow rocky bottom where the water scarcely seems to be moving. Perhaps an otter had fished this pool at some time, as on a waterside boulder was an otter "spraint" (dung) to mark its territory.

Then came the steep walk up through the lower parts of the wood and the first impression of seeing a few dead trees that are an essential part of old woodland as they can support as much wildlife as the living ones. As I climbed upwards, the trees, particularly the old Scots pines – some of which could have been 400 years old – seemed to envelop me in a different world. Then on to the ridge and, walking silently on the thick bed of pine needles, I found myself standing under a single, huge, twisted pine. Below me was the Coire loch, perhaps my favourite loch, surrounded by the mainly Scots pine with occasional birch and rowan. The surrounding woodland was mirrored in the loch's calm waters.

I reflected on the scene, which was awesome for one main reason – I was above the canopy of many of the trees. It was a different arboreal world and I suddenly felt very small and insignificant, as though put in my place by the ancient trees. There was something missing and then a single guttural croak of a raven made me realise what it was – apart from the raven, there were no sounds at all and it all seemed very moving and slightly forbidding.

One of Fabio Capello's final acts as England manager was his perplexing decision to base the team in the Polish city of Krakow during Euro 2012, even though all England's group games were subsequently drawn to take place hundreds of miles away in Ukraine.

Markiyan Lubkivskyi, Ukraine's Euro 2012 tournament director, suggested that England may come to regret choosing Krakow's modestly equipped Hutnik Municipality Stadium, the home of a fourth division Polish side, as their distant training headquarters this June. "I only wish that this decision will not influence the successful performance of the English team," Lubkivskyi told the Guardian. "Training facilities are very good in Ukraine; the quality of our pitches is excellent."

In the wake of Capello's departure the Football Association expressed immense faith in its choice of Krakow, a lively party city in which England's players should not succumb to the "boredom" suffered at their secluded Rustenburg base during the last World Cup in South Africa. Elsewhere in Europe, however, that decision is widely regarded as misplaced, not to mention somewhat geographically illiterate.

England face a 930-mile excursion to Donetsk – a slightly longer journey than that between London and Krakow – where they meet France on 11 June, before returning to Poland immediately afterwards. They then head 540 miles to Kiev to play Sweden before embarking on another near 2,000-mile round trip to Donetsk to face Ukraine on 19 June. Should England win the group their quarter-final would be in Kiev, while finishing runners-up consigns them to a third jaunt to Donetsk.

France will be based at Shakhtar Donetsk's training headquarters. One of three top-class sports complexes in the eastern Ukrainian city, it is regarded as among the best in Europe. Indeed Eduardo, the former Arsenal striker now with Shakhtar, has described its nine pitches, state-of-the-art medical centre, restaurant and five-star hotel accommodation as being at least the equal of the facilities he enjoyed in north London.

Sweden, unlike England, took the precaution of booking bases in Poland and Ukraine before December's draw while retaining the option of cancelling the less geographically appropriate one, and they are borrowing Dynamo Kiev's ultra-modern training ground in the capital.

Under tournament rules Capello had until the end of January to make a last-minute change of base but he said he had "absolutely no intention" of staying in Ukraine. The downside of such dogma is that commuting from Poland not only involves lengthy plane journeys, but the need for temporary overnight pre-match accommodation.

While Kiev boasts a wide selection of hotels, Uefa's decision to block-book the five-star Donbass Palace hotel in Donetsk dictates England's only option is the more modest Ramada, built in the Soviet era. "There are some issues here with transport and hotels but training facilities are the one area where Donetsk is genuinely up there with the best in Europe," said Alexander Atamanenko, chief executive of Shakhtar Donetsk's Donbass Arena. "When I saw the photographs of England's training camp in Poland, I was surprised."

While the FA is adamant England's reportedly sub-standard training pitches in Krakow will be repaired before their arrival and the sparse medical facilities totally revamped, the feeling they have chosen badly persists. "We are surprised by England's decision," said Borys Kolensikov, Ukraine's deputy prime minister. "We may be a former Soviet country but in terms of sports infrastructure, ours is better than many in Europe."

Lubkivskyi is determined to alter the sort of negative perceptions of Ukraine presumably harboured by Capello. "Today our readiness is around 90% but I can confidently say that, at the start of the tournament, Ukraine will be 100% ready.

"The championship is an opportunity to make a leap in quality of life, for our citizens and visitors. New roads, infrastructure, comfortable transport, high-speed trains, new modern airports, reconstructed train stations, new hotels and so many other things will change the face of our country and be implemented for the tournament."He is also proud that, with Poland, Ukraine is implementing a Respect Diversity programme in conjunction with Football Against Racism in Europe. This involves more than 80,000 police officers and stewards having anti-discrimination training. "Hundreds of inclusivity zones will be created," Lubkivskyi said. "Spaces open and accessible to all, regardless of ethnic or national background, gender, disability or sexual orientation."

The administrator at Portsmouth has made 33 staff redundant, including the chief executive David Lampitt, and asked the players to defer their wages, in an effort to keep the financially stricken club in business.

Staff at all levels, from Lampitt and his two fellow directors to coaches at the club's academy, were laid off by Trevor Birch, of the accountant PKF, which described the measures as necessary "if the club is to continue to exist".

The employees were distressed and several were in tears after they were told in meetings that their jobs had been cut with immediate effect. Portsmouth fell into administration last week for the second time in two years, owing £2m in unpaid tax, after the owner who had been bankrolling the club, Vladimir Antonov, was arrested for alleged bank fraud in Lithuania.

Birch said the savings he is making, which also include asking some staff to work part-time instead of full-time, amount to approximately £400,000 a month. Describing the cuts as a "difficult decision" and "painful for everyone involved with the club", Birch said they were "essential" to ensure the club survives, even just to the end of this season.

"Our initial analysis of the club's financial position has revealed that the situation is more serious than many people had expected," he said. "As things stand, there is a serious risk that the club could run out of cash within the next couple of months."

Redundancies were expected and are routine when any business collapses into insolvency, and directors are often laid off when it becomes run by an administrator. However at Fratton Park there remains shock at its fall so soon after Antonov took over and promised to bankroll new spending. That led to what Birch described as Portsmouth having "a Premier League cost base but only Championship income".

Birch, however, is understood to be furious that £800,000 of the club's money held by the club's previous administrator, Andrew Andronikou of Hacker Young, had not been released to him. Andronikou said £600,000 has now been sent back to Portsmouth, on the day the redundancies were made.

"The balance [£200,000] has been retained to cover our fees, lawyers and counsel fees," Andronikou said, adding he would have been prepared to defer those fees had he been appointed administrator until the club was sold.

Birch said of the challenge ahead: "Portsmouth's survival depends on us being able to find a buyer for the club before the money runs out."

On Tuesday evening he held a meeting with the Pompey Supporters Trust, which has been organising and fund-raising, in partnership with some wealthy individuals, to harness a genuine effort to take over the club itself. Birch said of his contact with the supporters trust: "I am very happy to have entered into a very constructive dialogue with them."

Lampitt, the former FA head of regulation who saw Portsmouth into the Antonov takeover, said he respected the decision to make him and the other staff redundant. "The priority is for the club to survive," he said.

Health secretary Andrew Lansley looks more determined than ever not to reveal the findings of a risk assessment done on the government's NHS shakeup.

Lansley won the support of MPs, who voted on Wednesday by a majority of 53 against a Labour motion that the Department of Health should make its document public. However, growing disquiet among some Conservative MPs and Liberal Democrats was voiced by Lib Dem MP John Pugh, who told the often bad-tempered debate that the bill was "toxifying the Tories" and "sadly detrimental" to his party.

Lansley suggested to MPs that he might refuse to release the risk register even if instructed to do so by a tribunal due to meet in a fortnight to judge on his dispute with the information commissioner, who has instructed him to publish.

Lansley twice refused the opportunity to tell MPs he would accept the tribunal's judgment. Answering deputy Lib Dem leader Simon Hughes, the health secretary instead quoted from an article in the Observer by the information commissioner, in which Christopher Graham said he was "not infallible".

"The government has the right to appeal to the tribunal [following the information commissioner's ruling] and the tribunal is the proper place for that public interest test to be tested," he said.

Defending his decision, Lansley said the prospect of publishing such assessments reduced the quality of advice to ministers, meaning documents would become "bland and anodyne" and "cease to be of practical value".

"To be effective, a risk register requires all those involved to be frank and open about potential risk," Lansley told MPs. "It is their job to think the unthinkable and look at worst-case scenarios. It is vital nothing is done to inhibit that process."

Asked whether Lansley's comments suggested local and regional NHS risk registers, which have been published, were not as strong as they could be, a department spokesman said they could be "potentially watered-down".

As the Guardian reported last week, the risk assessments of the four English regional strategic authorities suggest there are wide-ranging concerns, including that patient care and safety could be damaged and costs could rise.

Lansley cleared up some confusion about the hotly debated risk register, saying the document in question was the "transition risk register", relating specifically to the reorganisation set out in the health bill, an assessment which was first drawn up in 2010 but is continually "reviewed and updated". This was different to the department's "strategic" risk register of all its operations.

The department said that, unlike the strategic authorities' and other NHS risk assessments, its risk register concentrated on policy development. However, a spokesman said refusal to publish the register extended also to explaining what questions it might cover, eg, if it dealt with how the bill might pass through parliament, or gave technical details about how its parts might impact on each other.

Labour's opposition day debate was fronted by

shadow health secretary Andy Burnham who insisted MPs and peers had a right to know the implications of health reforms before they voted on the bill, which is currently in the report stage in the House of Lords.

"He [Lansley] is running unacceptable risks," said Burhnam. "What he's doing is wrong and needs to be stopped."

Burnham had to fend off repeated charges by Conservative MPs that he had refused similar requests for risk registers when he was health secretary in the previous Labour government. Burnham said he had refused to publish a different document – the strategic register – and that he had not been overruled by the Information Commissioner. Labour did release a similar policy-specific risk assessment, into Heathrow's third runway, when it was in government, said Burnham.

Defending Lansley, Tory MP Mike Freer said: "The release of the risk register is seen as an opportunity by the opposition to cherry-pick doomsday scenarios the register may contain. It is simply a charter for shroud-waving."

Former shadow health secretary John Healey said: "These current plans are unprecedented in their nature, scale, pace and timing, and that means there is exceptional attention and exceptional concern about the risks associated with their implementation – and that's why there is an exceptional case for releasing this transitional risk register."

Former Labour health secretary Frank Dobson said: "I think the government will finally conclude it's foolish of them not to publish this register because everybody assumes they must have something to hide."

3.31pm: Below the line Mitt Romney's tax plan isn't winning many plaudits:

gwpriester

Cool plan Mitt. I guess with the reduced amount of tax revenue we can slash all other spending to the bone. And we don't need to worry about the deficit getting larger, we'll just put the expenses on the credit card like George W. did and leave it for the next Democrat to deal with.

Give me a break!!!

3.22pm: Meanwhile, in Virginia:

.@Vahousedems finding many flaws in @bobmcdonnell suggested amendments to #sb484 #transvaginal #ultrasound bill

— VA House Democrats (@VAHouseDems) February 22, 2012

Surely there has to be a question on transvaginal ultrasounds in tonight's debate?

2.57pm: Barack Obama is tied with Mitt Romney in Arizona, according to our friends at Public Policy Polling.

Obama and Romney each stand at 47% in PPP's latest poll, while the president leads both Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich by 4 points.

"The only Republican he actually runs behind is Rick Santorum, although only by a single point at 47-46," PPP's press release says.

"This is the latest in an increasingly long line of our polls recently that challenge the premise that Romney is a much stronger general election candidate than Santorum."

John McCain won in Arizona in 2008, with 53.8% of the vote to Obama's 45%.

Good news for Obama – although PPP do qualify the poll by saying it is unlikely the President would be able to beat Romney in Arizona once the GOP unifies around one candidate.

"But the fact that we're even talking about Arizona as potentially being on the board right now is a big a shift from where we were a couple months ago."

Tom Jensen from PPP:

Arizona is a great microcosm of how Barack Obama's reelection prospects have improved over the last 3 months. When we polled there in November his approval numbers were atrocious and his prospects for winning the state in the general election didn't look very good. Now he's getting more popular, the Republicans are getting less popular, and he appears to have a decent chance there.

2.41pm: Buzzfeed has dug out audio from a 2008 interview Rick Santorum conducted with radio show host Mike Signorile. In the interview Santorum insists that child abuse is higher in same sex relationships as part of his argument about why gay people should not be allowed to get married. The former Pennsylvania senator doesn't have any evidence to back up his claim, but hey, never mind.

"As of course you know, as you course you know, that abuse in gay relationships is higher than in heterosexual relationships, it's absolutely clear about that. Sexual abuse, violence to children, is higher in those relationships. It's fact."

Santorum is also brilliantly vehement when Signorile describes Santorum's longstanding argument that "if same sex marriage is ok, then so is polygamy" as specious.

No it's not different it's the same. No it's not a specious argument.

Ps – This is Adam Gabbatt taking over from Richard for a few hours.

2.15pm: For further analysis of Mitt Romney's new tax cuts, the Washington Post's Greg Sargent talks to Bob McIntyre, president of Citizens for Tax Justice, who describes the outcome as a huge tax cut for the rich and a total tax cut of $10tn over 10 years:

So how does this all square with Romney's claim [that he would "make sure the top one percent keeps paying the current share they're paying or more"] about the one percent? McIntyre says the key is that Romney said the one percent's "share" would not drop. He didn't say the amount the one percent pays wouldn't drop.

"If you reduce the whole thing by 20% then they can go down by 20% and still pay the same share," McIntyre explains.

2pm: So while Mitt Romney is churning out Serious Proposals, his main rival for the moment, Rick Santorum, is having to discuss Satan's war on America.

Last night, though, Santorum told a rally in Phoenix that the American people want "the opportunity to see what's in here, and what's up here, and what's burning down here," – although what Santorum meant by "what's burning down here" was deliciously ambiguous, given his hand gestures. His loins? Piles? Pants on fire? Who can say, other than Mrs Santorum and his personal physician.

1.40pm: Politico's Jake Sherman has a scoop on Mitt Romney's athletic attire:

So Lululemon has now jumped the shark. Or downward-dogged the shark, to be accurate. Sherman also mentions that he got into the hotel gym before Romney at 5.30am. Obviously Romney slept in. Slacker.

1.22pm: Mitt Romney was to have made a big speech on the economy on Friday, and was presumably planning to unroll this tax cut plan then. But possibly to take advantage of tonight's debate, create a clear contrast with Rick Santorum and overcome a polling wobble in Michigan, Romney has pushed the button today.

The Romney campaign has put up more detail but still not much detail on how to pay for some fairly stiff tax cuts. This is what we get from Romney's website:

Stronger economic growth and reductions in spending will help to ensure that these tax cuts do not expand deficits. In addition, higher-income Americans in particular will see limits placed on deductions, exemptions, and credits that are currently available. The result will be a pro-growth tax code that still raises the necessary revenue, retains the existing progressivity, and ensures that middle-income Americans see real tax relief.

The bit in bold is very, very interesting: Mitt Romney looking past the GOP primaries and tackling his 1% problem? (Meanwhile, Newt Gingrich is sharpening a stick.)

The New York Times talks to Glenn Hubbard, Romney's economic advisor, about the fiscal implications:

Mr Hubbard said three different revenue streams would keep the plan from increasing the budget deficit: the "dynamic" effects of economic growth, the additional income that would be subject to taxation through "base broadening," and spending cuts Mr Romney plans that would reach $500 billion per year by 2016. The campaign promised more specifics on those spending cuts within the next week.

"Base broadening" here means bringing in additional tax payers or taxable income. At least he didn't also suggest "eliminating waste and inefficiency," the other usual suspect for filling fiscal holes.

1.10pm: You wait for weeks for detailed tax reform proposals and then two come along at once.

So far today we've had the White House outline its attempts at corporate tax reform. Now the Romney campaign – perhaps in response – has pushed out more details of his new larger-scale tax reforms. The Wall Street Journal distils the details:

Mr Romney wants to cut individual tax rates by 20% in all six brackets, reducing the tax the wealthiest Americans pay to 28% from 35%. That target is slightly higher than the 25% rate Mr Romney laid out earlier in the campaign.

The tax rate for people in the lowest income bracket would drop to 8% from 10%, and would fall to 20% from 25% for those Americans in the middle.

Mr Romney would maintain the current 15% tax rate on capital gains and dividends for households that earn $200,000 a year or more. Those earning less than that amount would pay no taxes on capital gains and dividends under his plan.

How to pay for all this, especially the across the board tax cuts? "Mr Romney offered no specific proposals to increase revenue through the tax code," reports the WSJ, "Instead, he would leave those decisions to Congress." Always a recipe for success.

12.52pm: President Obama attended a ground-breaking ceremony for the Smithsonian's new National Museum of African American History and Culture on the National Mall this morning, saying:

It was on this ground long ago that lives were once traded, where hundreds of thousands once marched for jobs and for freedom. It was here that the pillars of democracy were built often by black hands.

The museum itself will be built to sit on the Mall between the Washington Monument and the National Museum of American History, and is expected to be completed by 2015. Half the estimated $500m cost has been approved by Congress, with the rest coming from corporate and personal donations.

12.46pm: Buddy Roemer has announced this morning that he is withdrawing from the GOP nomination process. If you thought, "Buddy who?" then you've correctly identified the problem. Apparently it's all the media's fault that the former governor of Louisiana failed to take off.

Roemer says he's going to run for the Reform party nomination. And if you thought, "Reform what?" then [repeat].

12.35pm: The Treasury and the White House have now released a joint report on the president's plan for business tax reform:

The United States now essentially trades off greater tax expenditures, loopholes, and tax planning for a higher statutory corporate tax rate relative to other countries. This is a poor trade that produces a tax system that is uncompetitive relative to other countries, distorts business decision making, and slows economic growth.

The full document is available in pdf format here.

The New York Times reports that balancing the existing tax breaks with the proposed lower rate could be difficult if the change to the corporate tax code isn't to add to the deficit, as the White House claims will be the case:

Nonpartisan tax analysts consistently find that corporations here on average pay just slightly more than their competitors in other developed countries after exploiting the many tax breaks and loopholes. Recent news accounts have highlighted the low effective rates paid by companies like Google, Boeing and General Electric.

12.23pm: Amid all the talk of a contested convention for the Republicans in Tampa, veteran Democratic pollster Stan Greenberg tells the Guardian that the GOP nominee may not be one of the current contenders.

According to Greenberg, leading conservative players may "select a candidate" after the Super Tuesday primaries if a clear front runner fails to emerge.

There is a lot of discussion of this prospect around the conservative blogosphere but to be honest, contested conventions in modern politics are a lot like unicorns: people might want one but it never makes an appearance in reality.

12.12pm: Republicans love to crow that America's corporate tax rate of 35% is among the highest in the industrialised world – although a plethora of tax breaks and legal loopholes suggest otherwise.

Today, however, the Obama administration is going to use a Treasury department briefing by Tim Geithner to roll out cuts in the corporate tax rate combined with loophole closures, as AP reports:

The Obama administration is planning to propose cutting the top tax rate for corporations to 28%, and pay for it by eliminating dozens of tax loopholes companies now use to lower their rates, a senior administration official said.

Chances of a deeply divided Congress revamping a tax system regarded as convoluted across the political spectrum seems remote in an election year, but the announcement on Wednesday is certain to fuel debate in the run-up to November's elections.

12pm: The Guardian's Ewen MacAskill says the queue of people waiting outside the Mitt Romney campaign event in Arizona this morning wasn't quite as noteworthy as it first seemed:

I was quite impressed at first: it is unusual at a Romney event. He is not a big draw. But once inside, the gymnasium where the rally is being held is far from full. The Romney team had been expecting more. Police were talking about an overflow room and how it was no longer going to be needed. So even in Arizona, Romney's lack of charisma and excitement strikes again.

11.40am: A new brace of polls via NBC News and Marist finds Mitt Romney comfortably in the lead in Arizona but locked in a bitter struggle with Rick Santorum in Michigan:

In Michigan – which has turned into a make-or-break contest for Romney – the former Massachusetts governor gets the support of 37% of likely GOP primary voters, including those who are leaning toward a particular candidate.

Santorum, the former Pennsylvania senator, gets 35%, and he's followed by Texas Rep. Ron Paul at 13% and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich at 8%.

The happier scene in Arizona sees Romney on 43%, Santorum with 27%, Gingrich on 16% and Paul 11%. And here's the reason why: Romney's huge lead among early voters, thanks to Romney's organisational clout:

And among those who have voted early or absentee in Arizona – more than half of all likely Republicans voters in the poll – Romney holds a 30-point advantage over Santorum, 52% to 22%.

11.06am: More from the Detroit News endorsement of one-time Michigan native Mitt Romney, based in part on the idea that he alone of the Republican field can defeat Obama in November:

Very conservative Republicans have been lukewarm to Romney because of his history of more moderate positions on social issues. They have flirted with each of his rivals looking for a true standard bearer of conservative values. One by one, Herman Cain, Michele Bachmann, Rick Perry, Ron Paul, Newt Gingrich and Rick Santorum have enjoyed a burst of popularity at Romney's expense.

Santorum, Gingrich and Paul are challenging Romney on the Michigan ballot next Tuesday. But those Republicans are delusional if they think either Santorum or Gingrich can prevail in the fall against Obama.

Naturally, Republican grassroots really appreciate being called "delusional" by the media.

10.50am: Only Rick Santorum and Mitt Romey are out and about campaigning in Arizona today, indicating that Ron Paul and Newt Gingrich have given up on the state.

Rick Santorum – 11.30am MT: Addresses a Tucson Tea Party rally.

Mitt Romney – 9.50am MT: Holds a rally at the Tri-City Christian Academy gym, Chandler.

The Guardian's Ewen MacAskill is at the Romney event this morning and he emails to say: "Something you do not see often at Romney events: a queue."

10.30am: The Republican presidential contenders gather in Arizona, ahead of tonight's big event, the debate hosted by CNN. But will Rick Santorum get any questions about Satan's takeover of America?

Meanwhile, the Obama administration unveils the offer of a cut in the corporate tax rate, puncturing a Republican talking point about US corporate tax rates being among the highest in the world.

The Guardian's Ryan Devereaux has a summary of the latest events on the campaign trail, with just six days to go until voting in the Arizona and Michigan primaries:

• The Republican presidential candidates debate tonight in Mesa, Arizona. It's been nearly a month since the candidates last faced off and all eyes will be on Mitt Romney and Rick Santorum. With key contests looming in Arizona and Michigan, tonight's debate is crucial for Santorum, who has been rising in state and national polls since his hat-trick of wins in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri. Romney, meanwhile, will seek to cast Santorum as a Washington insider.

• With Arizona's primary next Tuesday, a poll from CNN, Time and ORC International has Santorum and Romney in a tight race, with one third of respondents saying they could still change their minds. According to the poll, Romney is supported by 36% of the voters, while Santorum has 32%.

• Rick Santorum has sidestepped a past claim that the US is under attack from Satan. Yesterday the Drudge Report ran a headline at the top of its page reading, "Satan has his sights on the United States of America." The headline was a reference to a speech Santorum made four years ago. On Tuesday Santorum was asked if the Prince of Darkness was still laying siege to the US. He said: "These are questions that are not relevant to what's being discussed in America today."

• In Michigan, the Detroit News endorsed Mitt Romney but not without an important qualification: "We disagree with Romney on a point vital to Michigan – his opposition to the bailout of the domestic automobile industry." The endorsement goes on to say, however, that the issue "isn't a differentiator in the GOP primary."

• Finally, in what was obviously the biggest political news of the day, someone has made a portrait of Rick Santorum entirely composed of a mosaic of gay porn. The very much Not Safe For Work image can be viewed here.

There was merriment as well as a little achievement. A surge of three goals in the last quarter of an hour swept Manchester City into the last 16 of the Europa League, where they will take on Legia Warsaw or Sporting Lisbon. This contest was serious enough for Rolando, the visitors' centre-half, to be sent off with a second yellow card for dissent. He had protested, wrongly, that the substitute Edin Dzeko had been offside when giving City a 2-0 lead after 76 minutes.

The firepower is to be enhanced, too, now that City will rehabilitate Carlos Tevez, who is no longer estranged. The ambitions of the victors are in proportion to the great sums at their disposal, but this is also a club coming to terms with expectations. It should not be forgotten that, where major honours are concerned, City have collected just one League Cup and one FA Cup in the past 36 years.

Regardless of the current means, the squad can still look tentative, even if there were flourishes here. Progress in the Europa League must have value, despite the thoughtless sneers, if it adds to the confidence. No side can doubt its impact when it takes the lead after 19 seconds, with Sergio Agüero the scorer.

It was critical to the impact of Roberto Mancini's line-up that Yaya Touré, the creator of the opener, took the field at the Etihad Stadium for the first time since his return from the Africa Cup of Nations. "I've tried to find another Yaya in the squad but there is no one," the City manager admitted before that tournament started. That predicament will have to be addressed in the next round since Touré will miss the first leg through suspension.

The Agüero goal had its origin in a sloppy clearance by Nicolás Otamendi that went to Nigel de Jong, but the punishment initiated by Touré's pass to the scorer was ruthless and adroit. Mancini's side had a buoyancy because of Touré and although a 2-1 victory in Porto from a goal down in the first leg had been an excellent result, there was a certain grind to a display that brought half a dozen bookings.

City could afford to be carefree here and there was, for instance, no angst when Agüero hit the bar after the goalkeeper Helton had rushed out of his area and been unable to get to the ball first. Any openings that presented themselves to Porto tended to be bungled and the general proficiency of their play counted for little. Virtually everything flowed in City's favour.

Porto, indeed, were the ideal contestants, since they were good enough to test City without raising the possibility that they could actually beat them. The visitors were watched by their former manager, André Villas-Boas. He had hurried back from the Champions League defeat at Napoli for his present club Chelsea. Porto were in trouble here, but Villas-Boas might still have felt a pang of nostalgia on occasion.

Little worked for Porto, however, and Maicon accidentally landed a kick to the head of Otamendi, who was substituted. Following the interval, a fragile Porto were breached by a second City goal, with Agüero setting up Dzeko. The scorer and his fellow substitute, David Pizarro, then combined before David Silva finished. The last strike came with a shot from Pizarro himself, his first goal for the club.

City never treated this match as a chore. If there is an appreciation that trophies have been lacking until last season, the present squad seem keen to pack the cabinet. This outing, too, will have reminded City of the value in the flair they occasionally suppress in the Premier League.

Ringer
8pm, Sky Living

Ringer's delightful episode title, What Are You Doing Here, Ho-bag?, refers to the introduction of another new character for Bridget/Siobhan to pretend to recognise/get to know: Juliet's mum (and Andrew's ex). Even though this is only the 12th episode, this show has had so much going on (fake junkie hitmen/pretend pregnancies/disappearing frenemies), that the return of evil drug dealer/strip club owner Macawi (you know, the one that got Bridget in this complicated mess in the first place) is almost a surprise. Richard Vine

Kidnap And Ransom
9pm, ITV1

In this second series set in the crisis-stricken Kashmir, Trevor Eve's negotiator finds his efforts to secure the release of a British Asian family hampered by the violent interventions of local police. The two kidnappers, Anwar and the mysterious, somewhat nervous Leela, take the family's son, Mahavir, and then hijack a tourist bus. There's a faint undercurrent of Celebrity Road Trip about the collection of hapless passengers, who include Kimberley Nixon (Fresh Meat) and Christopher Fairbank (Auf Wiedersehen Pet) but it's Eve who dominates, caught between desperate kidnappers and trigger-happy police. David Stubbs

This World: Fukushima
9pm, BBC2

Around this time last year, Japan nearly contributed a third city to the list of those destroyed by nuclear technology. In the aftermath of the tsunami, the nuclear plant at Fukushima suffered a meltdown. This was bad – indeed, the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl – but as this terrifying film's interviews with survivors, employees, rescue workers and the prime minister of the time make clear, it could have been calamitous. The consolation is this chance to admire the courage and ingenuity that averted disaster. Andrew Mueller

The Great Ticket Scandal: Dispatches
9pm, Channel 4

It's a familiar tale: you try to get tickets for a gig or event, only to be left empty-handed when it sells out in minutes. So how come there are tickets available online at inflated prices – and who is selling them? Morland Sander investigates the business of ticket reselling, and undercover reporters try their luck on two major fan-to-fan ticket exchange websites to find out who is profiting and how they get away with it. Hannah Verdier

Pramface
9pm, BBC3

BBC3 wanted a new Gavin & Stacey. All it got was this lousy straight-to-DVD Knocked Up/buttoned-up Inbetweeners/Skins. In attempting to be all things to all viewers, this first episode fails to come close to any of them. Laughs are thin on the ground, and a bedroom wank scene manages to be boring. With some quality cast members – Angus Deayton is a shady father and Submarine's Yasmin Paige is the precocious and lovelorn best friend – we're still hoping Pramface can find its voice. Clare Considine

Catholics
9pm, BBC4

A new three-part series in which film-maker Richard Alwyn investigates what it is to be a Catholic in modern Britain. The episodes are themed around men, women and children: the first takes a behind-the-scenes look at Allen Hall seminary in Chelsea, following those men who have been called to the priesthood. These include an ex-roadie and a former law practitioner; both have signed up for a minimum six years of training, this at a time when the number of applicants is in severe decline. It's a fascinating insight into how priests are made, and why they choose to devote their lives to the Church. Martin Skegg