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The Independent – British tanks drive back Putin’s forces inside Russia
The Independent’s front page says former defence secretaries Ben Wallace and Malcolm Rifkind praise the government for allowing the Challenger 2 tanks to be at the forefront of Ukraine defending itself and are optimistic about their impact on the battlefield.
Elsewhere, the paper features a large image of A-level results day – the paper says hundreds of thousands of students received their A-level results on Thursday morning, with more than a quarter of UK entries awarded an A or A* grade.
A-level top grades up on last year but educational inequality widens
A-level students are celebrating an increase in top grades this year – with almost one in 10 awarded an A* – but inequalities have widened between private and state schools, and boys and girls.
Hundreds of thousands of pupils received their A-level results on Thursday morning, with more than a quarter (27.8 per cent) awarded an A or A* grade – a rise of 0.6 percentage points on last year.
Excluding the pandemic years, it is the highest proportion of A* grades awarded since they were first handed out for A-levels in 2010.
But the overall pass rate – the proportion of entries graded A* to E – has fallen to 97.2 per cent this year, which is lower than last year (97.3 per cent) and the pre-pandemic year of 2019 (97.6 per cent).
British tanks used to drive back Putin’s forces during Ukraine’s attack in Russia
British tanks have been used to force back Vladimir Putin’s troops during Ukraine’s audacious incursion into Russia.
Defence chiefs have hailed the contribution of Challenger 2 tanks, saying they are playing a crucial role in Volodymyr Zelensky’s startling tactic of using troops on Russian soil after years of defensive combat.
It is the first time UK tanks operated by Ukrainian troops have been used in combat on Russian territory, and comes as the incursion into the Kursk region expands as it enters a second week.
Mr Zelensky said on Thursday that his troops have full control of the Russian town of Sudzha. It is the largest town Ukraine has seized so far in the war, with a population of around 5,000, and it is home to a measuring station for Russian natural gas that flows through pipelines to Europe.
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Today’s news summary – Paper Talk
If you are someone who reads every perspective of a story, here is a news summary of all of today’s front pages from today’s newspapers; summarised in a 2-minute read
![The Independent - British tanks drive back Putin’s forces inside Russia 3 - WTX News Breaking News, fashion & Culture from around the World - Daily News Briefings -Finance, Business, Politics & Sports News ‘UK economy grew by 0.6%’ & ‘Taylor Swift dazzles in London’ - Paper Talk](https://wtxnews.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/Editorial-side-image-9.jpg)
Editorial 16 August 2024.
Friday’s newspapers lead with a variety of stories, mostly domestic news. A number of the leads carry the news that the UK economy grew by 0.6% between April and June as it continued its recovery from the recession at the end of last year.
There’s coverage of potential pay rises for GPs following the government paying out to end rail strikes. A-level results, British tanks in Ukraine and Taylor Swift in London are splashed on the front.
Prince Harry and Meghan are pictured on several front pages as they visit Colombia. Other celebrity news also features, including news that five people have been arrested in connection with the death of actor Matthew Perry.
The back pages look ahead to the return of the Premier League as the new season is just around the corner.