Metro leads on Matt Hancock’s appearance at the Covid inquiry, where he said procuring body bags was a higher priority for Government officials than fighting the virus

The front page reports that the “shamed” former health secretary, who resigned in 2021 after being caught kissing an aide in breach of lockdown rules, told the hearing that the UK’s pandemic preparations had been too concerned with the “consequences of disaster”.

He said the plans had always assumed it would not be possible to stop a virus spreading, so had focused on questions like how to procure enough body bags or find space for the dead instead of how to suppress an outbreak.

Nicola Bulley’s inquest also makes the front page.