Paper Talk: Landmark COP28 climate deal & Gary Lineker comments

Today’s news summary – Paper Talk: Landmark COP28 climate deal & Gary Lineker comments 

Thursday’s front pages cover various stories – from the COP28 climate deal to comments made by sports pundit Gary Lineker.

Landmark COP28 deal agreed

The Guardian leads on the COP28 climate deal which was agreed in Dubai in the early hours of Wednesday. The paper calls the agreement a “landmark” one as the almost 200 countries present agreed to “transition away” from fossil fuels. However, the paper notes that the agreement does not “include an explicit commitment to phase out or even phase down fossil fuels”.

The Financial Times is the only other paper which focuses on the COP28 agreement. The FT’s front page follows similar lines to the Guardian – “for the first time” countries have “reached a deal to transition away from fossil fuels in an attempt to reach global net zero emissions by 2050”, the paper says, but notes that 39 small island nations “complained” the deal was “pushed through without their support”.

Gary Lineker comments

A couple of newspapers focus on comments made by Gary Lineker. The Metro suggests the former football star has “met his match” highlighting the comments made by the incoming chairman of the BBC. Speaking to MPs ahead of his confirmation to the position, Samir Shah said he believed the corporation’s highest-paid star breached the BBC’s social media rules in tweets about Tory MPs during a row about the government’s Rwanda policy.

The Daily Express also leads on Linekar. The paper picks up on comments by Defence Secretary Grant Shapps, who told Linekar to “put a sock in it” and says he should “stop phishing his anti-Tory agenda on social media”. 

Missing woman Gaynor Lord

The Sun, Daily Express, Daily Mail, and Daily Telegraph show pictures of missing Norfolk woman Gaynor Lord. Last seen Friday, CCTV footage deepens the mystery. Police believe she may have entered the river Wensum in Norwich. Norfolk Police liaising with Lancashire, where Nicola Bulley disappeared similarly in January.

New NHS targets

“Justice for My James” is the Daily Mirror’s headline. James Bulger’s mum, Denise Fergus, says denying parole to Jon Venables, her son’s killer, is the best thing in 30 years. Venables and Robert Thompson abducted, tortured, and killed James in 1993.

According to the Daily Telegraph, Britain will lead a fighter jet project with Japan and Italy. Aiming for supersonic aircraft by 2035, replacing the Typhoon jet, it’s the UK’s first multinational fighter jet program.

The Times reports a rise in middle-aged deaths monthly since the pandemic’s end. In the first six months, 28,000 more died compared to the five-year average. Adults aged 50 to 64 saw the biggest increase, partly blamed on obesity and post-Covid NHS waiting lists.

The Daily Telegraph reveals new NHS targets: two million to boost statin doses. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence wants lower cholesterol for those on statins than the public. Aims for 145,000 fewer heart incidents over a decade.