Right fuming over Chagos, left stirs NHS panic
Friday’s front page headlines offer a wide variety of domestic and international news with ongoing coverage of the UK handing over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands offering a clear political divide.
Labour’s plans to free up prison spaces in England and Wales have outraged the right-wing papers boldly claim that sex offenders will be roaming the streets.
There are discussions around benefits – including the two-child benefit cap, as well as coverage of potential tax rises, splashed on the front pages.
There’s plenty of pandering to the public’s fears of potential strike disruptions to the NHS – as teachers and doctors accept a pay rise, but doctors slam it as inadequate. Polling often shows the British public remains in support of industrial action, despite the widespread disruptions caused.
IN PICTURES: Princess Kate and the two Israelis gunned down in Washington fight for the lead image on the UK front pages – with the tabloids leading with the princess.
Several tabloids lead with the latest at Manchester United – with the papers speculating the future of the world-famous club, as they record yet another poor season – this one ending with confirmation that there’ll be no European football for the Red Devils next season.
In international coverage, Donald Trump is continuing his war with Harvard – now banning the university from allowing international students and the business papers report that the US House passed Trump’s tax bill by a single vote.
The right are not happy with Labour
Two stories dominate the right-wing media. Both are politically charged.
Has the UK ‘surrendered’ the Chagos Islands?
The Daily Telegraph, The Times and the Metro lead with their anger at the handing over of the Chagos Islands. The papers call it a “surrender” and look at the “true cost of the agreement” – highlighting concerns over the financial costs at a time of financial hardships for many in the country.
- The Telegraph says it’s “likely to exceed £30bn in cash terms” because of rising inflation.
- The Times says the deal “could cost taxpayers billions”.
- Metro calls the deal a “cave-in” saying the UK “will pay £101m a year for 99 years to lease back our airbase”.
Will rapists and killers roam the streets under Labour’s plans?
The Daily Mail and the Daily Express prominently report on Labour’s sentencing review on Thursday. The right-wing tabloids often use crime to incite fear amongst their readers and create a narrative that Labour is ‘soft on crime’. The current overcrowding in prisons in England and Wales has driven prisons to capacity and immediate action is needed.
The government accepted most of the proposals from the review but rejected allowing the most serious offenders to be released early – including serious violent and sexual offenders as well as those jailed for terror offences.
IN FULL: Independent Sentencing Review: Final report
The Independent Sentencing Review sets out proposals to address prison and probation challenges and support victims.
Read the full review here
- The Daily Mail says Labour will release “rapists and killers” earlier saying the plan has been “savaged by victims and senior police officers”.
- The Daily Express says “Early release for killer an ‘insult to all victims’ as they interview Sarah Everard’s family, who have “slammed” the plan to free violent criminals halfway through their sentences, saying there “doesn’t seem to be a serious effort” to understand “what victims and families want”.
The left is creating a panic over the NHS
Potential NHS strikes causing ‘panic’ and ‘fear’
Bucking the trend, the potential NHS strikes/ pay rises offered to the public sector are featured across the left and right newspapers. The Guardian uses a more alarmist tone in its headline, no doubt in an attempt to stir fear amongst the public.
- The Guardian says there are “fears of fresh NHS strikes” after doctors “denounced pay rises of up to 5.4% this year” as “derisory” and “threatened walkouts”.
- The Daily Mirror says there is “fury” from the nurses who were offered a smaller rise of 3.6%.
- The Times says doctors are threatening to “go back on strike” after “inadequate” pay rises.