Today’s news summary – Paper Talk
Sunday’s front pages lead with various stories.
Ben Wallace to stand down as MP
Ben Wallace’s decision to stand down as MP at the next election leads the Sunday Times. In an interview with the paper, he predicts Britain will be “in a conflict” by 2030. He suggests it could involve a military showdown with Russia, a Cold War against China or intervention to combat terrorist groups in Africa.
Wallace is the 47th Tory MP to quit Parliament, in what the Sunday Times calls “an exodus that has come to resemble rats leaving a sinking ship.”
The Observer suggests three losses for the Tories in this week’s by-elections could prompt even more MPs to announce they are standing down.
On Thursday, voters go to the polls in Selby and Ainsty, Uxbridge and Somerton and Frome.
The Sun on Sunday says “It will be a clean sweep” in a downbeat message from cabinet ministers. In the Sunday Express, a veteran Tory predicts the three defeats will lead to MPs sending in letters calling for a vote of confidence in Rishi Sunak. But the Mail on Sunday says the activist remains defiant, with the PM’s wife among those campaigning in Uxbridge.
The Sunday Telegraph reports that new housing developments in England are being blocked, unless councillors agree to introduce ultra-low emission zones or low-traffic neighbourhoods. The paper says the approach has already “prompted anger” at Epping Forest in Essex.
Wimbledon 2023
“Vonder woman” declares the Observer, as it toasts Marketa Vondrousova, the first unseeded player to win the women’s singles at Wimbledon. The paper describes her as “something of a disruptor”, having previously knocked Japanese star Naomi Osaka out of the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
The Sunday Mirror suggests the Czech player will be “Sova the rainbow“, at her triumph – and for those wondering, the Sunday Telegraph, says Vondrousova could have been backed at odds of 250 to 1 on the first day of the tournament.
