Today’s news summary – Paper Talk
Friday’s front pages report on a variety of stories.
UK doctors strikes
The Daily Mail reports striking doctors are “harming patients”. Steve Barclay used an article in the paper to issue “his strongest rebuke yet” as junior doctors in England prepare to strike over pay.
The Daily Telegraph reports on figures suggesting that walkouts by junior doctors have cost the NHS around £ 1 billion so far. The health secretary blames the strikes for diverting “significant amounts of money” away from front-line services.
The NHS is being pushed to the brink, according to the Times, which says the number of NHS cancellations due to strikes is approaching one million and waiting lists hit record high.
The Daily Express reports on ministers’ fear of a surge in small boats reaching the UK “in the coming weeks”. The paper says the figure shows that people-smuggling gangs have been “making fools” of the UK since the small boat crisis began in 2018.
The Mirror tells readers to “guess who had Shell shares” and reports Tory MP Theresa Villiers owned £70,000 worth of shares in the oil giant, while she was the environment secretary – from July 2018 to February 2020 – but didn’t declare her link until last month.
The Guardian are leading on Greenpeace stating that Rishi Sunak’s government will go down in history for failing the UK over the climate crisis. It also has a story on how dozens have been killed in wildfires in Hawaii.
The i newspaper reports a “mortgage rates war” has begun as 13 lenders cut their prices. But experts tell the paper there will be no return to “very low rates”.
Football returns
Most of the paper’s front pages mention the new Premier League season – which starts today, with photos of players finding a space on the splashes.
The Sun leads with what it calls Harry Kane’s “Bayern transfer saga”. The paper says the Spurs’ striker’s “mega-money move” to the German side is now “in his hans”.