Unnamed “senior Whitehall figures” are quoted by the Times as saying the “No10 crisis” is “bigger than Sue Gray”. One of its sources says “dysfunction in Downing Street is not the fault” of Ms Gray who resigned after being caught up in rows over pay. There were other, “systematic issues” which Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer had “not addressed”, the source said.
The Daily Mail leads with a “demand” from the Conservative Party for the government to “come clean” on what Labour peer Lord Alli might have got in return for donations to senior politicians after it was revealed he paid for clothing and holidays for Labour MPs, including the prime minister. A new book about the rise to power of Labour will apparently reveal the extent of his involvement.
The I splashes with the story that Sir Keir has refused to rule out the British military getting involved “if Israel attacks Iran”. It says he failed to take the opportunity to quash questions over whether British personnel or bases would be used in Israel’s respond to Iranian missiles.
“Our £14bn hellholes” is the headline for the Metro, which reports that potholes have caused 480,000 “incidents” so far this year, with over 50,000 last month alone. It says the numbers include incidents where people have been injured and even died as a result of potholes, and reports on demands for the government to follow through on its election promise to fix a million of them.
Protests over cuts to winter fuel payments lead the Daily Express which reports that hundreds of people gathered outside Parliament. It says Sharon Graham, head of the Unite trade union, told crowds that the prime minister had to reverse the decision.
The Guardian’s lead story is a look back at a day of memorials held in Israel to mark the first anniversary of the 7 October attack in the south of the country.
A showbiz exclusive leads the Daily Mirror which reports that Philip Schofield told Holly Willoughby “you brought me down” in the wake of his dramatic This Morning exit. Schofield quit ITV after admitting he had had an affair with a younger male ITV employee and lied to cover it up.
The Sun also splashes on Schofield, saying that he refers to Willoughby as “the witch” since their “bitter fall-out”.
“Deported thief uses ECHR [European Court of Human Rights] to stay in UK” is leading The Daily Telegraph, after a Albanian convicted criminal won the right to stay in Britain after he was deported but returned the country. Court documents seen by the Telegraph reveal that Ardit Binaj, 32, was successful in his claim that any attempt to re-deport him would breach his right to a family life, under Article 8 of the ECHR, after he had a baby and got married to his Lithuanian girlfriend who is living in the UK.
The Financial Times reports on sentiment amongst investors ahead of the chancellor’s Autumn Budget. It says the rising cost of borrowing is being fuelled by “jitters” over Rachel Reeves’ spending plans.
And finally, the Daily Star’s top story speculates over whether Nessa and Smithy, characters from Gavin and Stacey, will get married in a special one-off episode airing on the BBC on Christmas Day.
