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Newspaper headlines: HS2 ‘gamble’ and Storm ‘Dennis the Menace’
The Financial Times is one of many papers leading with the prime minister’s pledge to deliver the controversial HS2 high-speed rail project. The paper says that, while Boris Johnson promises the £106bn scheme will be a transport “revolution”, critics have queried the cost and the benefits.
The Metro’s main headline rebrands the project “High Spend 2”, as it focuses on Mr Johnson’s acceptance that HS2’s costs have “exploded” above the original budget of £32.7bn.
The i also slightly renames the project in its headline, calling it “High Speed North”. A subdeck headline describes Mr Johnson’s approval of the “biggest infrastructure project in Europe” as a gamble. and another headline highlights that rebel Tories and green groups will continue to fight against the project.
The gamble theme is also taken up the Daily Express, which claims that Mr Johnson’s move is risky business, and that he is making a “£100bn bet” to secure economic growth. It pictures him defending the project in the House of Commons, hours before visiting a building site in Birmingham where he wore a HS2-branded safety helmet and overalls.
Mr Johnson is staking his political reputation on the rail scheme, the Guardian declares. The prime minister brushed off objections made by MPs in his party who said the project would be an “albatross” around the government’s neck, the paper adds.
Moving away from transport to television, the Daily Telegraph quotes the BBC’s chairman as warning the nation will be “weakened” if the broadcaster’s licence fee is reformed. Sir David Clementi is due to give a speech that is “likely to antagonise the government”, the paper claims.
“Brace Yourself II” warns the movie-style strap headline at the top of the Daily Star front page as the paper warns readers of a second weekend of dangerous weather. Storm Dennis – or Dennis the Menace, as the tabloid dubs it – is on its way. Or “on the warpath” as the paper puts it.
A British man linked to 11 coronavirus cases is afraid he might become a scapegoat, the Daily Mirror reports. Steve Walsh spoke out for the first time on Tuesday. Neighbours told the Mirror he was “terrified” he might face a backlash over the outbreak.
The prime minister’s reported “fury” at a decision by judges to prevent the deportation of 25 offenders to Jamaica makes the lead story in the Times. It says Mr Johnson is planning to limit the ways judicial reviews can be used to challenge ministers.
Drastic action is needed for the NHS to cope with a surge in the elderly population, England’s new chief medical officer tells the Daily Mail. Chris Whitty tells the tabloid that rural areas in particular are struggling to cope with the number of patients over the age of 65.
Finally, an interview with the former girlfriend of celebrity chef Paul Hollywood makes the front page of the Sun. Summer Monteys-Fullam, 24, says she was “besotted” with the 53-year-old Great British Bake Off judge, adding: “If you love someone, then age is nothing but a number.”
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