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Most of the papers focus on the Conservative Party’s manifesto launch. The Metro says Boris Johnson claimed “the stakes have never been higher” in a bid to secure votes at the launch event in Shropshire.
The same headline quote is picked by the Tory-supporting Daily Telegraph. Mr Johnson’s plans for spending amount to the biggest Tory rise in state expenditure, as a proportion of GDP, since Harold Macmillan, the paper says. Despite this, it adds, Conservative spending pledges are “dwarfed” by those of Labour.
The i describes the Tory manifesto as a slimmed-down “health and safety” document designed to avoid big policy pledges – which, it says, caused damage to the last Conservative election campaign in 2017.
The Guardian attacks the manifesto as “modest” and points out that it is missing several key pledges from Mr Johnson’s leadership campaign, such as promised tax cuts for higher earners. The Institute of Fiscal Studies says the document was “remarkable” in its lack of ambition, the paper reports.
But the FT says this “low-risk” manifesto is a clever move by the Tories to hold on to a “commanding” lead in the polls. The paper’s political editor George Parker says the pledges are aimed at holding on to voters rather than “trying to win new converts”.
The focal point of the manifesto for the Daily Express is a pledge to add 50,000 more nurses to the workforce in England by 2023. A Tory government would aim to train more nurses by reintroducing student maintenance grants – which it scrapped in 2017 – of up to £8,000 a year.
The Sun can’t resist a festive quote on its front page. It says Mr Johnson promises a “Happy Blue Year” if he wins the Christmas election and delivers Brexit. In contrast to the way other papers have described the manifesto, the Sun says the document is a “jumbo package of spending promises”.
The Times says the NHS is at the heart of the manifesto. It hails policies to boost nursing numbers, GP appointments and renovate hospitals as key pledges in the Tory campaign, and draws attention to Mr Johnson’s claim that the election is the most critical in modern memory.
Moving away from the election, the Mirror focuses on the Duke of York. A woman who claims Prince Andrew touched her breast at sex offender Jeffrey Epstein’s apartment is prepared to testify to the FBI, the paper says. Buckingham Palace has issued strong denials of all allegations against the prince.
Finally, Jeremy Clarkson “admitting global warming is real” makes the Daily Star’s lead story. The revelation for the Grand Tour presenter came after a jet boat trip on a lake in Cambodia which he says was more like a “puddle”, the paper reports.
Many of the papers give their verdicts on the newly-launched Conservative manifesto.
The Times and the Daily Express say Boris Johnson has put the NHS “at the heart” of his election campaign, with the promise of 50,000 more nurses.
The Independent website points out that claim has been attacked as “fake” by Labour – because it includes more than 18,000 current nurses the government hopes to persuade to remain in the workforce.
The Sun calls it a “jumbo manifesto package of spending promises” which are aimed at ordinary working families.
In contrast the i describes it as a “safety-first” election blueprint and the Financial Times agrees – saying the prospectus includes a series of policies “intended to reinforce his double-digit poll lead”.
“The stakes have never been higher” according to identical headlines in the Metro and the Daily Telegraph – who take the line from Mr Johnson’s speech.
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The Telegraph goes on to say the prime minister “made it clear” he would not enter a spending competition with Jeremy Corbyn.
The Guardian agrees the “battle lines” over public spending have been drawn.
It says Mr Johnson plans to spend an extra £2.9bn a year – compared to the £83bn outlined by Labour.
The Daily Mirror doesn’t believe the Conservative pledges. It has a picture of a tombstone with the words: “Here lies the Tory manifesto… and lies and lies”.
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The Sun and the Star are among those to picture a young man carrying a large knife during a violent disturbance at Birmingham’s Star City complex on Saturday.
The Sun says up to 100 people from rival gangs clashed with each other and police outside a cinema.
“Machete mayhem” is the headline in the Daily Mail. The Guardian says the film, Blue Story, which depicts violent street rivalries in south London, has now been pulled from all 91 Vue cinemas.
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Other
Five teenagers have been arrested after a mass brawl in Birmingham
Fears that Satanists have been killing animals in the New Forest are in several papers, including the Daily Telegraph.
It has a picture of a dead sheep that has been spray-painted with a pentagram – a symbol associated with magic.
The paper says two other sheep have been killed and three calves found with stab wounds this month.
Rev David Bacon, who has had the number 666 scrawled on his church door, tells the paper he’s never seen anything like it in his 15 years there.
Hampshire Police are investigating whether any of the incidents are linked.
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Pro-democracy supporters in Hong Kong were in high spirits as election results were announced
In Hong Kong, the South China Morning Post says Beijing has been “left reeling” by a “tsunami of disaffection” from almost six months of street protests which swept through polling stations across the city.
It says opposition candidates “rode the wave” to win in poor and rich neighbourhoods alike.
The pro-China Hong Kong Commercial Daily reports on the record turnout and concedes that many of the legislative council were defeated “by newcomers” without mentioning the pro-democracy movement.
It suggests “unscrupulous rumours” from the opposition “directly affected” the fairness of the vote and says some candidates were “personally attacked”.
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