The prime minister’s “plan for change” speech setting out key benchmarks to judge the government on leads several front pages. But the Daily Telegraph says Sir Keir Starmer has “watered down” two of his election pledges amid “signs the economy is struggling in the wake of his tax rising budget”. The paper notes the PM promised to get 95% of energy needs from low-carbon sources by 2030, down from 100% previously. It adds a vow to secure the highest economic growth in the G7 has become an “aim”.
Starmer’s plans to increase housebuilding and reform Britain’s “ruinous” planning system are leading the Times. Writing in the paper, the PM has vowed to prevent homes and infrastructure being “held to ransom” and attacked “blockers and bureaucrats” who have “choked off” economic growth. The paper says Starmer has told ministers to draft plans to streamline environmental rules that can add millions in costs to development projects.
The i highlights Starmer telling the public to judge his government on whether living standards rise quickly, describing the PM as “gambling the next election on making voters feel better off”. A source in Downing Street has told the paper “we want people to judge us on delivery” and called for Labour to be given a chance to lead a “decade of national renewal”.
The Daily Mail’s political sketch writer did not take to Starmer’s speech, describing it as a “bingo hall parade of buzzwords and political nerdspeak”. In his column featured on paper’s front page, Quentin Letts notes there “seven pillars”, “six milestones” and “five missions” and “three foundations” in the remarks, but notes the absence of “one firm target to cut migration”.
The NHS is facing what heath chiefs are describing “quad-demic” of emergencies this winter, with England’s hospitals “busier than ever” for the time of the year. The paper reports that the number of people with flu in hospital has quadrupled compared to last year, while cases of Covid, norovirus and respiratory synctial virus are also rising.
The four major viruses threatening the health service also leads the Daily Mirror, which reports that hospitals are “braced for a flood of patients”. Experts have urged those eligible for them to get seasonal vaccines, especially with Covid and RSV on the rise.
Metro’s front page is dedicated to the fatal shooting of a healthcare executive in New York. Under the headline “Smiling Assassin” the paper features two CCTV images, one of the shooter and another released by police of a man in similar-looking clothing officers say is a person of interest. Metro reports the “grinning gunman” left “a cryptic three word message” by writing deny, deny and defend on the bullet casings used in the shooting, which it says echoes the “title of a book exposing tactics used by firms to beat claims”.
A plan for a French firm to lead a break-up of Thames Water assets before the company is publicly listed on the stock market is the lead story in the Financial Times. The paper says a bid by UK infrastructure firm Covalis capital could see water firm Suez water company appointed to manage the struggling utility, which is “saddled with £19bn in debt” and at risk of “running out of cash” next year.
Referring to the setting at Pinewood studios, the Daily Mail likens the speech to a film production, saying Sir Keir is on the “second take” of his premiership. Poking fun at the Labour leader, the report compares him to the actor George Lazenby, best known as being the only man to play James Bond just once. He replaced Sean Connery in the iconic role, but the paper stops short of suggesting who the prime minister’s Roger Moore could be.
Writing in the Times, the PM promises to get building by pushing through reforms to Britain’s planning system. In his column, Sir Keir claims that the “blockers and bureaucrats” are “choking” economic growth and making home ownership unaffordable. He has instructed ministers to draw up laws to streamline environmental rules, that can delay, and add millions of pounds to the cost of a development. Citing the £100m on tunnel built to protect bats as part of the HS2 project, Sir Keir said that his government would not accept what he called “this nonsense” any more.
Almost all council staff in England work the occasional day from home, according to the Telegraph. The paper’s claim is based on data from 88 of England’s 317 local authorities. Of those, 86 said they allowed staff to work from home at least once a week. The report mentions a 2023 study by UCLA and MIT, which concluded there was an 18% drop in productivity when people are out of the office.
