BBC News

Newspaper headlines: 'Perseverance pays off' and 'foreign holiday hope'

By BBC News
Staff

Published
image captionCoronavirus vaccines appear to cut Covid-19 transmissions and infections by two-thirds, the Daily Telegraph reports. The paper says "real-world data" shows a "powerful effect" of jabs on the spread of the virus. The paper separately reports that age should be the main factor in determining who gets a vaccine, according to the chairman of the government's vaccine committee. Its main picture shows the first images beamed back to Earth from Nasa's Perseverance rover after it landed on Mars.
image captionOne of the first pictures back from Nasa's Perseverance dominates the Times's front page. The paper says the mission has paid off - as the rover survived a "treacherous" seven-minute plunge. Elsewhere, the paper reports "hope" for overseas holidays as ministers are said to be working on plans to allow Britons to jet away for summer breaks.
image captionThe Daily Mail reports that people over 40 will begin to be offered a coronavirus vaccine by the end of March. It says government advisers are set to recommend widening jab lists and focus offers on the basis of age. The paper says it would be a "huge boost" for the vaccine programme and allow ministers to ease England's lockdown sooner.
image captionThe Sun leads with Prince Charles's "passionate plea" for everyone to take up the coronavirus vaccine - as celebrities join calls for ethnic minorities to accept the offer of a jab.
image captionAn opinion poll showing support for a mass return for schools in England on 8 March leads the i paper. It notes that half of those surveyed are reluctant to relax rules on households meeting before May. And the public want non-essential shops to be the first venues to open in the coming weeks, the paper adds.
image captionAn exclusive interview with French President Emmanuel Macron leads the FT. The premier tells the paper that Europe and the US should urgently allocate up to 5% of their vaccine supplies for poorer nations. The FT says President Macron is highlighting the "perils of inequality" in the run-up to the G7 summit of top nations this year.
image captionThe Daily Express says a new law is the solution to end organised internet abuse of epileptic suffers. The paper says young people living with the condition have been targeted by trolls who send strobes and garish messages. It notes how three victims have suffered convulsions as a result.
image captionA large thumbs down adorns the Metro's front page as the paper reports outrage at Facebook's decision to ban mainstream news from its site in Australia. The social media giant has banished links to news websites Down Under in a stand-off over a proposed law that would see it pay for news on its platform, the paper says. UK MP Julian Knight is quoted as describing it as "bully boy action".
image captionFacebook's decision to ban news in Australia leads the Guardian. The paper notes the social media network will reverse a block on government and emergency service pages - but keep a ban on news in place. Elsewhere, it reports that Boris Johnson will lead efforts to donate surplus vaccine supplies to poor nations. Pictured is the pop star Rhianna, who the Guardian says is facing a backlash for a fashion photo of a Hindu god.
image caption"Don't flash your maracas!" is the Daily Star's headline as it reports that presenters Ant and Dec have been warned against using comedy maracas to promote their ITV show.

Many of Friday's papers report the success of Nasa's Perseverance as it lands on Mars - and new data showing the early impact of vaccines in the UK.

Just one jab of either the Oxford of Pfizer vaccines can cut Covid infections by two thirds is the main story for the Daily Telegraph. It says the new early research by Public Health England shows a similar reduction in infection across all age groups.

The paper describes it as "the vaccine data that paves the way back to freedom".

Government advisers will recommend the next phase of the vaccine rollout continues on the basis of age, rather than prioritising key workers, according to the lead story in the Daily Mail.

image copyrightEPA
image captionA single jab of either of the leading coronavirus vaccines could have a marked impact on infections, Friday's papers say

But it says the age brackets will be widened and those between 40 and 49 years old could be invited for a jab within a matter of weeks. The paper says such rapid progress on the vaccine front is likely to increase pressure on ministers to ease the lockdown that much sooner.

President Macron of France says Europe and the US should urgently allocate up to 5% of their current vaccine supplies to developing countries.

In an interview with the Financial Times, he said African nations were buying western vaccines at "astronomical prices" - two or three times that paid in the west.

"Get One in One's Arm" is the headline in the the Sun, highlighting the involvement of Prince Charles in a campaign to encourage everyone to receive the vaccination.

Nasa jubilation

Grainy images of the bumpy surface of Mars taken by the Perseverance rover soon after landing loom large on the front pages of the Telegraph and the Times.

According to the Telegraph, Nasa controllers watched helplessly as Perseverance autonomously conducted its own approach to the Red Planet. It says there was jubilation as the spacecraft sent back a "heartbeat tone" confirming its safe arrival.

The i paper leads with an opinion poll which suggests the public remains cautious about the scale of how quickly we lift the lockdown. It says a majority of those questioned supported the reopening of schools on 8 March and of non-essential shops by April.

But most remained hesitant about pubs and restaurants opening their doors within the next two months.

The main story for the Guardian is Facebook's stand-off with the Australian government over whether it should pay for news content.

The paper says the social media site is coming under fire from politicians, news providers and civil society groups around the world who want to see its powers brought under control.

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And finally, the discovery of a small figurine dating from the first century has led archaeologists to believe that mullet haircuts were all the rage in the Iron Age.

A number of papers report that the bronze statuette, which was unearthed in a car park in Cambridgeshire, depicts a man with hair cropped at the sides but longer on top and at the back - similar to hairstyles all too popular in the 1980.

The Telegraph tells us it is not clear how widespread the Iron Age mullet was, but was probably subject to "regional styles and variations".