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Newspaper headlines: 'Covid passports' and 'green light for racists'

By BBC News
Staff

Published
image captionSeveral papers look ahead to what summer has in store. Those wanting a quarantine-free holiday will have to swap Spain for Bahrain under new travel rules, the Sun reports. As many European countries experience a surge in cases and struggle to vaccinate citizens quickly, the Gulf state is rapidly rolling out its vaccination programme. This means the country will get the "green light" under plans unveiled next week, according to the paper.
image captionThe Times says "vaccination hotspots" such as the United States, Maldives, Israel and Malta could be the first countries to open up for British holidaymakers this summer. Under a new traffic light system, travel to red-list countries will not be permitted, amber countries will mean people will need to quarantine for up to 10 days and green-list countries will not need any quarantine, the paper says. Separately, Oxfam is facing new allegations of sexual exploitation, bullying and mismanagement, the paper reports.
image captionCovid passport trials are set to begin as early as next month, the Daily Mail reports. Theatres and stadiums will be lined up to pilot the scheme under plans discussed by ministers, the paper says, with the passports potentially being used in pubs, restaurants, nightclubs and cinemas. However, the scheme is likely to be contentious, the Mail adds, with some Conservative and Labour figures labelling such documents "divisive and discriminatory".
image captionThe Daily Telegraph says the FA Cup final and the World Snooker Championships are among the events that could require coronavirus vaccine passports. Meanwhile, millions of pounds of taxpayers' money have been invested into the Dutch vaccine factory at the centre of a European row over jab exports, the paper reports. It says that about £21m was meant to secure shipments for the UK from the Halix factory in Leiden. Brussels has insisted that the doses should be diverted to EU nations, the paper adds.
image caption"Get set for summer fun" is the headline on the front of the Daily Mirror as the paper reports that the entertainment and culture industries will receive £400m to bounce back from lockdown.
image captionThe Daily Express leads with comments from England's chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty, who has said we will have to learn to live with coronavirus - like we do the flu. This way, Britain can avoid future lockdowns, the paper adds.
image captionMeanwhile, Doreen Lawrence has become the latest person to hit out at the government-commissioned race report, which she says threatens to push the fight against discrimination back 20 years, the Guardian reports. The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities said family structure and social class had a greater impact than race on people's lives. The 258-page report claimed the term "structural racism" was "too liberally used". Lady Lawrence, whose son Stephen was murdered in 1993, said: "My son was murdered because of racism and you cannot forget that. Once you start covering it up it is giving the green light to racists."
image captionAnd the i leads with an investigation into links between Westminster and big business. The paper says at least 66 of Former Prime Minister David Cameron's ministers and officials found private sector jobs linked to their role in government within two years of stepping down.
image captionFinally, a giant, yellow thumbs up dominates the front of the Daily Star, with the paper reporting that the emoji - and several others - fall foul of the "hip and trendy" test and is actually a signal of your age.

Speculation about coronavirus passports - and plans for foreign travel this summer - dominates the front pages.

The Daily Telegraph expects Covid certificates will be trialled at major events including the FA Cup final and the BRIT Awards in May, with government scientists monitoring everything from "crowd flows to ventilation systems" to learn lessons about running large events safely.

The Daily Mail says the passport scheme will begin once the NHS test and trace app has been updated to show if someone has had their vaccine or recently tested negative for the virus - so those unable or unwilling to have a jab are not discriminated against.

But the Daily Express says Boris Johnson still faces a backbench revolt over the plan.

"The planes to Spain now mainly to Bahrain" is how the Sun describes the likely conclusion of the prime minister's international travel review on Monday.

It says many European destinations will be off-limits this summer because of soaring infection numbers and low vaccination rates, although sun-seeking Brits will be able to visit the likes of the United Arab Emirates without having to quarantine when they come home.

The Times understands that no final decisions have been taken, but does not believe the current ban on foreign trips will be lifted before July, with one source insisting that holidays "won't be as we know them for the foreseeable future".

image copyrightPA Media

For a second day, the Guardian leads on criticism of the government-commissioned report on race.

It reports comments made by the Labour peer and equality campaigner, Doreen Lawrence, who told an online student event that the review was a "green light for racists" which threatened to push back the fight against discrimination by 20 years.

The paper adds that several academics mentioned in the report do not believe they were properly consulted, while an unnamed source tells the New Statesman website that "inconvenient evidence" was disregarded.

The commission says it engaged both "directly and indirectly" with thousands of individuals and organisations who represent a "large cross-section" of the UK.

image copyrightGetty Images
image captionDoreen Lawrence, mother of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence, said the report was a "green light for racists"

The front of the i features the faces of 66 former ministers and advisers to David Cameron when he was in Downing Street who found private sector jobs linked to their government portfolios within two years of stepping down.

It says that, while there is no suggestion they have done anything wrong, opposition parties are worried that the watchdog which oversees these appointments has too little power to prevent corruption.

Mr Cameron himself denies allegations he sought preferential access to state funding for the collapsed financial services company, Greensill Capital.

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And finally, the Daily Mirror says that fans of the late England footballer, Peter Bonetti, have clubbed together to return a treasured memento to his family.

The former Chelsea goalkeeper, who died last year, gave away his England cap from a match in 1967 to pay for building work - and his relatives could not afford to buy it back when it recently appeared for sale on eBay.

More than 100 people donated more than £1,500 to win the online auction on their behalf, and gave the cap to Mr Bonetti's widow, Kay, who plans to loan it to Chelsea's museum at Stamford Bridge.