BBC News

Newspaper headlines: Scallops row and e-cigarettes on prescription

By BBC News
Staff

Published
Image caption, Several front pages focus on the UK's summoning of the French ambassador over the escalating row over fishing rights. The Daily Telegraph says the seizing of British scallop vessel Cornelis Gert Jan is the latest controversy to have occurred in recent days amid tensions over the number of licences granted to French fishermen after Brexit.
Image caption, France has kicked off a new post-Brexit battle, says the Metro. UK fishermen claim they are victims of French President Emmanuel Macron getting tough as he attempts to boost his re-election campaign, it says. "Kick in the scallops" is Metro's headline.
Image caption, A similar headline features on the front of the Daily Star. The paper says the row has seen the UK raise "two fish fingers" to the French.
Image caption, The Daily Mail reports that England is set to be the first country in the world to prescribe e-cigarettes to help smokers quit. Describing the plan as "controversial", the paper says it comes despite a "torrent of evidence" on the health risks of vaping.
Image caption, However, the Guardian says doctors, medical leaders and health campaigners have welcomed the news, saying it could reassure smokers about the relative risks and help those who would struggle to afford e-cigarettes.
Image caption, Leading with the same story, the Daily Express quotes Health Secretary Sajid Javid as saying the move "has the potential to tackle the stark disparities in smoking rates across the country".
Image caption, The i focuses on the Budget - reporting the Institute for Fiscal Studies' conclusion that low and middle income families could face lower living standards as a result of the measures in Wednesday's announcement. "Return of the squeezed middle" is its headline.
Image caption, For the Mirror, it is a "bankers' budget", amid a "perfect storm" of tax increases, inflation and mortgage rate rises. The paper says millions are facing "real pain" after what it describes as the chancellor's "failure to 'level up' the country".
Image caption, The Times also focuses on the expected rise in mortgage payments, saying some of Britain's biggest lenders, including HSBC, Barclays and NatWest are already increasing rates because of fears over inflation. It says concerns about falling living standards have intensified after analysts warned that high inflation and tax rises were likely to more than offset pay rises for most earners.
Image caption, With banks raising mortgage rates, the Financial Times says the "era of ultra-cheap loans", which helped fuel a "rampant property market", is drawing to a close. It says this will only add to the pressures on family finances, which are already stretched by higher energy bills and inflation.
Image caption, The Sun reports that Manchester United footballer Christiano Ronaldo is set to become a dad of six - after he revealed his girlfriend is expecting twins. Its front page has a picture of the smiling couple holding a picture of an ultrasound scan, alongside the headline "Two Ron Ron".

For a second day, many front pages analyse the impact of the Budget, with the Daily Mirror saying the prospect of mortgages, inflation and taxes all going up has created what it calls a "perfect storm."

The Times describes the chancellor's plans as a "spending splurge", which city experts predict could force the Bank of England to increase interest rates next week because of concerns about inflation. But the i says leading economists and think tanks are split on whether this is a foregone conclusion.

The Financial Times and the Daily Telegraph both report that some of the biggest lenders have already raised their mortgage rates, with the FT saying it signals the end of the "era of ultra-low borrowing costs".

Image source, Getty Images
Image caption, COP26 is being held in Glasgow next week

The Guardian looks at next week's climate conference, COP26 - and its chances of a successful outcome - after China added little to its latest plan for tackling greenhouse gases. Analysts call the submissions "disappointing" if not unsurprising.

The Spectator says a deal at Glasgow "now looks very unlikely." The FT agrees but suggests there is a "glimmer of hope" if the leaders of the G20 countries meeting on Saturday can "galvanise" the climate summit.

The Economist says that while global climate gatherings have many flaws they are the "best forum to force change".

Writing in the i, a senior lecturer in global systems, James Dyke, says the real hope lies with ordinary people prepared to make a change. He suggests the Global Assembly made up of citizens can offer solutions that politicians are too afraid to make.

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The seizure of a UK trawler by French police leads to much wordplay in the papers - with both the Metro and Daily Star summing it up as a "kick in the scallops", the Daily Mail "le showdown," while the Sun appeals to France not to be so "shellfish."

The Telegraph suggests the decision to summon the French ambassador to the UK over the row is a step that Britain hasn't taken with its neighbour in decades. Its editorial blames the spat on Emmanuel Macron's determination to "present an image of toughness to voters" before next year's presidential election.

But the Daily Express suggests that the French electorate is unlikely to be impressed by what it calls his "obnoxious tantrum".

Image source, Reuters
Image caption, A British trawler, Cornelis Gert Jan, is being held in the port of Le Havre, after being seized by France

The Guardian, Mail and Express all lead on a plan that could see England becoming the first country in the world to offer e-cigarettes on prescription to smokers trying to give up.

The Express quotes Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who says the proposal could help people stop smoking "wherever they live and whatever their background".

The former Liberal Democrat health minister, Sir Norman Lamb, welcomes the plan in the Guardian, saying it could be a real gamechanger.

But the Mail points out that the World Health Organization has concluded the devices are "undoubtedly harmful".

And nearly all the papers note an increase in stray cats or as the Sun calls it "pussies galore". There are apparently quarter of a million homeless moggies in our towns and cities.

The RSPCA suggests the pandemic may have stopped owners from getting their pets neutered.