Newspaper headlines: 'Inflation hammer blow' and Russian spy threat

By BBC News
Staff
The rate of inflation leads several of Thursday's papers after figures revealed it stuck above 10% in March. "A living nightmare" is the Daily Mirror's headline. The paper reports that some food prices are now rising seven times faster than wages. The average cost of a weekly shop has risen 19% in the past year, the paper says - describing the figures as an "inflation hammer blow".
The i reports that the Bank of England is expected to raise interest rates to 5% in a bid to bring inflation back under control. The rate hikes would see 1.4 million people with variable mortgages paying £6,670 more a year compared with December 2021, it adds.
The Financial Times says the figures "offer little hope" for an end to the cost of living crisis. The FT quotes Chancellor Jeremy Hunt's comments that inflation above 10% is "destabilising for the economy" and it is "dangerous to leave it there".
Judges will no longer be able to block migrant deportations, according to the Times. The paper says Rishi Sunak's government will amend its Illegal Migration Bill to allow ministers to ignore interim injunctions from European judges and UK courts that attempt to stop a deportation flight. Elsewhere, the paper's main image is of the "coronation cloak" designed by florist Helen James.
Britain is facing "ideologically motivated" cyber attacks by Russia-aligned hackers, the Metro reports. The paper says the National Cyber Security Centre has issued an official threat notice to critical infrastructure operators.
Russian spy ships are plotting to sabotage Britain's critical infrastructure, the Daily Telegraph reports. The paper says the "ghost ship" missions are believed to be targeting internet cables, offshore wind farms and connectors carrying electricity and gas pipelines.
The Daily Mail leads on the case of a foreign-born rapist who is still living in Britain three years after the Home Office tried to deport him. The paper says Sir Keir Starmer and other MPs opposed the deportation, adding it was highlighting the case after the Labour leader accused the prime minister of being "soft" on criminals.
The Guardian says senior Ministry of Justice officials are "ready to quit" if Dominic Raab is cleared off bullying. The report into the claims against the justice secretary is expected to be published shortly. He has denied the allegations and said he has always "behaved professionally".
The Daily Express says a Tory and Labour MP have united to call for action to protect "the dignity of women and girls" by maintaining single-sex spaces, amid calls for changes by transgender activists.
"Look away now if you are easily shocked," the Daily Star warns, as it reveals that a conspiracy theorist's £16,000 experiment discovered the Earth is not as flat as he thought.