Newspaper headlines: 'Sick note UK' and 'Bird flu spreads to humans'

By BBC News
Staff
The Daily Mail leads on what it calls the UK's "sick note crisis", reporting that a record 2.5m workers were signed off with long-term sickness in the first three months of 2023. The paper says most of the issues were caused by back and neck pain while working from home. The paper also carries a photo of Michael Douglas, awarded an honorary Palme d'Or to "mark his glittering film career".
Metro also leads on the ONS's sickness figures, pointing out that it coincides with the UK's unemployment rate "unexpectedly" rising by 0.1% to 3.9%. The Princess of Wales's escapades at a charity event in Bath also make the front page, with the royal pictured smiling in a bright yellow blazer as she takes part in a beanbag competition.
Ministers are removing basic housing protections from asylum seekers to cut the "asylum hotels bill", the Guardian reports. The shake-up, "designed to move tens of thousands out of hotels and into the private rented sector", would exempt landlords from meeting minimum safety regulations in accommodation, such as electrical safety and minimum room sizes. MPs could vote "as soon as Wednesday" on the plans, put forward by Home Secretary Suella Braverman. The newspaper has also interviewed Eurovision winner Loreen on "fear, fame and fighting for human rights" after she secured her second win in the song contest over the weekend.
AFP
The i newspaper takes a look at the spread of bird flu to humans in the UK after two people tested positive for the virus. It reports that two poultry workers from the same farm were infected, but there is no evidence of human to human transmission, according to the UK Health Security Agency. The newspaper also carries an exclusive on ADHD patients waiting up to four years for an assessment in some parts of the UK, with the longest waits affecting those under the care of the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust, totalling more than 208 weeks.
The Daily Mirror's main story takes aim at ex-Tory MP Ann Widdecombe, branding her "another out-of-touch politician" after she remarked that struggling families should stop making cheese sandwiches to cut back on rising food costs. One expert told the paper that "ordinary people are sick of being told how to get by on next to nothing by wealthy politicians who have never known true poverty". The Princess of Wales smiling in her sunshine-yellow blazer also features on the front page, with the royal compared to fictional holiday camp worker Gladys Pugh from hit sitcom Hi-De-Hi.
The Daily Telegraph leads on the Renters' Reform Bill that would end Section 21 "no fault" eviction notices. Inside the newspaper, Michael Gove writes that the law will affect a "minority" of landlords who treat tenants poorly - but the newspaper reports that critics will view the bill as "another attempt by government to tie the hands of landlords".
Housing is also the focus for the Times, which leads on Sir Keir Starmer's pledge to build more homes on the green belt to tackle the UK's housing crisis. In an interview with the newspaper, the Labour leader says that, if his party are elected, he will relax planning restrictions to pave the way for more housebuilding. Sir Keir accuses the Conserva tives of "killing the aspiration of home owning for a whole generation". The newspaper also reports that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is facing the prospect of three by-elections after being advised that three MPs nominated for a peerage by ex-leader Boris Johnson will have to stand down from the Commons.
The Daily Star cautions readers to consider their emoji usage if they're looking for love. According to the newspaper's modern love experts, using "cheeky" aubergine and peach emojis could "scare a potential soulmate away forever".
Prince Harry's High Court appeal leads Wednesday's edition of the Sun, as the US-based royal protested the decision not to let him pay for armed police security for his UK visits. The newspaper reports the royal was "blasted by the Met", with the London-based police force claiming providing Harry with security would lead to a two-tier system where the rich and famous fund their own private force.
The head of artificial intelligence system Chat GPT says he sees AI manipulation of the upcoming US elections as a "significant concern", the Financial Times reports. Sam Altman, whose company created Chat GPT, told US lawmakers independent audits on AI technology and warnings similar to nutritional labels were "a great idea". The FT also leads on the University of Oxford voting to remove the Sackler name from buildings, spaces and staff positions after an investigation by the publication found the university had continued its ties with the wealthy Sackler family, which developed the controversial drug OxyContin.
Rishi Sunak's appeal to the EU courts to ease laws that prevent the UK government from deporting migrants to Rwanda leads the Daily Express. The prime minister reportedly told lawmakers in Strasbourg they needed to be "fair and transparent" after "secret late-night court rulings" meant deportation flights were grounded in the UK.

The Guardian reports that asylum seekers will lose basic housing protections under new proposals to move tens of thousands of people out of hotels and into the private rented sector. The paper says ministers want to exempt asylum seekers' landlords from rules, including minimum room sizes - causing "alarm" among healthcare workers and migration campaigners. A government spokesperson said standards of care would not be compromised, but that the use of expensive hotels must end.

Rishi Sunak's speech to the Council of Europe in Iceland is the main story for the Daily Express, which carries the headline: "You must let us deport illegal immigrants". The paper says the prime minister told judges at the European Court of Human Rights that it was time to stop "meddling" in Britain's plans to fly illegal migrants to Rwanda, adding that they must start being "fair and transparent" after what the Express calls "secret late-night court rulings" that left deportation flights grounded in the UK.

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Rishi Sunak addresses the fourth Summit of the Council of Europe in Reykjavik

According to the Times, the prime minister is facing the prospect of three by-elections, after being advised that Conservative MPs, nominated by Boris Johnson for peerages, will have to stand down from the Commons - before the next general election - if they want to join the Lords. The paper reports that of those nominated by the former prime minister, Nadine Dorries, Nigel Adams and Alok Sharma are said to be prepared to give up being MPs, which could see the Tories lose seats in by-elections. But a source close to Mr Sharma tells the Times that it is a "totally hypothetical question".

The Daily Mirror highlights remarks by former Tory MP Ann Widdecombe, who told the BBC that people who can't afford basic food items should do without. She was responding to a question about the cost of making a cheese sandwich at home, which has jumped by around a third in the past year. "Can't afford a sandwich? Hard cheese," reads the paper's headline.

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Former Tory MP Ann Widdecombe has come under fire for comments she made in a BBC interview about the cost of living

The Daily Mirror pictures a Palestinian man, arm-in-arm with the rabbi husband of a British Jewish woman, killed in a terror attack in the occupied West Bank last month. Abu Radia met Lucy Dee's husband, Leo, to thank him after his life was saved when one of her kidneys was donated to him. The paper says the 38-year-old carpenter also gave Rabbi Dee a framed blessing with the message: "If you save one life, it's as if you've saved the world." Rabbi Dee tells the Mirror that his wife would have wanted her kidney to be "a sign of peace and reconciliation".