'Fatal cost' of 'toxic No 10' and 'Migration overhaul'

The papers on Friday are leading on the long-awaited independent report into how the government handled the Covid pandemic. The front page of the Independent reads: "Fatal cost of Boris's 'chaotic and toxic' No 10: 23,000 dead".

Pandemic delays were responsible for 23,000 deaths, according to the Times. The inquiry, lead by former judge Baroness Hallett, says the UK response to Covid was "too little, too late" and led to thousands more deaths in the first wave. The paper adds that 227,000 UK deaths were attributed to Covid during the pandemic.

Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson is pictured on the front page of the i Paper, which hones in on the report's allegations of a "toxic, sexist and chaotic culture" in Downing Street. Lockdowns could have been avoided altogether if action was taken in the "lost month" of February 2020, the paper says.

The criticism levelled at the former prime minister also leads the Guardian, which says the report paints a "consistent picture of delay, inaction and apparent inability to learn lessons".

"Toxic, chaotic, calamitous" is the Metro's verdict, which details some of the more damning allegations in the 800-page report.

"Inexcusable," declares the Mirror, quoting Baroness Hallet's evaluation of the government response. It says that the "Partygate PM's 'toxic' administration" broke its own rules, referencing the Covid scandal that ultimately resulted in Johnson stepping down as an MP.

The Telegraph leads with the cost of the inquiry, calling it a "£200m Covid 'I told you so'". The paper quotes Richard Tice, deputy leader of Reform UK, who denounced the expense to taxpayers and says the inquiry has "told what we already knew".

The impact of lockdowns on British children is the focus for the Mail, which suggests that the education and wellbeing of young people was sacrificed to "save their elders". According to the report, the closing of schools and nurseries in 2020 brought ordinary childhood "to a halt".

The Sun reports that a "Strictly star" was arrested last month on suspicion of rape. According to the paper, the allegations related to an incident which happened after a BBC event.

Migrants who are high earners or entrepreneurs could be eligible for settlement in as little as three years, the Financial Times reports. The paper says others could be forced to wait up to 30 years, in what Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has declared the "biggest overhaul of the migration model in 50 years".

The front page of the Express is dedicated to its Christmas appeal, which hopes to secure "life-changing wheelchairs" for children in partnership with charity Whizz Kidz.

The Star leads on barbed comments from former English cricketer Monty Panesar, ahead of the Ashes kicking off on Friday.

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