MI5's 'Chinese spies' alert and Trump defends MBS

Several of Wednesday's papers are leading on Chinese espionage in the UK, after MI5 issued an alert to MPs. The Times reports on an alert to MPs issued by MI5 identifying two LinkedIn profiles which it says have been used on behalf of the Chinese state to recruit. US President Donald Trump and the Crown Prince of Saudia Arabia Mohammed bin Salman are pictured clasping hands at the White House on the front page.

The Guardian says the LinkedIn profiles in question were designed as a "covert and calculated" attempt to recruit parliamentarians and obtain "non-public and insider insights". It says that the profiles were under the names Amanda Qiu and Shirly Shen.

The Independent says a "new row" has erupted between London and Beijing after the MI5 alert to British politicians. It reports the Chinese embassy in the UK dismissing the accusations as "pure fabrication and malicious slander".

As well as the MI5 story, the Financial Times front pages also features Trump and the crown prince prominently. It says the president lashed out at a reporter who asked about the killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent critic of the Saudi regime who was murdered at the country's Istanbul embassy in 2018. Trump said his White House guest "new nothing about" the killing, seemingly contradicting the assessment of US intelligence agencies.

The Telegraph says Britain is "not ready to defend" itself against an invasion. After a year-long inquiry, the Commons defence committee accused the government of moving at a "glacial" pace in the face of renewed threats from Russia and China. Catherine, Princess of Wales, is pictured on the paper's front page following her first public speech in more than two years.

The i newspaper claims Chancellor Rachel Reeves told a meeting of Labour MPs that a tax on high-value properties will be included in her Budget next week. The chancellor urged MPs to "sell the message" that new tax rises will fall hardest on wealthy people, according to the paper.

Both the Mirror and Guardian carry claims by former schoolmates of Nigel Farage who say the Reform UK leader held "racist and antisemitic" views while a teenager. The party says the allegations are "entirely without foundation" and a "smear".

The Metro leads on comments made by Google boss Sundar Pichai to BBC News. He told the BBC that people should not "blindly trust" AI models, which he said were prone to errors.

The Mail leads on an investigation into the death of teacher John Wright. The paper claims he took his own life after being sacked by an elite private school for making what the Mail describes as a "few ill-advised remarks". Marlborough College has insisted he was dismissed for "inappropriate conduct".

The Express says asylum seekers have been filmed "partying and fighting" at their temporary accommodation at a Ministry of Defence site in Essex. It calls the scenes "raving mad".

Finally, the Daily Star leads on the news that the BBC's beloved crime drama Line of Duty is making a sensational comeback.

Photos of a jubilant Scotland squad celebrating their World Cup qualifying win appear across the front and back pages. After 27 years, the Scottish Daily Mail says, "Scots are finally on top of the world". According to the Scotland edition of the Times, "the roof nearly came off the stadium" at the final whistle - while the Sun declares: "Scotland are back."

The i Paper reports that suspected Chinese spies operating profiles on the networking site LinkedIn are connected to senior officials within the Home Office, the Foreign Office and Nato.

After a warning from MI5 that those involved in politics were being targeted by China, a senior government figure tells the Times that they are sending a "clear message to Beijing that we know what you are doing".

But the Financial Times says the dispute "threatens to strain further a relationship that Sir Keir Starmer has tried to improve".

A report which says the UK is under-prepared for an armed attack is highlighted on the front page of the Daily Telegraph.

The paper quotes the Commons' defence committee as saying that the government is moving at a "glacial" pace in the face of "renewed threats from Russia and China". The Ministry of Defence says it will set out its plans to bolster the UK's "warfighting readiness" later on Wednesday.

"Farage told me 'Hitler was right'" is the headline in the Daily Mirror. It quotes a former classmate of Nigel Farage as saying he recalls him using racist taunts at school. The story originates in the Guardian, which says it has heard from more than a dozen people who accuse the Reform UK leader of "deeply offensive behaviour" throughout his teenage years.

In legal letters to the paper, Farage emphatically denies saying anything racist or antisemitic when he was a teenager. Reform UK says the allegations are "entirely without foundation", describing them as "cynical attempts" to smear the party and mislead the public.

Sign up for our morning newsletter and get BBC News in your inbox.