Newspaper headlines: 'Fine mess' for Rishi and coronation clothes change

By BBC News
Staff

"Another Fine Mess" is the Daily Mirror's headline, on the fixed penalty notice handed to the prime minister, after he filmed himself in a moving car without a seatbelt.

The paper calls Rishi Sunak a "serial law-breaker" - pointing out his previous "Partygate" fine for breaking lockdown rules in Downing Street along with Boris Johnson. It notes Mr Sunak has apologised for what the paper calls his "embarrassing seatbelt blunder".

Another senior Conservative on the front pages is the party Chairman Nadhim Zahawi. The Guardian reports that he has agreed to pay a penalty to HMRC as part of a seven-figure settlement over his tax affairs.

The article explains that penalties are applied if someone does not pay the correct tax at the right time and says that Mr Zahawi's spokesperson has not denied that a fine was paid -but did say his taxes had been properly declared and paid.

SUNAK VIA INSTAGRAM

Rishi Sunak was fined after posting a video of him being driven in a car without wearing a seatbelt

British holidaymakers visiting Europe this summer will be spared long queues at the border, according to the Daily Telegraph. It reports that the European Union has delayed the roll out of new fingerprint and photo checks for non-EU members from May until at least the end of the year.

The paper says the announcement will be welcomed by travellers who are booking trips in record numbers, after three years of Covid-affected holidays.

The Times leads on comments from the former Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, who is in favour of bringing in charges for GP appointments.

In an article for the paper, Mr Javid says he wants to start, what he called, a "hard-headed conversation" about the future of the NHS - which he says cannot survive without radical and controversial reform. He urges all parties to consider asking some of those who can afford it to pay for some of their treatment. The paper says Rishi Sunak is not currently considering the proposals.

Headteachers telling parents to keep children at home during the upcoming teachers' strikes is the top story for the i. It reports that school leaders cannot predict the scale of disruption from the seven walk-outs in February and March - and cannot find enough agency staff to cover lessons. Some 23,000 schools across England and Wales are affected.

The front page of the Daily Express declares the "Shock Death of High Street Banks by 2027". It points to the latest closures by Lloyds and Halifax after a warning from analysts that almost all local branches will be shut within four years.

The paper says while many people are switching to online banking, the move is having a "devastating effect" on the elderly and small businesses. The paper feels so strongly about High Street bank closures that it is launching its own campaign to save them.

And the Sun says King Charles has been advised to break with tradition and not to wear silk stockings with knee-length trousers at his coronation. The 74-year-old monarch is expected to wear military uniform instead when he is crowned in Westminster Abbey in May.

The paper's headline is "Charles Told to Drop his Breeches".

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