Newspaper headlines: Law to stop small boats and Johnson 'to make dad a Sir'

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By BBC News
Staff
PA Media

New laws are expected to block anyone entering the UK illegally from claiming asylum

Many of Tuesday's papers lead with government plans to block anyone entering the UK illegally from claiming asylum as part of attempts to reduce the number of people arriving in Channel crossings.

The Times reports that the Home Office is expected to buy two former RAF bases in Lincolnshire and Essex that could house thousands of detained migrants before their removal, either to their home nation or third countries such as Rwanda. It quotes government sources who admit they can not say if the proposals are "definitely compliant" with the UK's obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights - and they expect a legal challenge.

The Daily Telegraph reports that the bill introducing the measures will specifically state that they may not comply with the Convention - although ministers believe they do. It says the home secretary - in promising to push the boundaries of international law - is directly challenging European judges. The paper adds that the legislation will give Suella Braverman powers to counter European court injunctions, such as the one which last summer blocked the first deportation flight of Channel migrants to Rwanda.

"We will push human rights law to the limit," reads the headline in the Daily Mail, which says the bill will be rushed through Parliament and could be in place by the summer. Writing in the Sun, Rishi Sunak says the plans will "take back control of our borders once and for all" while the home secretary tells the Daily Express that the government "owes it to the British people" to solve the issue.

The i says some Conservatives think the measures are "unworkable" because the UK lacks capacity to detain tens of thousands of asylum seekers and may struggle to find countries to take them when they are removed. It quotes former Tory cabinet ministers who fear the prime minister risks "overpromising and underdelivering."

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Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson has drawn criticism after reportedly nominating his father, former MEP Stanley Johnson, for a knighthood

According to the Daily Telegraph, Oxford University is banning romantic relationships between lecturers and their students. Under the current policy, they are strongly discouraged and must be declared to a line manager - but from next month, anyone with responsibility for a student faces the sack if they start a relationship with one. Staff will also be "strongly discouraged" from any other close personal contact which "transgresses the boundaries of professional conduct". University College London and Nottingham University already have similar measures in place.

The Guardian reports that more than 1,000 so-called "super-emitter" sites pumped the greenhouse gas methane into the atmosphere last year. The paper says the worst single leak - at a fossil fuel facility in Turkmenistan - gave off gas at a rate equivalent to running 67 million cars. Methane now accounts for a quarter of global heating.

And the Daily Mirror says reports that Boris Johnson has nominated his father, former MEP Stanley Johnson, for a knighthood are beyond belief. "Sunak must stop this farce", it implores. The Independent website quotes unnamed Conservatives who think the nomination is "outrageous" and "ridiculous nepotism, completely without merit". Its headline reads: "Arise, Sir Dad?"