Newspaper headlines: Labour housing plan and banks 'ripping off' savers

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By BBC News
Staff
PA Media

The Labour Party reportedly wants to force landowners to sell land more cheaply as part of efforts to ease the housing crisis

A variety of stories lead Tuesday's papers.

The Times leads with what it calls the "bitter legal battle" brewing about the government's refusal to hand over all of Boris Johnson's full, unredacted WhatsApp messages to the Covid-19 inquiry. The paper says ministers are unlikely to change their minds and could seek a judicial review in an attempt to circumvent the demands of the inquiry chairwoman, Baroness Hallett.

It adds that several current and former ministers are supporting the Cabinet Office position because they're "unhappy about the possibility of their messages being exposed". In an editorial, the paper makes clear it believes Lady Hallett is right to believe it's for her to decide what is relevant to her inquiry, and not civil servants trying "save the blushes of ministers".

The Guardian says Labour is planning to force landowners to sell plots cheaply to help cut home-building costs in England if it wins the next election.

New laws would allow local authorities to buy up land without having to factor in what's called the "hope value", a huge premium added to the value of land on which developers hope to secure planning permission.

The paper quotes a Labour source saying the party wanted to "tilt the balance of power" away from landowners and more towards communities which could benefit from having homes.

The Financial Times says says Labour's proposals go beyond current government moves to force land to be sold cheaply in some limited cases. It says housebuilding is "set to be a big theme in the next election".

PA Media

The mother of 10-year-old Jack Lis, who was mauled to death by an XL Bully dog, is calling for government action to stop anyone else coming to harm

Speaking to the Daily Telegraph, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has backed an academic whose invitation to speak at the Oxford Union has sparked a row. Professor Kathleen Stock, a key gender-critical figure, is due to speak at the Union on Tuesday, but her invitation has led to protests. Mr Sunak tells the paper "university should be an environment where debate is supported, not stifled".

The Daily Mail reports that Sir Keir Starmer is under fire for accepting a party donation of £1.5m from a leading Just Stop Oil funder. It says Labour has been challenged to distant itself from what it calls "eco-zealots" by returning funds donated by Dale Vincent, the founder of the green energy company Ecotricity.

The Daily Mirror says a grieving mother has joined its campaign to have laws about dangerous dogs overhauled. Emma Whitfield's 10-year-old son, Jack Lis, was mauled to death by an XL Bully, a new and larger version of the American bulldog. She tells the paper that "this has to stop" and that the "government needs to act now".

And high street banks are being accused of "ripping off" loyal customers by offering "unjustifiably low" returns on savings despite recent rises in interest rates, according to the Daily Express. The paper quotes former pensions minister Sir Steve Webb calling for "effective and enforced action" by regulators.