Newspaper headlines: ITV orders inquiry and university funding 'broken'

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By BBC News
Staff
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Labour's policy pledges - including free childcare - would cost the equivalent of a '3p hike in income tax', according to the i

A variety of stories lead Thursday's papers.

"Scrap unfair inheritance tax" is the headline in the Daily Telegraph, which has launched a campaign - backed by more than 50 Conservative MPs - for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to abolish what it calls the "death levy". Writing in the paper, former chancellor Nadhim Zahawi says the tax is "morally wrong", while the paper says many think it is "profoundly unfair as it penalises people who have saved money throughout their lives".

The threshold for paying inheritance tax has remained at £325,000 since 2010. A Treasury spokesman tells the paper that more than 93% of estates are not expected to pay any inheritance tax in the coming years and that the measure raises more than £7bn a year to help fund public services.

The i says analysis shows that Labour's policy pledges - including free childcare - would cost the equivalent of a "3p hike in income tax". The director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies, Paul Johnson, tells the paper it's hard to say how Labour could "do anything more generous than is currently planned" without raising taxes. The i says Labour admits it faces "tough choices" if it wins the next general election, but that it denies making major unfunded promises.

The Guardian has spoken to a group of university vice-chancellors who say the funding model for high education in the UK is "broken". The group warns that, amid rising costs caused by inflation and new limits for overseas students announced last week, universities could be "squeezed between the plummeting value of domestic tuition fees and declining overseas recruitment". The Department for Education tells the paper that it's providing £750m of extra funding over three years to support universities.

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A group of university vice-chancellors say the funding model for high education in the UK is 'broken'

According to the Times, the prime minister will announce a new intelligence-sharing deal with Bulgaria to help target smugglers and "tackle the small boat crisis". The paper says Bulgaria has become a key point of entry to the EU, both for gangs bringing in boat equipment from Turkey and, following a crackdown on Aegean Sea crossings into Greece, for migrants. It adds that Britain will also seek closer ties with Turkey, although a formal cooperation deal is not expected imminently.

Animal rights protesters plan to sabotage this weekend's Epsom Derby with an invasion of the racecourse, according to the Daily Express. The paper says activists "aim to mingle with the crowd before swarming over the barriers" and onto the track. It adds that the Jockey Club, which owns Epsom and 14 other courses, has won a court injunction which threatens jail for anyone interfering with the race.

Several of the papers report that the rising cost of living is seeing people turn into bookworms. The Times says consumers are seeking more affordable entertainment in "hard times". It says that Bloomsbury, which publishes Harry Potter, has reported its best-ever financial results, as "new readers remain hooked". The Guardian declares that "books are flying off the shelves".