Newspaper headlines: Met staff data breach and Dorries quits as MP

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By BBC News
Staff
Reuters

Former culture secretary Nadine Dorries has resigned as an MP more than two months after first announcing her intention to quit

A variety of stories feature in the Sunday papers.

The Sunday Express, the Observer, and the Sunday Telegraph all carry pictures of Nadine Dorries, with each paper using the word "finally" to report her departure.

The Observer has interviewed some of Ms Dorries's constituents in Mid Bedfordshire, where it says posters describing her as "Dosser Dorries" have started to appear. Half a dozen interviewees complain their MP is never there, with one saying she is as useful as a chocolate teapot, though one says Ms Dorries helped her find appropriate housing for her disabled daughter.

The Mail on Sunday and the Sunday Telegraph report that Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is planning a new tax that would see drivers charged per mile that they travel. The government has told both papers it will block any such plan, while a spokesperson for Mr Khan tells the Mail that the claims are "complete nonsense".

Speaking to the Sunday Times, Mr Khan says he thinks he will be on the right side of history over the Ultra Low Emission Zone, a controversial scheme under which those in the highest polluting vehicles are charged £12.50 a day to drive in the capital. From Tuesday, the scheme will be expanded to cover the outer boroughs of the city. Mr Khan says people understand the need to take action on air pollution, which the paper says is estimated to kill 4,000 people a year in London alone.

The Sun on Sunday has some details about the cyber breach at the Metropolitan Police. It says undercover officers may have to be pulled from the field, potentially forcing police to pull the plug on crucial operations. A former commander of the force tells the paper the safety of staff has been put at risk.

Ministers are expected to bow to pressure to appoint a judge to lead an inquiry into nurse Lucy Letby, according to the Sunday Times. Letby was last week given a whole-life term for the murder of seven babies and the attempted murder of six more. The paper says the inquiry would have the power to compel people to give evidence under oath.

PA Media

The Metropolitan Police has said details about its officers and staff may have been compromised in a data breach

The Independent has seen the latest NHS staff survey, which suggests that, in three quarters of hospitals, more than half of staff think their bosses would ignore a whistleblower. The NHS says it has reminded health leaders it is vital that staff feel able to raise concerns.

Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves has told the Sunday Telegraph that a Labour government would not raise taxes on wealth, property, capital gains, or top incomes. The paper says the pledges are the clearest break yet from the party's 2019 manifesto.

The Sunday Express leads with a report that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wants to change the law on whole-life sentences - which remove any prospect of release - to make them the default punishment for all murderers who had a sexual motivation. The paper says the policy will delight Tory MPs and is set to be announced in the King's Speech in November.

The Sunday Mirror says Mr Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murthy, have donated £3 million to a university in the US over many years. The paper reports the couple are named on a wall of high level donors at Ms Murthy's alma mater, Claremont College in California.

The paper also says that Philip Schofield has spoken to a boss at TalkTV about a possible role on the channel. It reports that, after resigning from ITV over his affair with a younger colleague, Mr Schofield is feeling optimistic about the future. But a source close to him has told the paper he won't be returning to television screens anytime soon.