Newspaper headlines: 'Rishi saves his bacon' and 'Sunak heads off right-wing revolt'
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"Sunak sees off the Tory Rwanda rebels... for now" is the Daily Mail's, external front page headline. It says the prime minister has been warned that he could face a debilitating rebellion in the New Year.
For Tthe Sun, external the draft legislation "scraped through". The Times says "it's not over yet" while Tthe Guardian, external believes the prime minister now faces weeks of chaos as he struggles to hold together his mutinous party. The Daily Mirror, external is even more blunt: "Nightmare After Christmas" is its headline.
The Financial Times, external describes the vote as a significant victory for Rishi Sunak but says it was secured only after a day of frenetic arm-twisting. Downing Street was left jubilant says Tthe Daily Telegraph, external after days of dark warnings from both sides of the party. It observes that the prime minister hugged his chief whip, Simon Hart, on the floor of the Commons - just moments after the victory. "Rishi saves his bacon" is how Tthe Metro, external sums up the story. The prime minister launched a charm offensive, it reports, and won over rebels with bacon butties.
The Times reports that ministers are set to announce reforms which will mean local councils are no longer forced to set aside greenfield land for housing needs. The paper says the change is designed to appease rebel Conservative MPs who have warned that opposition to housebuilding in their constituencies will cost them their seats at the general election. Ministers argue that the changes will allow more homes to be built in the long run because councils will be incentivised to produce realistic plans. Industry sources tell the Times the change would be "disastrous".
A view of damage after Israeli air strikes on 12 December in Rafah, Gaza
The Financial Times, external believes that President Biden has offered his harshest criticism yet of the Israeli government. Speaking to donors at a fundraiser, Mr Biden claimed Israel was starting to lose support around the world because of "indiscriminate bombing" in Gaza. He described the coalition government of Benjamin Netanyahu as "the most conservative" in Israel's history.
The Guardian agrees the words were President Biden's harshest since the conflict started - and says he also ramped up pressure over any future deal - insisting Israelis "can't say no" to a Palestinian state. The Times notes that the United States voted against a UN General Assembly resolution on Tuesday night calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. It says the vote underscored the growing isolation of the United States and Israel.
The back pages focus on Manchester United's exit from the Champions League after a one-nil defeat by Bayern Munich at Old Trafford. The Daily Telegraph, external says Man United crashed out with barely a whimper. "Rock Bottom" say the Times and the Mirror.
In a surprising move, Oxford students are being told to use artificial intelligence software to help write their essays. According to the Daily Telegraph, undergraduates studying economics and management are being advised to use tools such as ChatGPT to generate first drafts of essays before critiquing them. Professor Steve New tells the paper that his students discuss the AI work in tutorial groups - but the essays play no part in any formal assessment.
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