Newspaper headlines: UK 'should have citizen army' and Royal Mail cutbacks

General Staff General Patrick Sanders warned Britain should train a "citizen army" ready to fight a war on land in the future

A number of Thursday's newspapers are leading on the head of the British army's call for an expanded "citizens army", in the event of the UK entering a full-scale war with Russia.

"PM forced to rule out Army draft," reports the Daily Telegraph which says Downing Street didn't want General Sir Patrick Sanders' comments to be made public. It says he wants there to be a "shift" in the mindset of the British people, in which they're mentally prepared for war.

The Times says Britain's military leaders are discussing plans to build a force of up to 500,000 people. It says Ukraine's war against Russia has convinced them of the need for a secondary fighting force, in case the trained military is defeated.

"Your country will need you to fight Putin," reads the Metro's headline, alongside an image of the famous Lord Kitchener recruitment poster from the First World War.

In other news, the Daily Mail leads with the response to proposed changes to Royal Mail's delivery schedule. It describes the regulator's suggestion of cutting deliveries from six days a week to as low as three as a "first class fiasco".

The Daily Express also takes up the story - saying the prime minister has vowed to prevent any changes to the postal service. It quotes Rishi Sunak's comments in the House of Commons, where he said he was "absolutely committed" to keeping deliveries to six days a week.

Rishi Sunak is considering plans to prioritise British workers for social housing, according to the Guardian. It says a consultation on the proposals will be launched in the coming weeks, but warns the idea hasn't gone down well with senior members of his government. It's reporting some fear the move, dubbed "British homes for British workers" could further fuel support for the Reform UK party.

The i newspaper reports the Post Office knew about problems with another IT system - that suffered similar problems to Horizon by recording incorrect financial shortfalls - but prosecuted staff anyway. It says the Capture system was installed in 1995 and that sub-postmasters have told the paper they were wrongly fired and prosecuted when issues arose.

"Paris requests help for EDF," reports the Financial Times. It says France is calling on the UK to plug a multi-billion pound hole in the budget of nuclear projects being built in Britain by the French electricity operator. The FT says the request will likely cause tensions between the two countries.

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