Newspaper headlines: 'Shaming of the Met', and chief 'refuses to quit'

BBC NewsStaff
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News imagePA Media Police stand in front of a crowd of people who turn on their phone torches as they gather in Clapham Common, south LondonPA Media
Police stand in front of a crowd of people who turn on their phone torches as they gather in Clapham Common, south London

Many front pages picture protesters in central London in what the Financial Times calls the "fierce public backlash" against the police's handling of the Sarah Everard vigil.

The Daily Mail dubs it the "Shaming of the Met", saying thousands joined the demonstrations.

The Sun accuses the Metropolitan Police of being "utterly tone deaf" in its handling of the vigil on Clapham Common for Ms Everard.

Amid the fury, the Sun reports that Ms Everard's family hopes that her death can bring about "positive change".

Summing up the campaigners' feelings, the Daily Mirror's headline is "pain and anger".

But the Daily Express suggests the police were in a "no-win situation" - trying to keep the gathering safe, while facing the difficulty that a serving officer was charged with Ms Everard's murder.

The Daily Telegraph accuses the government of putting the police in an "invidious position" - as the officers tried to uphold the laws they "promulgated" - only to be "hung out to dry by grandstanding politicians".

The paper stresses that the prime minister is "deeply concerned" and has summoned the force's chief, Dame Cressida Dick, to a meeting.

The Guardian focuses on her criticism of what she called "armchair" critics.

The Times points out that it "could hardly have come at a more inconvenient moment" for Home Secretary Priti Patel as MPs debate her new bill to allow police to clamp down harder on protesters.

The Spectator warns that although the bill could not have come at "a worse time politically", Labour is wrong to vote against it - pointing out they support many issues covered by the legislation.

News imagePA Media Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick arrives at New Scotland Yard in LondonPA Media
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Dame Cressida Dick arrives at New Scotland Yard in London

The Times reports on Boris Johnson's promise to offer London-style bus services across England.

Its analysis suggests it could be a "canny move", saying they are particularly vital in many of the Tories' so called "Red Wall" constituencies.

The head of Transport Focus welcomes the scheme in the Daily Express, saying "buses are a lifeline... and essential to our economy".

But under the headline, "Bus lanes bedlam", the Mail warns the strategy "risks angering motorists".

Writing in the Mirror, shadow transport secretary Sam Tarry suggests the scheme "falls well short of what" he says the country "urgently needs".

The Yorkshire Post notes how it will help rural areas, but its main focus is on the Department for Transport's plan to create a northern hub, creating hundreds of jobs in Leeds.

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News imageRed line

There is a suggestion in the i that Britain's treatment of Shamima Begum, who left the UK to join Islamic State, has a race element.

The Olympic Park sculptor, Sir Anish Kapoor, asks what might have happened had she been one of four young white girls from Wiltshire enticed to go to Syria.

Would they have been seen as terrorists or victims of terrorists, he asks.

The government says Ms Begum's return to the UK would "create significant national security risks".

The Mail and the Sun both suggest that Turkey will become the latest country to welcome back British holidaymakers.

But according to both papers there will be no requirement for a vaccination certificate and perhaps not even for a negative Covid test.

And according to the Telegraph this year's gardening craze is set to be "growing your own loofah".

Apparently last year there was a boom in home grown vegetables, but experts are convinced the latest trend will be harvesting sponges to help save plastic.