Newspaper headlines: Omicron 'red alert', and Arthur failings probe

Both the Guardian and the Daily Telegraph highlight the news that ministers have given GPs in England the green light to provide a lower level of care to millions of patients for the next four months, so they can join the "national mission" to deliver Covid booster jabs urgently.

The Telegraph says family doctors have been told they can stop carrying out routine health checks on people over 75, even though they will continue to be paid for these duties, while also receiving bonuses for the jabs they administer.

The i speaks of public health officials giving the Omicron variant of coronavirus a "red" alert level for its capacity to evade immunity.

It reports that early data has indicated that half of those infected with the new variant were double-jabbed.

The paper says ministers are drawing up plans for an advertising blitz to persuade people to take lateral flow tests ahead of festive gatherings, as a way of avoiding tougher restrictions and saving Christmas.

According to the Guardian, the government is being privately urged by some of its scientific advisers to tell people to work from home where possible until Christmas, when more will be known about the dangers posed by Omicron.

The Financial Times says hospitality venues have been hit by a wave of Christmas cancellations, following mixed messages from the government about whether office parties should go ahead.

It quotes the industry body, UK Hospitality, as saying festive bookings are 30% below expectations for this time of year - a fresh blow to a sector already reeling from the pandemic.

The Daily Mail leads with a pledge by Boris Johnson to "leave no stone unturned" in learning from the failure to save the life of six-year-old Arthur Labinjo-Hughes.

Arthur was tortured and killed by his father and stepmother, and a review is under way into the authorities' contact with him.

The Daily Express says the prime minister is "deeply disturbed" by the case.

The Daily Mirror calls it the "abuse case that has horrified the nation".

The Sun quotes Arthur's paternal grandmother, Joanne Hughes, saying he was "failed by a system that should have kept him safe".

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The Times reports that Chancellor Rishi Sunak is planning to cut income tax by two pence in the pound or to slash VAT rates before the next general election.

A third option said to be under consideration is reducing inheritance tax by raising the £325,000 threshold above which it becomes due - this has been frozen since 2009.

The paper observes that while increases in corporation tax and national insurance are forecast to raise the tax burden to its highest level since the 1950s, Mr Sunak is determined to shed his reputation as a "high-tax, high-spend" chancellor after the pandemic.

Meanwhile, in an interview with the Times, Sir Keir Starmer declares that Labour is now the party of Middle England, and insists he has both the charisma and the team required to win the next election.

The Labour leader says his shadow cabinet reshuffle this week was designed to get "the strongest possible team on the pitch", and he believes the party is on track to secure a consistent lead in the opinion polls over the next 12 months.