'King's historic Congress address' and 'Starmer sees off rebellion'
King Charles III's address to US Congress dominates the front pages of Wednesday's papers. The Daily Telegraph describes the speech as "historic", during which the King praised Nato and said the alliance between the US and Europe "is more important than it's ever been". But the paper's lead story is on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer offering to "bring back" his former deputy Angela Rayner.
"Charles hails alliance of US and Britain in age of division" echoes the Guardian as it highlights the King's focus on the "special relationship" between the US and UK. The paper also notes the monarch's "pointed reference to Nato" in light of President Donald Trump's recent suggestions that the US could leave the alliance.
The i Paper focuses on the King's call for the US to champion peace and preserve its partnership with the UK on matters including defence, security and trade. The paper also adds that an "oblique reference" in the King's speech to "victims of some ills" is unlikely to be accepted by victims of the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein who have been calling for him to show his support for survivors.
The Times says the King and Trump have forged "a very special relationship" during the monarch's state visit, picturing the pair sharing a laugh in the Oval Office. The paper quotes the King describing the bond between the US and UK as "priceless and eternal".
The Sun features the same picture of Trump reaching over to tap the King on the knee in the Oval Office with the headline: "Kneesy does it!" It's lead story says ex-boxer David Haye is considering suing the TV show I'm a Celebrity Get Me Out of Here.
"Old pals' act" is the Daily Mirror's take, saying Trump "changes his tune on UK". It's lead, however, is on the profits made by oil giant BP which it says come "on the back of Iran turmoil and spiralling costs".
The Daily Star splashes with President Trump recalling his mother describing the King as "cute" when he was a young prince. The US president included the detail while speaking about his Scottish mother's love for the Royal Family during a speech at the White House.
"A diplomatic masterclass" is how the Daily Mail the King's speech to Congress. Elsewhere, the paper focuses on a "Labour rebellion" in the vote to refer Sir Keir Starmer to a parliamentary investigation over Lord Mandelson's appointment as US ambassador. It reports that despite the motion being voted down, the division list showed 14 Labour MPs rebelled to support it.
"PM wins reprieve" says the Independent, saying Sir Keir Starmer survived a "crunch vote" to avoid an inquiry. The paper also mentions the PM's former chief of staff admitting to the Foreign Affairs Committee he made "a serious mistake" in recommending the appointment of Lord Mandelson.
The Daily Express follows with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accusing Labour MPs of being part of the "Mandelson cover-up" after the Commons vote. Writing in the paper, Badenoch says Labour has put "party before country" by voting down an investigation into the prime minister's claims on the scandal.
The Financial Times spotlights leaked comments by the UK ambassador to the US in which he says America's only special relationship is "probably Israel". Sir Christian Turner made the remarks in February at an event with British students visiting Washington shortly before taking his post. The Foreign Office responded to the comments saying they were "private" and "informal" and "not a reflection of the UK government's position".
A doctor has warned of a "worrying" trend of people seeking cosmetic procedures using AI-generated images as a reference of how they want to look, the Metro reports. It cites an aesthetic expert who says patients using AI "selfies" in the lead-up to their treatment has doubled in a year to over 20%.
