'Cruel summer' and 'Football's staying home'

13 hours ago

News image — "Cruel summer" is the Metro's top story, splashed underneath a photo showing flames and smoke emanating from rolling hills in Dunwich, Suffolk, where it says "hundreds of people were evacuated from the area after a huge wildfire close to a nuclear power station". The paper compares the blaze to the "size of 247 pitches" writing that much of the UK is sweating through the "4th heatwave so far".

"Cruel summer: Monster wildfire amid 4th heatwave so far," reads the headline on the front page of the Metro. — "Cruel summer" is the Metro's top story, splashed underneath a photo showing flames and smoke emanating from rolling hills in Dunwich, Suffolk, where it says "hundreds of people were evacuated from the area after a huge wildfire close to a nuclear power station". The paper compares the blaze to the "size of 247 pitches" writing that much of the UK is sweating through the "4th heatwave so far".

"Uefa backs World Cup boycott," reads the headline on the front page of the Times. — The Times continues coverage of the Suffolk fire with a photo of a firefighting helicopter scooping water from the sea to battle the blaze. Elsewhere, the paper says that Europe's football governing body "Uefa backs World Cup boycott", writing that "European sides won't play if investment plan goes ahead". It goes on to explain that the plan involves selling "stakes in its competitions to private investors".

"England join boycott of World Cup," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Express. — Covering news on the minds of football fans, the Daily Express reports "England joins boycott of World Cup". The paper adds that 55 European nations that make up Uefa "threaten to pull out of competition", which it explains "may see the Three Lions, led by Harry Kane... pull out of qualification games for the 2030 contest alongside co-hosts": Morocco, Portugal and Spain.

"Red card for Infantino," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mirror. — "Red card for Infantino" writes the Daily Mirror, spotlighting the man at the centre of the maelstrom: Fifa boss Gianni Infantino. The paper quotes its chief sports writer Andy Dunn saying "Infantino has to go".

"Whole of Europe to boycott World Cup," writes the Daily Star in its front page headline. — The Daily Star runs a scoreboard of support in the showdown between the football governing bodies: "Uefa... 55, Fifa... 0", saying "whole of Europe to boycott World Cup".

"Game changer: Europe tackles Infantino by boycotting the World Cup," reads the headline on the front page of the i Paper. — "Game changer" is the i Paper's verdict as "Europe tackles Infantino" – continuing with the football metaphors. "Infantino threatened to slash members' earnings if they did not back him," the paper reports, "but federations in Asia and Americas are also opposed to sell-off".

"Football's staying home," reads the headline on the front page of the Sun. — "Football's staying home" concludes the Sun.

"Europe to boycott World Cup in fury over sell-off plans," reads the headline on the front page of the Independent. — Uefa says the World Cup is "not for sale", the Independent writes.

"BoE holds rates steady but sees risks ahead if war drags on," reads the headline on the front page of the Financial Times. — The Bank of England "holds rates steady" is the Financial Times' summary of the monetary policy decision on Thursday. It goes on: "the central bank could still need to raise rates if the Iran conflict drags on", although it says the BoE concluded "that borrowing costs were already high enough to insure against the risk of a more persistent bout of inflation".

"Labour's £18 billion council tax raid," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Telegraph. — The Daily Telegraph leads with its exclusive reporting on "Labour's £18 billion council tax raid", explaining it has seen figures that "show the national council tax take is expected to increase 43% by 2030, drawing in £58.8bn that year". It breaks down the data, revealing that it would mean a "£500 rise in average bill by 2030". The Ministry of Housing, Local Government and Communities did not respond to the paper's requests for comment, the paper writes.

"Burnham admits oil drilling can ease cost of living," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mail. — The Daily Mail reports Prime Minister Andy "Burnham admits oil drilling can ease cost of living", quoting him that he "concedes that 'Britain can't ignore' resources in North Sea". It adds: "Experts have predicted that lifting the ban could generate £25billion in extra tax revenues for the UK over the next decade."

"Wildfire in Suffolk burns near nuclear plant," reads the headline on the front page of the Guardian. — "Wildfire in Suffolk burns near nuclear plant" the Guardian says, printed below a photo of firefighters dousing flames engulfing a cluster of trees. "Meanwhile, amid the hot, dry and windy weather in the EU, blazes continued to rage in France".

"Football's staying home," is the Sun's assessment of the English FA joining the threat to boycott the World Cup, if Fifa goes ahead with Gianni Infantino's plans to sell stakes in the competition to private investors. "Red Card for Infantino" is the Daily Mirror's take on the story. The i Paper calls the decision a "game changer". With every member country in European football's governing body backing the threat, The Daily Star's headline reads "Uefa 55 - Fifa nil".

According to the Daily Telegraph, council tax bills will rise by an average of £500 by 2030. The paper says it has seen Treasury figures showing that the national council tax take will rise by 43% by the end of the decade. The Ministry of Housing and Local Government has told the paper it is inaccurate to suggest that councils have set tax rates beyond this year.

The Daily Mail says the prime minister has hinted at a shift in what it calls Labour's ideological ban on new drilling for oil and gas, by saying that when people are struggling, the North Sea is a resource "we can't ignore". The paper hails it as an admission that oil drilling can ease the cost of living.

The Times says French police have been criticised for the deaths of four people in the Channel, as more than 750 more migrants crossed in nine boats. The Sun notes that Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood warned when she gave France £662m to tackle the crisis in April that the deal depended on results. "Give us our money back," insists the paper.

The Guardian says more people were recalled to prison for breaching their licence conditions in the first three months of this year than were released. It notes that this is the first time that this has happened. The paper points out that prisons in England and Wales are already close to capacity but the government has recently paused early release schemes. The paper quotes the Ministry of Justice as saying these early releases "probably" resulted in an increase in prisoners being recalled. The Daily Telegraph highlights separate data showing that a record number of prisoners have reoffended since the start of the early release scheme.

The Daily Express notes that Sir Paul McCartney was blown away by his first Mercury Award nomination for his 24th number one studio album, The Boys of Dungeon Lane. "One to watch, this lad," suggests the Daily Mirror.

'Cruel summer' and 'Football's staying home'

Daily Express

Daily Mail

Daily Mirror

Daily Star

Daily Telegraph

Financial Times

Guardian

Independent

Metro

Sun

The i

Times