'Starmer did ignore Epstein warnings' and 'Record oil release'
AFPAll of the papers lead on Lord Mandelson after the government released the first set of documents related to his appointment as the UK's ambassador to the US. "PM flouted Mandelson warnings" says the Times, after the files revealed Sir Keir Starmer had been told the peer's links to Jeffrey Epstein posed a "reputational risk". The Daily Telegraph says concerns had been raised by two of Britain's most senior foreign policy officials. The Guardian reports that, even so, Sir Keir "pressed on"with the appointment. The Sun's headline is: "For Pete's sake, PM". Its editorial speaks of a "moral vacuum" at the heart of government.
The Daily Mirror focuses on the suggestion in the files that Lord Mandelson explored the possibility of a severance payment of more than £500,000 when he was sacked, a claim the BBC understands the peer has taken issue with. Metro highlights a detail in the documents, that shows an official was praised for reaching, what the paper calls, a £75,000 "compromise". The Daily Express describes the whole thing as a "grubby saga".
Many of the papers carry photographs of one of the three cargo vessels struck by "unknown projectiles" in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday. The image shows smoke billowing from the ship. The Guardian says the attacks mark an escalation in the conflict between Iran and US-Israeli forces. "All eyes are trained on the Strait of Hormuz," says the Times. The paper's editorial argues for a robust response to Iran's threat to sink every ship entering the crucial passageway, despite the cost and military difficulties.
The Daily Telegraph highlights reports saying the FBI has warned that Iran could launch a drone attack on California in retaliation for US strikes against the regime. Police departments on the US west coast are said to be on alert.
BBC Radio 2 presenter Liza Tarbuck's departure from her Saturday evening time slot "leaves fans bereft", the Daily Mail writes. After 14 years hosting the show, the Sun says the actress and comedian said she "wants her weekends back".
And the Guardian and the Times report that Bruce Springsteen, Kate Moss and Tom Waits are set to feature on an album released in memory of the late Shane MacGowan. As part of the announcement, Bruce Springsteen has recalled meeting the Pogues singer shortly before his death in 2023, and described him of the few artists whose voice seemed to "speak to history itself".
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