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'PM isolated' and 'Job concerns deepen'

News imageBBC "PM isolated as cabinet divisions emerge over Mandelson scandal" reads the headline on the front page of the Guardian.BBC
The row over the security vetting of Lord Mandelson continues to dominate many of Thursday's front pages. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer is "isolated", reports the Guardian, "as cabinet divisions emerge" over the "scandal". And the paper says there are "doubts over peace talks" in the Middle East after Iran seized two ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
News image"PM 'should face sleaze inquiry over Mandelson'," reads the headline on the front page of the Times.
The Times highlights calls from opposition parties for the prime minister to "face sleaze inquiry over Mandelson". It quotes one Labour MP who was the first to call for the prime minister to quit on Wednesday, saying none of his colleagues "reasonably expects" Sir Keir "to last" until the next election.
News imagePM 'fired Robbins before he could defend himself", is the headline on the Independent's front page.
Allies of Sir Olly Robbins have said he was sacked by the prime minister without even being asked to explain his handling of the Lord Mandelson vetting saga, according to the Independent. The former Foreign Office chief was fired last week for failing to tell Sir Keir that Lord Mandelson had failed vetting for the role of ambassador to the US.
News image"Streeting allies now open to Rayner pact - with Cabinet losing confidence in PM" reads the headline on the front page of The i Paper.
The i Paper also leads on the growing pressure on Sir Keir, reporting that allies of Health Secretary Wes Streeting are now open to a pact with former deputy leader Angela Rayner as it says the cabinet is "losing confidence in PM". One minister tells the paper the entire cabinet would collectively be needed to depose him, describing the situation as "bleak".
News image"Hermer pursued 'witch hunt' against troops despite warnings" reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Telegraph.
The Daily Telegraph says Lord Hermer pursued a "witch hunt" against British troops despite being warned that the allegations were lies. The Attorney General, before he was appointed to the role, was lead counsel in civil claims against the Ministry of Defence in which Iraqis alleged British troops tortured and executed civilians after the Battle of Danny Boy in Iraq in 2004. After the al-Sweady public inquiry ruled the allegations were "deliberate lies", the troops were fully exonerated in 2014. A spokesman for Lord Hermer tells the paper the attorney general had "always acted with the highest professional standards, and the suggestion the he had acted for individuals with the knowledge that their claims were false is categorically untrue". A spokesman later added that the Telegraph has misrepresented what they described as Lord Hermer's minimal involvement in the case.
News image"Iran seizes two ships in show of force as bid to revive peace talk founders" reads the headline on the front page of the Financial Times.
"Job concerns deepen after UK suffers highest tax rise on wages in rich world," writes the Financial Times. It also echoes the Guardian, saying "bid to revive peace talks founders" after Iran seized two merchant ships and struck a third in a "show of force" that came "just hours" after US President Donald Trump extended a ceasefire.
News image"Knox's letter to Letby" reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mirror.
Amanda Knox, who was cleared of killing British student Meredith Kercher in Italy after four years in jail, says she has written to convicted murderer Lucy Letby in prison, the Daily Mirror reports. The American, who is working on a podcast on the UK case, says she would like to meet or speak to Letby, the former nurse serving a whole life prison sentence for murdering seven babies and attempting to murder seven others in 2015 and 2016.
News image"Workshy Brits? Not this pair!" reads the headline on the front page of the Metro.
"Workshy Brits? Not this pair!" says Metro, highlighting one "great-gran" who is "still in full-time nursing at age 80". Meanwhile, "dad cycles 60 miles a day to earn a living".
News image"Phoney war" reads the headline on the front page of the Sun.
It is a "phoney war", according to the Sun, as Brits are facing "mobile signal rationing as energy costs soar over Iran conflict". The "stark warning" comes from "Telecom giants" who have been excluded from a government discount scheme to reduce business costs.
News image"It's my life, my choice" reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mail
The whole of the Daily Mail's front page is taken up by an interview with 56-year-old Wendy Duffy who has decided to end her own life at a Swiss clinic. Switzerland has allowed assisted suicide since 1942.
News image"Here's another £660m to stop the boats" reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Express.
"Here's another £660m to stop the boats," announces the Daily Express. There is an "'astonishing' payday" for France as "Labour strikes new three-year deal".
News image"Ooh aah it's brand new VAR" reads the headline on the front page of the Sun.
"Ooh aah it's brand new VAR," the Daily Star declares. The World Cup will welcome new "body scan tech" that "could see footballers ruled offside by their dodgy hairdos".

"It's over" is the Daily Telegraph's verdict on Sir Keir Starmer's time in Downing Street, as the row over Lord Mandelson's vetting continues. The paper has spoken to one government source who said the "wheels had stopped turning" in Number 10 - while the Guardian says the prime minister is looking "increasingly isolated" as divisions emerge in the cabinet. The i Paper says that allies of Health Secretary Wes Streeting are open to a "pact" with former Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner as they look to avoid a "bloody" leadership contest to replace Sir Keir.

An "astonishing" pay day for France is how the Daily Express greets the UK's new cross-Channel migrant deal. The Times notes that the new agreement will make some of the money conditional on performance for the first time.

The front page of the Daily Telegraph is dominated by an investigation into Attorney General Lord Hermer. The paper says he pursued a "witch hunt" against British troops who had served in Iraq, despite warnings the allegations were false. A spokesman for Lord Hermer said he had always acted with the highest professional standards, and the claims were categorically untrue.

The Sun leads with warnings that rising energy costs linked to the war in the Middle East mean that phone data could have to be "rationed". It's a "phoney war" is the paper's headline.

The Financial Times reports that one of President Donald Trump's special envoys has asked Fifa to replace Iran with Italy at this summer's men's football World Cup. Paolo Zampolli told the paper that he was an "Italian native, and it would be a dream" to see the Azzurri at the tournament. Fifa declined to comment.

If you're driving, and have just hit a pothole, then don't worry - they were also a problem 300 years ago, according to the Times. It highlights research by British and American academics who have mapped the journeys taken by more than 100 diarists from the mid-1600s through to 1820. The writers described the roads back then as "execrable, vile and detestable".

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