Several papers lead on the 80th anniversary of VE Day, with some publishing souvenir editions to mark the anniversary. “80 years of hope” says The I. The Telegraph shares some of the stories of those who celebrated in the streets on the 8th of May 1945, describing a “joyous” atmosphere as people kissed, hugged and cheered. The Daily Star’s front page features a silhouette of the statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square, with the headline “Never forget”.
The front pages of the Guardian and the Financial Times both focus on Pakistan saying it will retaliate after India launched air strikes against its neighbour. The I also reports that world leaders are calling for restraint and that “emergency diplomacy” is taking place.
According to the Times, migrants applying to work in the UK will soon have “to be fluent in English”. The paper says the measure will form part of the government’s immigration reforms. The current standard, equivalent to knowing English as a foreign language at GCSE, is said to be “too basic” and is expected to be raised to something closer to A-level ability, the paper reports.
The Daily Telegraph says the Co-op is prioritising deliveries to its remote countryside shops as it works to minimise disruption caused by an ongoing cyber attack on the business. There have been reports that some of its stores across the Scottish isles have been running low on food supplies, after the Co-op had to switch off crucial systems which left the company struggling to manage deliveries. The retailer hasn’t commented but has previously apologised to customers after revealing it had been hit by hackers.
Some of the papers report on a meeting between ministers and water firms yesterday to discuss the risk of England facing a drought this year, after the country experienced the driest start to Spring in almost seventy years. The I says the Environment Agency is closely monitoring the situation. The Times says water company chief executives are expected to meet again in July.
Striking photographs of cardinals gathered at the Vatican yesterday, preparing to choose the new pope, feature in almost all of the papers. But as the front page of the Guardian says, “the wait goes on”, after plumes of black smoke were seen rising from the chimney of the Sistine Chapel, signalling that the cardinals were unable to reach a decision on the first day.
