A grim flu forecast for the UK in the lead up to Christmas is dominating the papers on Friday, with the Guardian describing it as the “worst ever winter crisis” as serious cases reach record levels. The NHS has warned that the outbreak is yet to peak and things will get worse in the days ahead, with GPs, hospitals and ambulance services already under “intense strain”.
The highest flu case numbers are being reported in children at school, according to the i Paper, with children under five particularly affected. The NHS is urging vulnerable people to get vaccinated, with the caveat that it takes two weeks following the jab to reach full immunity.
The Express is condemning the “reckless” planned strike by resident doctors next week, and writes that Health Secretary Wes Streeting has urged medical professionals to focus on tackling “rocketing” flu cases.
“Strikes may force NHS to collapse” warns the health secretary in the Times. In an article for the paper, Streeting says that it will be the most challenging winter for the NHS since the pandemic. A fresh offer has been put before the British Medical Association, which has agreed to poll their members to see if they are willing to call off the five-day walkout. The results of the vote will be announced on Monday.
Ticket prices for the World Cup 2026 have been announced, prompting “fan outrage, the Daily Mirror reports. Its headline reads “World Cup of greed”, emblazoned over a photo of US President Donald Trump and FIFA chief Gianni Infantino grinning at the White House.
The Financial Times leads with objections from China, and a number of European Union nations, to the planned exemptions for US multinationals from global tax obligations. According to the paper, this raises the risk of the Trump administration issuing a “revenge tax” on backers of the OECD’s proposed tax regime.
Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte is quoted on the front page of the Independent, after he warned that Europe must prepare for a conflict with Russia “on the scale our grandparents endured”. Speaking in Berlin on Thursday, Rutte urged European nations to rapidly boost defence spending as a deterrent to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The Telegraph also focuses on defence spending, following its interview with Minister for Armed Forces Alistair Carns. He told the paper that Nato countries, including the UK, must increase their “lethality”, and stop relying on US security guarantees.
Comments from Carns are also cited in the Daily Mail’s headline, which reads: “Britain is on a war footing”. Echoing the remarks made by Mark Rutte, the minister said that the “shadow of war was at Europe’s door”.
“Pubs ban MPs in tax raid fury” says the Sun, reporting on a campaign lead by Taxed Out, which is encouraging hospitality businesses to bar Labour ministers in protest against higher tax bills.
Four alleged art thieves have been captured on CCTV and splashed across the front page of Metro, after 600 objects of “significant cultural value” were stolen from the Bristol Museum’s warehouse in September this year. The items had been housed in the warehouse since 2012, and included artefacts “linked to Britain’s colonial past”.
The Star’s headline reads “Runaway in a manger”, following reports of a man on the run found hiding in an Italian nativity scene.
