Many of Tuesday’s papers focus on the high cost of living in the UK – in particular accusations that supermarkets have been charging drivers filling up at the pumps 6p per litre more than they should have been last year. The Mirror says motorists were charged an extra £900 million on the forecourt in 2022, according to the Competitions and Markets Authority. The paper quotes the watchdog as saying: “Competition is not working, something needs to change.” The paper is one of several which also features images from the first day of Wimbledon.
The story also features prominently on the front page of the Daily Telegraph, which says supermarkets are facing accusations of using motorists as “cash cows”. The paper reports that the government intends to force the big supermarkets to publish their prices online to improve transparency. There’s also further reaction from Sunday’s controversial Ashes test cricket match, this time from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak who said Australia’s tactics were “not in the spirit” of the game.
Some 67% of the British public want a cap on supermarket prices to help during the cost of living crisis, according to a poll undertaken by the i newspaper. The public reportedly supports Sunak’s plan to cut inflation rather than taxes, the paper says in its exclusive front page report.
In its main story, the Financial Times reports that the watchdog has summoned the chief executives of HSBC, NatWest, Lloyds and Barclays to address concerns that savings rates are lagging behind the surging cost of mortgages. The paper says they are facing accusations of profiteering from rising interest rates.
The banks are also facing a Treasury investigation into claims they are closing customers’ accounts because they do not like their views on controversial topics, the Daily Mail reports. It comes after former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage claimed his account had been closed due to disagreements with his bank, the paper says.
The Daily Express reports on what it claims is another split in the Conservative Party – this time over immigration policy. In its exclusive front page story, the paper says tougher immigration rules have been blocked by the Treasury, citing a senior Tory source. A photo of Sir Andy Murray also makes the front page as he prepares for his all-British encounter on Centre Court on Tuesday.
“Flaming June” is Metro’s take on what the Met Office has described as the hottest June on record. The historic high of 15.8C for average day and night temperatures last month caused unprecedented fish deaths in rivers and is being attributed to climate change, the paper reports. Metro’s front page also features an image of a busy Bournemouth beach on a warm June day.
In the week the NHS turns 75, former Health Secretary Sajid Javid has called for a royal commission into how it operates, the Times reports. Javid says Brits are sicker than people in comparable nations as a “direct consequence” of the way the health service is set up, the paper writes.
The Guardian reports that Labour is considering plans to boost education for under-4s which include parachuting more graduate teachers into nurseries. More nursery places could be introduced in primary school settings as part of the opposition’s proposals to drive up standards and formally integrate early years in England into the education system, the paper says.
And the Daily Star carries claims from a leading brain expert that human brains are getting smaller and IQ levels are falling due to poor diets.
Many front pages are dominated by stories reflecting the cost of living pressures in the UK.
The Daily Telegraph says supermarkets have been treating customers like “cash cows” by overcharging for fuel. The Competitions and Markets Authority watchdog found that drivers had been paying 6p per litre more than they had to between 2019 and 2022. It blamed weaker competition between the supermarkets for the high prices – and the fact that several of them had amassed huge debts as the result of takeovers, meaning their profit margins needed to be higher. Supermarket bosses said other cost increases had to be taken into account. Downing Street is said to be pressing ahead with plans to force retailers to publish their forecourt prices online – a move which the Daily Express calls a “silver lining” to the whole issue.
The Times has the same story, as does the Daily Mirror calling it the “£900m fuel rip-off”, a reference to how much four supermarkets – Tesco, Asda, Morrisons and Sainsbury’s – overcharged drivers last year alone. In its editorial, it says the big supermarkets cynically raised profit margins to fill their corporate tanks, helping to fuel the cost of living crisis.
The Financial Times says senior politicians had been worried for a while about interest rates for savers – as opposed to borrowers – before Britain’s four biggest banks were summoned to a meeting about the issue. It says the Commons Select Committee wrote to the chief executives of HSBC, NatWest, Lloyds and Barclays and accused them of “blatant profiteering” by squeezing higher profits from their loyal saving customers.
The ‘i’ says recent polling for the paper shows that 67% of the public want a cap on supermarket prices for household items such eggs, milk and bread – much like there was in the 1970s. Some 1,500 people were surveyed.
Image source, Getty Images
The Daily Mail reports that the Treasury has been asked to investigate claims that banks are closing the accounts of customers whose views on “controversial topics” they do not like. The Tory MP and former British Bankers Association chief Anthony Brown said the practice could have a “chilling effect” on free speech.
The main story in The Guardian is that Labour is considering plans to “parachute” more graduate teachers into nurseries to boost education for the under-4s. The shadow Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, is quoted as saying she wants to see early education on an equal footing with schools, to give all children the best chance in life.
The Daily Express reports that the Conservatives are split over plans to reduce net migration in the UK. The Chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, is said to be resisting tougher immigration proposals from the Home Office, under which migrant workers would face an NHS surcharge, and an increase in how much they need to earn to qualify for a visa.
In an article for The Times, the former Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, says it is now time for a royal commission to be set up to consider the future of the NHS. He says both Conservative and Labour now privately concede that the health service – which turns 75 on Wednesday – is unsustainable in its current form and cannot cope with surging demand despite record funding.
