The Metro reports that Labour will use barges to house asylum seekers temporarily if it wins the next general election. According to the paper, shadow immigration minister Stephen Kinnock says his party would “have to continue in a very short-term period to use the infrastructure that is there” due to “the complete and utter chaos and shambles of the Tory asylum crisis”. The government’s decision to house migrants on barges has sparked a lot of controversy, with some human rights groups calling it inhumane.
The Daily Mail reports that government ministers are “drawing up proposals” to send asylum seekers arriving in the UK via the Channel to Ascension Island – a British overseas territory 4,000 miles away in the South Atlantic – if their plan to send some people to Rwanda falls through.
The Times also reports that the government has alternative plans if the Rwanda policy “fails”. In its lead, the paper says ministers are assessing alternative options “to tackle the small-boats crisis” and Ascension Island is one of them. The small volcanic island was previously considered as a location to process asylum seekers, the paper reports, adding that ministers believed its remote location would “create a strong deterrent for those planning to cross the Channel in small boats”.
Meanwhile, the Daily Express reports that landlords and bosses who “help migrants live and work in the UK will be hit in a crackdown” and face fines of up to £60,000 per illegal worker and £20,000 per tenant. Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick is quoted as saying that “making it harder for illegal migrants to work and operate in the UK is vital to deterring dangerous, unnecessary boat crossings”.
The Daily Telegraph also leads on fines for bosses employing people who have arrived in the UK illegally. It says the “drastically increased fines aim to tackle the UK’s image as being soft on immigration”. A source told the paper these measures would make it “completely economically unacceptable and financially ruinous” to risk employing workers illegally.
In its lead, the i newspaper reports that UK scientists are preparing for a potential bird flu pandemic in humans. It goes on to say that the avian influenza strain – H5N1 – has killed millions of birds since October 2021. According to the paper, the world’s top virologists are preparing for the emergence of a new virus and health chiefs are confident of a “slick and rapid response” to new threats following the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Guardian carries a report on MPs’ second jobs, as the paper found that MPs were paid £10m from second jobs and freelance work over the past year. The sum was “largely driven by the size of Boris Johnson’s earnings as well as former Tory ministers”, the paper adds. In its analysis, the Guardian looked at all MPs who made more than £1,000 from outside income (excluding from surveys) in the past year. The front page also features an interview with children’s author Jacqueline Wilson.
The Financial Times leads on a report that Europe’s biggest companies have suffered “at least €100bn [£86bn] in direct losses” from the sale, closure or reduction of Russian businesses since the start of the war in Ukraine last year. “Penalty pain” is how the paper describes the woes of the US women’s football team, whose “World Cup dream is over”. The US squad – one of the top contenders to win the World Cup in Australia and New Zealand – lost by “the smallest of margins” after video technology showed that the ball US goalkeeper Alyssa Naeher had saved “crept a millimetre over the goal line,” the paper adds.
The Daily Mirror leads on a poll, carried out by the newspaper, which suggested that 74% of people would like tougher penalties for the owners of dangerous dogs.
The Daily Star reports that Star Trek legend William Shatner is facing backlash from sci-fi fans for mocking claims that aliens have visited Earth.
