Many of Monday’s front pages lead with reaction to government plans to implement a price cap on some basic food items. News of a possible cap was first reported by the Daily Telegraph on Sunday and is said to be Downing Street’s latest policy to tackle rising costs. But the i newspaper reports that supermarket bosses have hit back at the plan, warning it could actually damage efforts to cut inflation. The British Retail Consortium director says the price cap “will not make a jot of difference”, the paper reports.
The story is the Daily Telegraph’s lead for the second day running. The paper says the prime minister is also facing backlash from some Cabinet ministers, with warnings it will result in food shortages. The paper also dedicates a large spot on its front page to a photo of supporters of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who on Sunday was confirmed as the victor in Turkey’s election run-off.
The backlash to the proposed price cap is also the main story on the front page of the Daily Express, which also features an image of singer Kylie Minogue – one of several celebrities spotted at the weekend’s Monaco F1 grand prix.
Several of Monday’s papers are also continuing their coverage of the Phillip Schofield controversy, with the Sun reporting ITV has lost millions of pounds in advertising revenue since news of his affair broke. The paper reports This Morning’s main sponsor, car dealers Arnold Clark, announced they would not be renewing their sponsorship deal. Citing a source, the paper says the show’s staff are fearing for their jobs if the show is to be axed.
The Daily Mail – the paper which first published Mr Schofield’s apology – carries comments made by TV doctor Ranj Singh about the show in Monday’s edition. Dr Singh, a regular guest on This Morning, has accused the show of having a “toxic” culture of bullying and discrimination, the paper reports. He said he had taken his concerns to the top of ITV but felt he had been “managed out”, the paper says.
The Daily Star also carries the story, alongside photos of Mr Schofield and Dr Singh.
The Daily Mirror reports that Mr Schofield’s former co-host Holly Willoughby has pledged to stick with the programme amid calls for ITV to axe the show. The paper reports a source as saying: “Holly hopes to ride out the scandal.”
In its exclusive story, the Guardian reports that the Metropolitan Police will no longer attend emergency calls related to mental health incidents. In a letter seen by the paper, Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley says he will order his officers not to attend thousands of calls they get every year to deal with such incidents.
Police from the National Crime Agency will help countries in north Africa to identify and break up people-smuggling gangs in an attempt to stop hundreds of thousands of migrants trying to leave the continent for Europe this summer, the Times reports. The paper claims the Italian government has forecast 400,000 migrants will seek to enter the country from north Africa this year – four times as many as last year.
And the Financial Times turns its focus to the US and the debt ceiling deadline. The paper reports that leading Republicans in Washington were trying to contain a revolt from within the party over a deal which was made with President Joe Biden to prevent a looming default on US debt.
