Diana Abbott’s comments at a rally in east London on Wednesday lead several of the front pages. The Guardian says Ms Abbott promised to remain as an MP for “as long as possible”, amid a row over whether Labour will allow her to run for their party in her Hackney North and Stoke Newington seat at the election.
A deal was struck with Ms Abbott – who was suspended from Labour last April for saying Jewish, Irish and Traveller people do not face racism “all their lives” – to step down as an MP on her terms, according to the i. The paper says the deal fell apart after media was instead briefed that Labour would bar her from standing – a claim Sir Keir Starmer denies.
Ms Abbott’s remarks have caused some Labour members to question Mr Starmer’s leadership, the Telegraph says. The paper reports that a dozen Labour MPs and senior party officials last night broke ranks to attack Mr Starmer’s handling of the row, with one senior figure saying the length of the process “frustrated a lot of us”.
“We’re behind you, Keir,” reads the Mirror’s front page, next to an image is of Mr Starmer posing with student nurses on his election campaign in Worcester yesterday. Elsewhere, the paper also reports that Fiona Beal, a teacher who pleaded guilty to murdering her partner, Nicholas Billingham, will be jailed today.
The Daily Express reports on an accusation by the Conservative Party that Labour has a multi-billion black hole in its spending pledges, an accusation Labour also makes to the Tories. On Wednesday evening Labour ruled out increasing VAT for the next parliament. Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told the paper it showed Labour had “buckled” after having spent “all week refusing to rule out” a rise in the levy.
Health Secretary Victoria Atkins has accused junior doctors of pulling a “cynical” election stunt by calling five days of strikes in the week before polling on 4 July, the Metro reports. Joint leader Dr Robert Laurenson said the walkout will be the “biggest and loudest” yet, the paper says.
If you’re reading this while eating your breakfast, you might want to look away now. The Daily Star says North Korea’s Kim Jong Un used more than “200 giant balloons to drop tonnes of poop” on his neighbours in South Korea. The paper brands the move “Turd World War”.
Europe has less than 5% of the air defence capabilities needed to guard its eastern flank against a full scale attack, according to Nato calculations in today’s Financial Times. The paper says some European leaders and military officials have warned that Russia might have the capability to attack a Nato member by the end of the decade.
And lastly, the Daily Mail says it has obtained a never-before-seen report that it says reveals a definitive account of Lord Lucan’s disappearance.
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