Christian Horner’s removal as Red Bull’s F1 team principal leads several of Thursday’s front pages. The Metro says the racing boss, husband of Spice Girl Geri, was “shunted out” 17 months after a female employee accused him of coercive, controlling behaviour. He was twice cleared of these claims, which he has strongly denied, but the fallout has been “blamed for the team’s decline”, the paper reports. Red Bull has won only two races this season.
The Daily Star references the energy’s drink’s slogan in its own headline on the Horner saga: “Red Bull gives you the boot.” It adds that wife Geri has “stood by” her husband.
The Daily Mail’s front page pictures the “humiliated” Geri and Christian Horner, but its lead story is based on fresh analysis suggesting “work doesn’t pay under Labour”. The Centre for Social Justice think tank has warned that sickness benefits will soon be worth “more than a minimum wage job”, the paper reports. This “shocking finding” comes after Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer failed to secure benefits cuts earlier this month, it adds.
The Daily Telegraph also covers the think tank’s benefits analysis, saying someone on “full handouts” will receive £2,500 more a year than a minimum wage worker. It also covers a separate report from a group representing the beer industry, which warns one pub a day will close after what the paper calls Labour’s “tax raids”. Elsewhere, actor Hugh Grant is pictured talking to Queen Camilla at Wimbledon.
The i Paper has a different story about Labour’s economic policy. It says a minister has told the paper that the government will introduce new taxes that “target wealthier people” to appease restless backbench MPs. It will not call these measures a wealth tax in public, but it will do so privately, the paper reports.
On the third day of French President Emmanuel Macron’s state visit to the UK, the Sun’s headline is “A kick in the Gauls”. It says a deal on returning migrants who crossed the Channel in small boats is expected to be announced on Thursday, during a bilateral summit. But the paper highlights criticism of the deal, which it says will deport “just 50 migrants a week”. The Tories have said this arrangement is “no deterrent at all”, the paper says, as “40,000 are arriving annually”. Home Office figures say more than 21,000 migrants have crossed the Channel in small boats this year so far.
The Times also leads on the UK-France asylum deal, which it says will deport one in 17 people who arrive via the Channel, but is intended to expand at a later date. A UK government source has told the paper the scheme will be “scaled up” after a pilot period.
Meanwhile, the Guardian reports that the Anglo-French migration deal “hangs in the balance” with negotiators still “deadlocked” over the details. Aides on both sides said there were “several significant hurdles” to overcome on Wednesday night. Sir Keir had hoped to unveil an agreement as the “key prize” of Macron’s three-day visit at the bilateral summit on Thursday, the paper says.
The departure of X chief executive Linda Yaccarino is also covered in several newspapers. The Financial Times features a picture of Ms Yaccarino, who was hired to run the social media site by billionaire owner Elon Musk two years ago. She was tasked with “luring back advertisers” after Mr Musk controversially relaxed moderation on the platform, the FT reports. Its lead story is on AI chipmaker Nvidia, which has become the first $4tn (£2.94tn) company after a “rapid rebound for Wall Street technology stocks”.
The Daily Express says there has been “fury” at a potential doctors’ strike, with the prime minister branded as “weak”. Resident doctors, previously known as junior doctors, in England have said they will strike for five days from 25 July after voting in favour of fresh action over pay if the government does not agree to negotiate their pay instead. The paper also features a picture of the Queen at Wimbledon on its front page – here shaking hands with Novak Djokovic.
The Mirror leads on the “astonishing bravery” of the children targeted by Southport killer Axel Rudakubana, after an inquiry into the attacks revealed “incredible tales of bravery” on Wednesday.
