A number of Friday’s papers lead with the news the government is taking its own Covid inquiry to judicial review after refusing to hand over a cache of messages sent between former prime minister Boris Johnson and 40 others during the pandemic. The headline in the Metro reads: “See you in court”.
The Cabinet Office is maintaining that to submit all the messages unredacted would violate individuals’ privacy and damage future decision-making, but legal experts think the review is likely to fail, according to the i.
The Daily Mail says the government has “gone to war” with Baroness Hallett, the retired judge leading the inquiry, but that, in “another twist”, Mr Johnson has said he would be “more than happy” to hand his messages directly to her.
Legal documents published on Thursday show that the messages Mr Johnson has so far given to the Cabinet Office only begin in May 2021, more than a year into the pandemic, according to the Times. The paper says Mr Johnson began using a new phone that month after it emerged his number was available online and that, according to a spokesman, his old phone has been switched off since on the “advice of security officials”. The spokesman added that Mr Johnson has “absolutely no objection whatsoever” to providing content from the old phone if doing so would be possible “without compromising security”.
The Guardian says that, in a letter to Baroness Hallett sent on Thursday, the Cabinet Office said the legal process was being launched “with regret and with an assurance that we will continue to cooperate fully with the inquiry”, but adds that the move has been “condemned by bereaved families and opposition MPs”.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner accuses Prime Minister Rishi Sunak of engaging in a “desperate attempt to withhold evidence”. She adds that “these latest smoke-and-mirror tactics serve only to undermine the Covid inquiry” and that “the public deserves answers”.
The Sun carries the first interview with Phillip Schofield since his resignation from ITV’s This Morning last Friday. Schofield stood down after it emerged he had had an affair with a colleague on the show some 30 years his junior. Schofield tells the paper he is “utterly broken and ashamed” but insists he did not groom the man.
Holly Willoughby, who is set to return to hosting This Morning from Monday, plans to co-operate “fully” with an external review of the controversy, the Daily Mirror reports, citing friends. The paper carries photos of Willoughby on holiday in Portugal and quotes a source saying she is keen to get back to work and has “nothing to hide”.
The Daily Telegraph says that police have impounded a pleasure cruiser following the deaths of a 12-year-old girl and a 17-year-old boy in the water off Bournemouth beach on Wednesday. The paper says the ship left Bournemouth Pier at 16:00 BST, seven minutes before the first call to the emergency services. It adds that Dorset Police have said there was no physical contact between any vessel and swimmers when the incident occurred. In an update on Thursday, police said the investigation was in its early stages and that detectives were working to establish the circumstances that led to the deaths.
House prices dropped by 3.4% in the year to May, the largest fall in 14 years, according to the Daily Express. The paper says the drop was caused by hikes in interest rates and the rising cost of living, adding that it has led to predictions that “storm clouds are gathering” for the property market.
And the Daily Star reports that half the country’s fish and chip shops could go bust by 2025 but tells its readers they can help by “shoving just two extra portions down your gob”. The headline reads: “Your chippy needs you”.
