The Sunday Times says the government has held "highly sensitive" talks about buying combat aircraft capable of firing tactical nuclear weapons. The paper calls it "the biggest development in the UK's deterrent since the Cold War". Sir Keir Starmer has told the Sun on Sunday that the moment has arrived to "transform" how Britain is defended. Writing in the paper, the prime minister says Monday's defence review will restore war-fighting readiness as the central purpose of the armed forces.
The Sunday Telegraph highlights a "record-breaking" number of migrants who arrived in the UK in small boats on Saturday. It says the number of crossings so far this year is up more than 30% on the same period in 2024. According to the Mail on Sunday, the government's pledge to tackle illegal immigration was left "in tatters" as French police officers "stood idly by" while people scrambled to board the dinghies. The Home Office says it is strengthening international partnerships to tackle criminal gangs.
The Sunday Mirror says Boris Johnson's former government has been accused of wasting £762m of taxpayer money by the Covid counter-fraud commissioner. Tom Hayhoe is reported to have found that faulty Personal Protective Equipment bought during the pandemic was not checked before the warranties expired – meaning the costs must be written off. Former ministers have insisted that PPE helped save lives.
The shadow justice secretary, Robert Jenrick, has told the Sunday Express that prison officers must be armed to prevent their kidnap or murder by Islamist terrorists. He also calls for "secure armouries" of "lethal weapons" to be installed at high-security prisons – to help to tackle violent inmates.
A full-page image of Elon Musk is featured on the front of the Observer after the world's richest man left his role as President Donald Trump's efficiency tsar. Noting his black eye – said to be the result of a punch from his five-year-old son – the paper says Musk departed Washington with his reputation bruised after leading a "maniacal assault on American foreign aid and public service that cost tens of thousands of livelihoods in the US".
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