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Thursday, Sep 18, 2025

Newspaper headlines: PM hails 'Brexit breakthrough' but 'tensions loom'

Newspaper headlines: PM hails 'Brexit breakthrough' but 'tensions loom'

A deal reached between the UK and the EU on the flow of goods to Northern Ireland leads the papers.

A deal reached between the UK and the European Union to amend the Northern Ireland protocol dominates Tuesday's front pages. The Guardian reports that the agreement, which will reduce checks on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, has been called a "decisive breakthrough" by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The paper adds that it came after four months of "intense negotiations".




The Times quotes Sunak declaring the deal "decisively better" than the one delivered by his predecessor, Boris Johnson. It reports the agreement will give the Stormont assembly an "emergency brake" on any new EU law affecting Northern Ireland and that it has won praise from a number of senior Brexit-backing Tory MPs.


Referencing Johnson's claim - made more than three years ago - that his own deal with the EU was "oven ready", the headline in the Metro reads: "You can put the oven on".



The DUP have "sounded a warning" over the claim that Stormont will be able to veto new European law, according to the i. The paper also says Johnson is weighing up whether to stage a public intervention as Sunak tries to sell the agreement to his backbenchers.



The Financial Times describes the agreement as a "turning point" but says many Eurosceptic Tories may wait to take their lead from the DUP, whose leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, told the Commons on Monday that there remained some "key issues of concern".



The Telegraph quotes Sunak praising von der Leyen's "vision in recognising the possibility of a new way forward" and von der Leyen saying she hopes the deal will open a "new chapter" for UK-EU relations. The paper also says that an expected backlash from Tory Eurosceptics has so far failed to materialise.



The Mail says that a feared Tory revolt over the deal "melted away" last night and speculates that Sunak might have "done the impossible" by addressing the issues with the existing agreement. Conservatives MPs David Davis, Dominic Raab, Steve Barclay, all former Brexit secretaries, have also written a joint article for the paper describing the deal as a "complete and utter game-changer".


The Mirror reports that the ashes of Peter Sutcliffe, the serial killer known as the Yorkshire Ripper, have been scattered at a beauty spot near the Cumbrian village of Arnside, which he visited as a child.


Broadchurch star Andrew Buchan has left his wife, Downton Abbey's Amy Nuttall, and is believed to be living with Leila Farzad, his co-star in BBC series Better, according to the Sun. A source tells the paper that Nuttall has been left "devastated" by Buchan's departure.


And the Star reports that the president of Mexico has claimed a mythical tree-climbing elf has been captured on camera. "Yes, the actual president," the paper says.

A deal reached between the UK and the European Union to amend the Northern Ireland protocol dominates Tuesday's front pages.

"Brexit Breakthrough", reads the headline in the Times. Inside it says the "devil [will be] in the details" of the deal. The Daily Mail asks: "Has Rishi Done The Impossible?" It says a feared Tory revolt melted away after Prime Minister Rishi Sunak unveiled what the paper called a "historic deal".

In its editorial comment, the Daily Telegraph said Monday was "arguably [Sunak's] best day yet as prime minister", adding that "time will tell if he has pulled off a political triumph".

"1,215 days late... Brexit deal is finally done" is how the Metro puts it. The Sun's headline says: "Got Brexit done... again" - before adding in brackets "hopefully". Inside the paper, the foreign secretary, James Cleverly, has written an article in which he says the agreement is a "turning point for Northern Ireland".

The Guardian reports that the deal has been broadly welcomed but that the prime minister still faces opposition from hardline Brexiteers. The DUP have "sounded a warning" over the claim that Stormont will be able to veto new European law, according to the i. The paper also says Boris Johnson is weighing up whether or not to intervene.

In an editorial, the Dublin-based Irish Times sees the deal as a "route to stability and progress" but adds that the very nature of Brexit means that no agreement is going to give everyone all that they are looking for.

Tributes have been paid to former Commons Speaker Betty Boothroyd, who has died at 93.


In his column, Sam McBride of the Belfast Telegraph says the Windsor Framework is more democratic and less unpalatable for unionism but is not what Sunak has claimed. He says the prime minister's spin is not backed up by the fine detail of a "phenomenally bureaucratic new system" and the reality is that the Irish Sea border will be staying.

"One of a kind" is how both the Express and the Sun describe Betty Boothroyd - the first female speaker of the Commons - who has died aged 93.

The Guardian quotes the current speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle calling her "an inspirational woman". The Telegraph said she was renowned for her "fair play, sense of humour and passionate belief in the sovereignty of Parliament."

And the Star reports that the president of Mexico has claimed a mythical tree-climbing elf has been captured on camera. "Yes, the actual president," the paper says.

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