London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Dec 13, 2025

Newspaper headlines: 'Turmoil in France' and King's royal tour 'axed'

The postponement of the King's first state visit - because of violent protests in France - dominates the front pages. The royal tour is axed after fears for the safety of the King, declares the Daily Express. Security sources tell the paper that the risks to the monarch and Camilla helped convince President Emmanuel Macron to call off the visit, after demonstrators against pension changes issued death threats.
"Chaos reigns in France," says the Times above a picture of smouldering heaps of rubbish in the centre of Paris. It says there were concerns that anti-Macron protesters would target a state banquet at Versailles, which was due to be given in the King's honour on Monday night.

The FT Weekend shows French riot police running past a fire during a demonstration alongside the words: "Is it time for the 6th Republic?"

"France falls into chaos as King's visit cancelled," reads the Daily Telegraph's headline. The paper thinks the decision has left the UK's "reset" with the EU in "disarray". It says the trip had been part of a government strategy to renew historic ties with Europe following Brexit.

The Daily Mail accuses the French president of surrendering to the mob. The paper say Mr Macron has been mocked over what it calls his "Marie Antoinette moment" - as he hid his "£2,100 watch" during a television interview.

The Sun is reporting that the former prime minister, Liz Truss, has nominated four of her closest political allies, who backed her mini-budget, for peerages, despite serving as PM for just 49 days and sparking a market meltdown. The Sun said former colleagues were angry at the idea, with one ex-adviser saying: "Liz's list of shame should be withdrawn."

i weekend says Ms Truss' resignation honours' list is expected to be approved. Labour's deputy leader, Angela Rayner, criticises what she calls "obscene rewards for failure". A spokesman for Ms Truss has declined to comment.

The Telegraph reports that migrants could be housed on disused ferries, as part of efforts to take asylum seekers out of hotels. According to the paper, Rishi Sunak is expected to make an announcement as early as next week. The Telegraph called it the "beginning of the end" of asylum hotels, which are being used to house more than 50,000 migrants at a cost of nearly £7m a day.

The Guardian focuses on concerns about school inspections in England, after a headteacher killed herself. Senior teachers tell the paper that "Ofsted's punishing inspection regime" is driving them out of the profession. Some talk of "overwhelming panic" affecting their physical and mental wellbeing. The chief inspector of schools in England, Amanda Spielman, has defended the need for inspections, but has said there's a "legitimate" debate to be had about removing grades from inspections.

The Daily Mirror carries a front page story of man who says he was so desperate to get dental treatment for severe toothache - he went to Ukraine. Richard Howe says he tried to book an appointment in Ely, in Cambridgeshire, but ended up having his teeth fixed in Kyiv. He tells the Mirror: "It just shows how much of a mess NHS dental care is right now."
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Ex-ICC Prosecutor Alleges UK Threatened to Withdraw Funding Over Netanyahu Arrest Warrant Bid
UK Disciplinary Tribunal Clears Carter-Ruck Lawyer of Misconduct in OneCoin Case
‘Pink Ladies’ Emerge as Prominent Face of UK Anti-Immigration Protests
Nigel Farage Says Reform UK Has Become Britain’s Largest Party as Labour Membership Falls Sharply
Google DeepMind and UK Government Launch First Automated AI Lab to Accelerate Scientific Discovery
UK Economy Falters Ahead of Budget as Growth Contracts and Confidence Wanes
Australia Approves Increased Foreign Stake in Strategic Defence Shipbuilder
Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson proclaims, “For Ukraine, surrendering their land would be a nightmare.”
Microsoft Challenges £2.1 Billion UK Cloud Licensing Lawsuit at Competition Tribunal
Fake Doctor in Uttar Pradesh Accused of Killing Woman After Performing YouTube-Based Surgery
Hackers Are Hiding Malware in Open-Source Tools and IDE Extensions
Traveling to USA? Homeland Security moving toward requiring foreign travelers to share social media history
UK Officials Push Back at Trump Saying European Leaders ‘Talk Too Much’ About Ukraine
UK Warns of Escalating Cyber Assault Linked to Putin’s State-Backed Operations
UK Consumer Spending Falters in November as Households Hold Back Ahead of Budget
UK Orders Fresh Review of Prince Harry’s Security Status After Formal Request
U.S. Authorises Nvidia to Sell H200 AI Chips to China Under Security Controls
Trump in Direct Assault: European Leaders Are Weak, Immigration a Disaster. Russia Is Strong and Big — and Will Win
"App recommendation" or disguised advertisement? ChatGPT Premium users are furious
"The Great Filtering": Australia Blocks Hundreds of Thousands of Minors From Social Networks
Mark Zuckerberg Pulls Back From Metaverse After $70 Billion Loss as Meta Shifts Priorities to AI
Nvidia CEO Says U.S. Data-Center Builds Take Years while China ‘Builds a Hospital in a Weekend’
Indian Airports in Turmoil as IndiGo Cancels Over a Thousand Flights, Stranding Thousands
Hollywood Industry on Edge as Netflix Secures Near-$60 Bln Loan for Warner Bros Takeover
Drugs and Assassinations: The Connection Between the Italian Mafia and Football Ultras
Hollywood megadeal: Netflix acquires Warner Bros. Discovery for 83 billion dollars
The Disregard for a Europe ‘in Danger of Erasure,’ the Shift Toward Russia: Trump’s Strategic Policy Document
Two and a Half Weeks After the Major Outage: A Cloudflare Malfunction Brings Down Multiple Sites
UK data-regulator demands urgent clarity on racial bias in police facial-recognition systems
Labour Uses Biscuits to Explain UK Debt — MPs Lean Into Social Media to Reach New Audiences
German President Lays Wreath at Coventry as UK-Germany Reaffirm Unity Against Russia’s Threat
UK Inquiry Finds Putin ‘Morally Responsible’ for 2018 Novichok Death — London Imposes Broad Sanctions on GRU
India backs down on plan to mandate government “Sanchar Saathi” app on all smartphones
King Charles Welcomes German President Steinmeier to UK in First State Visit by Berlin in 27 Years
UK Plans Major Cutback to Jury Trials as Crown Court Backlog Nears 80,000
UK Government to Significantly Limit Jury Trials in England and Wales
U.S. and U.K. Seal Drug-Pricing Deal: Britain Agrees to Pay More, U.S. Lifts Tariffs
UK Postpones Decision Yet Again on China’s Proposed Mega-Embassy in London
Head of UK Budget Watchdog Resigns After Premature Leak of Reeves’ Budget Report
Car-sharing giant Zipcar to exit UK market by end of 2025
Reports of Widespread Drone Deployment Raise Privacy and Security Questions in the UK
UK Signals Security Concerns Over China While Pursuing Stronger Trade Links
Google warns of AI “irrationality” just as Gemini 3 launch rattles markets
Top Consultancies Freeze Starting Salaries as AI Threatens ‘Pyramid’ Model
Macron Says Washington Pressuring EU to Delay Enforcement of Digital-Regulation Probes Against Meta, TikTok and X
UK’s DragonFire Laser Downs High-Speed Drones as £316m Deal Speeds Naval Deployment
UK Chancellor Rejects Claims She Misled Public on Fiscal Outlook Ahead of Budget
Starmer Defends Autumn Budget as Finance Chief Faces Accusations of Misleading Public Finances
EU Firms Struggle with 3,000-Hour Paperwork Load — While Automakers Fear De Facto 2030 Petrol Car Ban
White House launches ‘Hall of Shame’ site to publicly condemn media outlets for alleged bias
×