Several papers lead on the five-day strike by resident doctors starting this morning. Health Secretary Wes Streeting's "defiant" message that he "won't cave in to militant doctors" leads the Daily Mail. Streeting tells paper the walkout by around 50,000 doctors will cause "untold misery" for patients, adding that he won't let the British Medical Association "hold this country to ransom".
The strikes pose a "threat to the NHS as we know it", according to an editorial by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in the Times. In his appeal to doctors to "snub" the walkout, Starmer says the industrial action will "play into the hands" of those that "do not want our NHS to succeed in its current form". According to Starmer, the strikes could make Reform UK leader Nigel Farage's plan to change the NHS funding model look more appealing to voters.
The Daily Express leads with comments from the shadow health secretary Stuart Andrew who criticises the strikes as "irresponsible, unnecessary, wrong". The 5-day action is set to plunge the NHS "into crisis", he says.
The doctors' strikes gets a front page slot on the Guardian, but the paper leads with a plea from the head of the Palestinian refugee agency Unwra to "let aid in" to Gaza, with at least 45 people dying of hunger in the territory over four days this week. Gazans are "neither dead nor alive, they are walking corpses", according to Philippe Lazzarini, the head of Unwra.
The UK is "ready to recognise" a Palestinian state according to the i Paper, which leads on Starmer's comments that Palestinians have an "inalienable right" to statehood. The prime minister will lobby US President Donald Trump over the "humanitarian catastrophe" in Gaza during his visit to the UK this weekend, the paper reports.
The Daily Mirror features a photo of desperate people begging for food in Gaza, with the headline "Britain must do more". The accompanying story reports on a warning from MPs to the prime minister that the government "must not shrug our shoulders and say there is nothing we can do". The death of wrestling legend Hulk Hogan aged 71 features at the top of the page with a typically colourful photo of the star.
Tributes to the "incredible Hulk" front the Daily Star, following his death from cardiac arrest. The wrestler, pictured in his signature golden briefs and vest, was found dead at his Florida mansion after years of being "plagued" by health issues, the paper reports.
"RIP Hulk" appears in the Sun's top bar, but the paper leads on reports that asylum seekers have been shoplifting from famous London stores, including Liberty, Gucci, Prada and John Lewis. "Taking a Liberty" is their headline, while a security firm whistleblower tells the paper that police "rarely attend" their calls.
The Daily Telegraph also reports on immigration issues, featuring comments from the Essex Police commissioner that migrants could be moved from an Epping hotel. But the paper leads with the closure of more than 6,000 agricultural businesses this year after Labour cut the amount of inheritance tax available to farms. A net loss of more than 3,000 agricultural businesses over the first six months of 2025 indicates the number of farms is shrinking "at the fastest pace on record".
Sharp declines in Tesla shares leads the Financial Times, which reports that the tumble came following warnings from the company's chief executive Elon Musk that Trump's anti-EV agenda "will hit profit". Tesla stocks fell 8% by midday trading on Thursday, worsening a decline that has wiped more than half a trillion dollars from the company's value since December, according to the paper.
An emotive "good luck" letter to Lionesses manager Sarina Wiegman is the lead for Metro, ahead of their Euro 2025 final match against Spain on Sunday. The address to Wiegman - a Dutchwoman "who has become truly dear to England - details her series of successes with the Lionesses, now reaching a third major final in four years, before declaring: "In Sarina and the Lionesses we trust".
English (US) ·