The hunt continues for the man thought to be responsible for the attack on Berlin’s Christmas market. But despite the urgency of the situation, the Sun says Germany – and the EU – continue to get their priorities all wrong. After all, the paper says, their ‘first duty’ should be keeping ‘their people safe’. Instead, the Sun says, they have released a photo of the wanted man with his eyes censored to protect his privacy. And the European Court isn’t doing much more to help keep people safe, according to the paper. Its ruling against the so-called ‘snoopers’ charter’ yesterday means that security services will lose out on a vital weapon in the fight against terror. The Sun concludes by saying that at least we won’t have to worry about such court rulings for much longer: Brexit will ‘liberate’ Britain from the ‘meddling of a court in Luxembourg’, the paper says – allowing MI5 and GCHQ to finally stay one step ahead of the terrorists.
The Sun also finds time for a festive message, wishing its readers a ‘Merry Brexmas’. It says the signs so far are clear: Britain is ending the year on a high, despite the prophecies of doom and gloom stirred up by ‘Project Fear’. The Sun says the ‘bumper pack of healthy economic news’ includes the facts that companies are booming, car making is on the up and the falling pound is ‘great’ for exports. ‘Still the Remainers, like the frosty wind, make moan,’ the paper says, before asking: ‘Can’t they give it a rest?’
The Times hits a similar note to the Sun in its assessment of the EU court’s verdict on the government’s ‘snoopers’ charter’. It says that it’s ‘vital’ the ability of the security services to keep Britain safe isn’t hampered, before the paper goes on to say that, while the UK has ‘mercifully’ avoided any serious attacks in the last few years, we shouldn’t become complacent. The Times admits that it is ‘one of the great challenges of modern democracy’ to strike the balance between security and privacy. But it finishes its editorial with a warning: ‘If we withhold from spooks the tools they say they need, we do so at our own peril’
Meanwhile, the Daily Mail continues its campaign against Government spending on aid. The paper highlights what it calls a ‘grim report’ out today which shows the extent of the social care ‘crisis’ gripping Britain. It says shocking cases such as that of a disabled nine-year-old boy prevented from going to school because of a shortage of nurses, shows we have got our spending priorities all wrong. The Mail says ministers are looking for ‘ever more desperate ways’ to meet David Cameron’s 0.7 per cent target for spending on aid. ‘How long can this sickening waste continue, before politicians swallow their pride and spend our cash at home,’ the Mail asks.
Jamie Reed’s decision to step down as a Labour MP has handed an unwelcome early Christmas present to Jeremy Corbyn: the looming prospect of a tricky by-election in the new year. The Daily Telegraph says in its editorial that it’s clear that things could get much worse for the Labour party. It says Reed’s decision to step down marks a ‘new low for a party that many thought could not fall any further’. But the looming threat of Ukip in Copeland – and in other previous Labour strongholds – show it would be foolish to think this is the worst of it for the party, the Telegraph says. It argues that a strong Ukip showing in the by-election would spell ‘disaster’ for the party, because, the paper points out, it would make it clear that Brexit had redrawn the political landscape. This would, ultimately, show there was ’no place for Labour outside London and a handful of English university towns’. So despite the current doom and gloom for the party, ‘Labour has not hit rock bottom yet. Things can still get worse,’ the paper concludes.
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