ALL CHANGE WITH BROWN says the Times
Gordon Brown will begin today his attempt to stamp his mark on the Government as it emerged that Tony Blair had been interviewed for a third time by “cash-for-honours” police.
Mr Brown has called his second Cabinet meeting in two days to discuss plans to restore trust in politics. Proposals for making the Government more accountable, imposing a tougher code of conduct on ministerial behaviour, giving Parliament greater power over major decisions, such as such as sending troops to warwill be considered.
He will then set out the measures in his first statement to the Commons as Prime Minister on Monday. Although the health service is his policy priority Mr Brown has told aides that nothing is more urgent than regaining trust in politics.
Brown's first day: new faces and plans to heal old wounds says the Guardian
Gordon Brown set a blistering pace in his first full day as prime minister by totally recasting his cabinet and announcing that the new team will meet today in a special session to discuss his plans to restore trust in politics lost during the last decade.
The prime minister wants to strengthen parliament and draw the public into discussion about a possible bill of rights.
The special meeting itself is a deliberate signal that the prime minister is planning to restore cabinet government. He will also make a Commons statement on Monday laying out his constitutional proposals in a further sign of the importance he attaches to the agenda and his determination to restore parliament's authority.
Brown cabinet reshuffle sweeps away old order is the lead in the Telegraph
Every post changed hands, except for Des Browne, who stays as Defence Secretary, as the Prime Minister culled more than a third of the Cabinet inherited from Mr Blair.
He appointed the youngest Cabinet in living memory, with the average age down from 54 to 49, and the first woman Home Secretary, Jacqui Smith. At 41, David Miliband became the youngest Foreign Secretary for 30 years. The reshuffle was carried out in private in his room at the Commons - not No 10 - so ministers were spared the humiliating walk up Downing Street in front of the cameras to learn their fate.
Most of the attention in the new cabinet is on the first women Home Secretary and a young Foreign Secretary
JACQUI WHO? says the Mirror
UNKNOWN Jacqui Smith became Britain's first woman Home Secretary yesterday, taking on one of the toughest jobs in Gordon Brown's new government.
The 44-year-old mum of two will have to burn the midnight oil as she takes charge of crime, immigration - and the fight against terrorism.
Almost unheard of outside Westminster, the former economics teacher's star has risen dramatically since she took over as Chief Whip and impressed Mr Brown by enforcing party discipline.
It's time for the Brown bairns says the Sun
War sceptic Miliband offers chance of clean slate on Iraq reports the Guardian
The appointment of David Miliband as the youngest foreign secretary in three decades offers a chance for Britain to turn a fresh face to the world that is less compromised by the war in Iraq.
Responding to his appointment yesterday, Mr Miliband called for "a diplomacy which is patient as well as purposeful, which listens as well as leads".
The remarks gave little away but sent a message abroad that he was prepared to cast a critical eye over a foreign policy constrained by Britain's relationship with the US. Mr Miliband, 41, is not publicly associated with the decision to invade Iraq and is said to have been privately sceptical about it.
Rising star Miliband becomes heir apparent says the Telegraph
At 41, his promotion from the post of Environment Secretary to one of the great offices of state is a smart response by Gordon Brown to the "Miliband factor" that unnerved the Brownites.
In the short to medium term it will fully satisfy this ambitious young minister who will see the Foreign Office as ideal preparation for the job he ultimately wants - in Number Ten. As far as Mr Brown is concerned, the post will check - or least put on hold - the Miliband advance by keeping the only man who posed any potential threat to his leadership ambitions busy on the foreign circuit.
But the realities of Iraq were brought home yesterday morning.The Indpendent leads with
They were 20 years old. They came from the same quiet corner of eastern Scotland as Gordon Brown. Like him, they wanted nothing more than to serve their country. But yesterday, the lives of James Kerr and Scott Kennedy ended - two of three soldiers killed by a bomb in Basra. On day one at No 10, the tragedy of Iraq was brought chillingly home to Britain's new Prime Minister
Yesterday should have been a day of political triumph for Gordon Brown. Instead events in Basra provided a brutal and intimate reminder of the scale of the challenge he faces in Iraq.
Hours before Mr Brown unveiled his new Cabinet at 10 Downing Street, three more British soldiers were killed in Iraq by a roadside bomb, two of them from the Prime Minister's constituency.
For Mr Brown the latest casualties were a reminder very close to home of the savagery of the war and the toll of young lives lost. The two Scottish soldiers killed were both 20. Pte Jamie Kerr, The Black Watch, 3rd Battalion, The Royal Regiment of Scotland, from Cowdenbeath, and Pte Scott Kennedy, of the same regiment and unit, from Oakley, Dunfermline, were on what was described as a routine operation when they were hit by the blast.
As does the Mail which leads with
HOW MANY MORE MR BROWN
Brown's rude awakening as two boy soldiers from his own back yard are killed in Iraq
Jamie Kerr, 20, from Cowdenbeath - part of Gordon Brown's constituencyGordon Brown wanted a bright new dawn. Instead he found himself in the grim shadow of Tony Blair's Iraq legacy.
His first full day as Prime Minister began with the news that three soldiers, including one from his Fife constituency and another from nearby, had been killed by a roadside bomb in Basra.
Their deaths cast a ghastly pall over a day which Mr Brown spent sweeping away the Blair era.
Basra bomb kills 3 Brit heroes reports the Sun
The deaths at 1am local time yesterday were the first military losses under Gordon Brown’s premiership.
In a grim reminder for the PM of the conflict’s growing toll BOTH soldiers from the famous Scots regiment have personal connections to him.
Pte Kennedy lived in Oakley, close to Mr Brown’s home town of Dunfermline. He only finished his Army training nine months ago.
And high-flier Pte Kerr — about to be promoted — was from Cowdenbeath, Mr Brown’s constituency. Both soldiers had volunteered for service in Iraq as rookies in the war zone.
The third hero, Corporal Joszko, had a young son and his girlfriend is expecting his second child.
It leads as does the Mirror and the Express with new developments in the Maddie case
Madeleine: Couple arrested
A MAN and his girlfriend were being quizzed last night in the hunt for Madeleine McCann.
The couple, allegedly after part of a £2.5million reward, were held in the Spanish town of Sotogrande — hours from where Maddie, four, vanished.
The couple were held in a dawn swoop by police probing an alleged bid to swindle reward money.
Officers then found Italian Danilo Chemello, 61, was ALREADY wanted on an international warrant issued by French authorities for illtreating his daughter.
His Portuguese girlfriend Aurora Pereira Vaz was taken with him from their plush home in swish Sotogrande, near Cadiz in southern Spain.
TWO HELD OVER MADELEINE EXTORTION says the Mirror
Last night an official statement from Spain's National Police said: "The facts point to them being fraudsters although the investigation is not closed.
"Police carried out the arrest on the basis of an intent to claim a reward offered by the parents."
The Times claims that
Madeleine suspect was jailed for child abuse
Mr Chemello has been on the run from France for his suspected links to criminal activities. The Italian national was previously jailed for 18 months for child abuse. His Portuguese girlfriend is reportedly being investigated over allegations that she is involved in illegal adoptions in Europe.
A police source said that the Mr Chemello had been under surveillance after claiming on June 8 that he knew what had happened to Madeleine following her abduction 57 days ago. He wanted to negotiate with her parents, Kate and Gerry McCann, to claim the £2.5 million reward on offer for their daughter’s safe return.
The Guardian reveals that
Poll of Democrats reveals Gore could still steal the show
A presidential election poll suggesting Democratic voters would prefer former vice-president Al Gore to any of the declared contenders, including frontrunner Hillary Clinton, has highlighted continuing dissatisfaction among supporters of both main parties with the choice of candidates to succeed George Bush.
The poll, conducted in New Hampshire by 7News and Suffolk University, confirmed Ms Clinton's nationwide double-digit lead over her main rival, Illinois senator Barack Obama. The former first lady and New York senator attracted 37% support, against Mr Obama's 19%. John Edwards, a former North Carolina senator, was on 9%.
Gore edges ahead of Hillary in key state says the Telegraph
The results will add to the pressure on Mr Gore from his supporters to run for White House again, despite losing to George W Bush in 2000.
The Independent stays with the US reporting that
Cheney, master of stealth, readies himself for the final act of 'imperial' vice-presidency
Operating in the shadows, where he can best achieve his deeply conservative aims, Dick Cheney enjoys the total confidence of President George Bush and is sometimes described as the "Imperial" Vice-President.
Towards the end of every re-elected US President's second term, the opposition in Congress always smells the opportunity to assert itself. This time the target is Dick Cheney and subpoenas are raining down on his head from the Senate for the release of documents that could implicate him in illegal acts. His record for outflanking his enemies is such that there is little cause for optimism among his opponents who would have him impeached.
French media seek freedom from power of President reports the Times
A revolt is brewing among French journalists and opposition leaders against what they see as the iron-like grip that Nicolas Sarkozy is imposing on the media through his presidential power and ties to proprietors.
More media news from the Guardian which reports
Music industry attacks Sunday newspaper's free Prince CD
The eagerly awaited new album by Prince is being launched as a free CD with a national Sunday newspaper in a move that has drawn widespread criticism from music retailers.
The Mail on Sunday revealed yesterday that the 10-track Planet Earth CD will be available with an "imminent" edition, making it the first place in the world to get the album. Planet Earth will go on sale on July 24.
"It's all about giving music for the masses and he believes in spreading the music he produces to as many people as possible," said Mail on Sunday managing director Stephen Miron. "This is the biggest innovation in newspaper promotions in recent times."
The same paper reports that
EU bans 'unsafe' airlines from flights to the continent
All Indonesian airlines have been banned from flying to Europe in a safety crackdown that has also placed several carriers from Russia, Ukraine and Angola on an aviation blacklist. The ban was imposed following a series of accidents involving the country's aircraft that have included two fatal crashes since the New Year which killed a total of 123 people.
The national airline of Indonesia, Garuda, and the 50 other airlines registered in the country, will be kept away from the EU, although no Indonesian carriers at present fly to the continent.
The Independent reports
Libyan convicted over Lockerbie bombing given leave to appeal
One of the most emotive cases in British legal history - the killing of 270 people in the Lockerbie plane bombing - is to be re-examined after the emergence of new evidence.
Abdelbaset Ali Mohamed Al Megrahi, a Libyan intelligence agent who was convicted over the bombing under controversial circumstances, was granted the right to a fresh appeal yesterday by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission amid growing concern that he may have been the victim of a miscarriage of justice.
According to the Telegraph we can expect
First artificial life 'within months'
In a development that has triggered unease and excitement in equal measure, scientists in the US took the whole genetic makeup - or genome - of a bacterial cell and transplanted it into a closely related species.
This then began to grow and multiply in the lab, turning into the first species in the process.
The team that carried out the first “species transplant” says it plans within months to do the same thing with a synthetic genome made from scratch in the laboratory.
If that experiment worked, it would mark the creation of a synthetic lifeform.
MR & MISSES says the Mirror
THE number of marriages in England and Wales is at its lowest since records began.
Only 244,710 couples tied the knot in 2005 - a ten per cent fall on the previous year.
Between 2002 and 2004 the number of marriages leapt from 249,000 to 273,000. But the Office of National Statistics says the fall could be the knock-on effect of a crackdown on "sham marriages" by immigrants
Marriage rate falls to its lowest level since records began says the Mail
The proportion of couples tying the knot has fallen back into line with its declining long-term trend following a clampdown on sham weddings.
The popularity of marriage has been waning since 1973, but in recent years it has been artificially boosted by such bogus unions. In London alone, new rules which make it harder to use marriage to win the right to stay in Britain cut the number of ceremonies by more than a third.
Back to the Mirror which reports
TEEN PSYCHO FACES LIFE FOR MURDER
A TEENAGE killer was facing a life sentence last night for stabbing a nurse 72 times with a hunting knife "because I was bored".
Sick fantasist Stuart Harling, 19, butchered married Cheryl Moss, 33, at random after buying a "murder kit" - including an Ozzy Osbourne-style wig - on eBay.
The former altar boy, who has 10 GCSEs, told the Old Bailey in a voice devoid of emotion: "I went out that day with the knife and other stuff because I was bored.
Many of the papers report that
QUEEN'S PLEA FOR £3M TO FIX CRUMBLING PALACE
According to the Express
THE Queen has asked for an extra £1million a year from the Government to pay for urgent repairs to Buckingham Palace.
The tourist landmark, London home of Britain’s monarchs since 1837, is falling apart after decades of neglect.Senior aides said 20 chunks of stone, each the size of a shoebox, have fallen off one of the walls in the palace quadrangle since February last year.
Finally it didnt take the limelight off Gordon Brown but the Telegraph reports
Spice Girls reunite for world tour
Yesterday the Spice Girls, Britain's biggest ever girl band, confirmed that they were reuniting to perform a world tour almost a decade after they split up.
By deciding to get back on the road after so long, the girls are following the example of Take That, The Police and Genesis.
Even if according to the Sun
Victoria Bite-ham soldiers on
BRAVE POSH SPICE attended yesterday’s press conference just two days after suffering a SPIDER bite.
She suffered the nasty shock while on a romantic break with husband DAVID BECKHAM on a paradise island in Indonesia.
Victoria needed an antihistamine jab from hotel first-aiders to stop the painful itching and swelling.
The blistering bite mark was visible on her arm yesterday, but the singer kept in good spirits.
She wasn’t the only one in the wars. MEL B joked that she had a funny feeling in her tummy — which the other girls put down to a bladder infection.
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