The papers celebrate the freeing of the BBC's Alan Johnston with many of the front pages given over to pictures of his smiling face

Johnston overjoyed at end of 114-day ordeal says the Telegraph

Speaking to BBC staff in London via a link-up from Jerusalem, he said that he would be grateful for the rest of his life.He drew laughs from the crowd when he said: "I'm going to do everything I can to stay out of trouble - I couldn't bear it to ask you all to do all of that twice; just imagine the embarrassment."

'You have to have been a prisoner to know how good freedom is' says Alan Johston himself writing on the front page of the Independent

The past 16 weeks were just the very worst that you can imagine of my life, like being buried alive, removed from the world.
Sixteen weeks of solitary confinement with difficult, unpredictable people who did talk occasionally about killing me. It was hard to see how it would end.
It became almost hard to imagine normal life again. I literally dreamt many times of being free, and always woke up back in that room.
The great fear is the fear of being forgotten... It's a battle to keep your mind in the right place. You've got to believe somehow, some day, some way, it's going to end. You will not grow old there.

Forgotten hostages headlines the Times

Alan Johnston, the BBC journalist freed by his Gaza captors after a worldwide publicity campaign, interrupted his celebrations yesterday to remember five British hostages whose plight has gone almost entirely unreported since they were kidnapped in Baghdad 38 days ago.
While the BBC organised vigils, demonstrations and petitions to keep Johnston’s case firmly in the headlines, the Government has imposed a virtual news blackout on the Baghdad kidnappings, refusing to disclose even the names or ages of the hostages.
Sir Menzies Campbell, leader of the Liberal Democrats, questioned that strategy last night, saying: “The lesson from Alan Johnston’s very remarkable and very welcome release is that it shows how important it can be to make sure that hostages’ names are not forgotten and stay in the news.”

After 114 days in captivity, BBC man celebrates freedom ... with a haircut says the Guardian

The last hour of captivity for Alan Johnston was perhaps the worst. His guard burst into his room in the early hours of yesterday morning and told him to get dressed. His regular captor, "an extraordinarily moody man with dark rages", had been joined by some new gunmen who looked "totally wired".
"I thought, this is bad news," said Johnston, who, on his first day of freedom yesterday gave a remarkable account of his 114 days of captivity in Gaza, an experience which he likened to being "buried alive". The BBC journalist, who looked tired but ebullient, was freed just after 3am local time following intense negotiations between Hamas and his kidnappers, the Dogmush family and their militia, the Army of Islam.

It leads though with the story that

Voters to get direct say on local spending

Voters will be given powers to decide how ten of millions of pounds should be spent in their neighbourhood under radical plans being unveiled today.
In a potentially dramatic extension of direct democracy, councils will have to hold ballots before deciding where money should be targeted. It would mean that, for the first time, people could direct cash to areas that concern them most, such as parks, curbing antisocial behaviour, targeting drug trouble spots or cleaning up litter.

The Mail returns to a story that has left the front pages in recent days

Humanitarian crisis as 30,000 UK flood victims remain homeless

Anger was growing last night among the "forgotten" victims of Britain's floods.
Many of the estimated 30,000 people who are still homeless have been shocked by the slowness of the Government's response.
Some have been told it could be a year or more before their homes are made fit to live in again.
Warnings of a humanitarian crisis have been amplified by fears of waterborne disease and looters have been reported in some of the devastated areas.
To add to the misery, around a quarter of the 40,000 damaged houses and flats are thought to be uninsured, leaving householders facing bills running into thousands of pounds.

Hull pleads for aid after floods leave one in five homes damaged reports the Guardian

Flood rescue plans for Britain's worst affected city will be announced today when ministers visit Hull, where 30,000 people - three-quarters of the national figure - had to leave their homes at the height of the crisis and an estimated one in every five houses has been damaged.
Only 15 of the city's 105 schools escaped and millions of pounds will be needed to repair day care centres, libraries and leisure complexes swept by 10cm (four inches) of rain, which swamped drains, killing two people.

Shops struggle to stay afloat says the Times

Store owners have written off summer after weeks of wet and miserable weather that has killed trade, forcing them to dump shorts and swimwear in the discount bin.
Clothing retailers are experiencing their worst season for at least five years as the wettest June on record left large swaths of the country facing floods and even hailstorms.
Several retailers have rolled out the discount rails earlier than last year, with Debenhams starting its sale two weeks earlier than usual, offering up to 70 per cent off.
Record sunshine in April, which appeared to be a prelude to a baking summer, lulled stores into believing that they would have bumper sales in June and July.

Glasgow airport bomber left suicide note reports the Telegraph

Police were said to have found the note, describing the men's motives and grievances, CNN reported.
Officers suspect that some of the doctors arrested in connection with the failed car bombings in London and Glasgow planned their attacks in Britain. Detectives are also investigating whether the terrorist cell was assembled by radicalised junior doctors in this country. They may have met in Cambridge.

According to the Times

New family links between the eight people arrested in connection with the bomb attacks in London and Glasgow have been discovered by The Times,whilst

Police sources also said last night that the current wave of arrests was over as the Government lowered its threat level from “critical”, its highest level, to “severe”. Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary, said that there was no intelligence to suggest that another terrorist attack was imminent but urged the public to remain vigilant.
The decision to lower the threat level was made by the Joint Terrorism and Analysis Centre, according to the Home Secretary’s statement. The centre made its decision based on the “very latest intelligence” and had considered various factors including capability, intent and timescale, she added.

The front page of the Express meanwhile describes a

TERROR SEARCH FIASCO

Scotland Yard in flag cop out is the front page of the Sun

STUFFY Scotland Yard REFUSED to fly the Union Flag yesterday — despite an appeal by the PM.
The Sun backed Gordon Brown when he said the flag should be hoisted on public buildings in defiance of terrorism and to promote “Britishness”.
But Britain’s biggest police force hid behind a government directive which specifies official days on which the Union Flag can be flown. It WAS flying outside other police HQs.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “Guidance on the appropriate dates for flying of the Union Flag is issued by the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.

Meanwhile

Brown vs Cameron: let battle commence says the Indy

Gordon Brown rejected calls to set a date for the withdrawal of British troops from Iraq when he made his debut at Prime Minister's Questions.
But the much-anticipated first weekly joust between Mr Brown and David Cameron was dominated by the failed car bomb attacks in London and Glasgow, which led both men to pull their punches a little as they acknowledged the need to unite against terrorism.
Tory MPs, who feared Mr Brown's "big clunking fist" might land a knockout against Mr Cameron, were jubilant after the session. Mr Cameron later claimed "a clear points victory".
Labour MPs insisted the match was a draw. But they admitted Mr Brown was nervous and made a mistake when, in response to Mr Cameron's call for the hardline Islamist group Hizb-ut-Tahrir to be outlawed, he said: "I think he forgets I have been in this job for five days."

CLUNK! says the Mirror
Brown, nervous and stuttering at his first PMQs, still sees off lightweight Cameron with his own new, refreshing brand of politics.. substance

THE showman is dead - long live the age of seriousness.
Gordon Brown's first Prime Minister's Question Time certainly proved he is no Flash Harry.
The clunking sound came from his jokes falling flat rather than the big fist Tony Blair promised would make David Cameron see stars.

The Guardian reports that

Johnson review seeks to win over demoralised NHS staff

Alan Johnson, the health secretary, yesterday announced a thorough review of the NHS, with an admission that the government was responsible for the battered morale evident among its 1.3 million staff. Sir Ara Darzi, a world-renowned surgeon, who became a health minister in last week's reshuffle, will be conducting the 11-month reappraisal, looking at how doctors, nurses and other healthcare staff can regain ownership of NHS reform.
Mr Johnson said the government had to accept blame for the low morale in the workforce. "The reality on the ground is that there is a gloomy mood. There has been an awful lot of change in a short period. Staff feel overwhelmed by it. They feel it all flowed down from Whitehall."

Boris is latest Tory name in frame for London mayor acording to reports in many of the papers,the Independent saying

Boris Johnson emerged as a possible Tory candidate for Mayor of London after the party's fraught search for a challenger to take on Ken Livingstone came close to farce.
The quest for Conservative mayoral contender faced a series of chaotic twists after rumours swept Westminster that the gaffe-prone Daily Telegraph columnist and shadow Higher Education minister was considering throwing his hat in the ring.
Aides to David Cameron confirmed yesterday that Mr Johnson was "contemplating" putting his name forward for Mr Cameron's London-wide primary to choose the party's candidate for mayor.
One said: "This has come from Boris. He is thinking about it and giving it some consideration but he has not reached a view."

The Telegraph says

Mr Johnson said last night that he been struck by the number of people encouraging him to stand as the official Tory candidate and that he was "ruling nothing out".
He said: "Being mayor of London would be a fantastic job.
"Anyone who loves London would want to consider the possibility very carefully. In my case, there are huge obstacles - above all my commitment and responsibility to my constituency."

The Times reports that

Russian missile threat to Europe raises Cold War fear over US shield

Russia threatened to deploy rockets in the European Union’s backyard yesterday in retaliation for American plans to install a missile defence shield.
Sergei Ivanov, the First Deputy Prime Minister, said that Russia could place missiles in the exclave of Kaliningrad if the West rejected an offer to cooperate on the defence programme.
Kaliningrad is Russia’s outpost in the EU and is surrounded by Poland and Lithuania. The threat to turn it into a missile base against the EU signalled a fresh surge in tensions between Russia and the West a day after President Putin put new proposals to US President Bush to resolve the dispute.
“If our offers are accepted, Russia will not consider it necessary to deploy rockets in the European part of the country, including Kaliningrad, to counter the threat,” Mr Ivanov said during a visit to Uzbekistan.

Russians threaten Polish border with missiles says the Telegraph

According to the Mail

Taxman wants power to seize cash from accounts

The taxman is demanding powers to seize unpaid tax straight from our bank accounts.
HM Revenue &£038; Customs would snatch money from bank or building society accounts without the taxpayer's consent, it was revealed.
It claimed the powers will be used only against those who are deliberately evading paying.
Hidden in the consultation document Modernising Powers, Deterrents and Safeguards, the HMRC suggests it will seek a change in the law to allow it to avoid having to seek a court order.

The story makes the lead in the FT

Late tax payers face seizure of bank cash

The Revenue, which pursues more than 200,000 taxpayers through the courts every year, says the existing system is expensive and allows defaulters enough time to put their assets out of reach before an order is made.

STAY AWAY FROM ME is the front page of the Mirror

KATE Moss has hired new security guards to keep Pete Doherty away from her after she finally ditched the junkie rocker.
Kate, 33, took the drastic action when Doherty, 28, vowed to do anything to win her back after she kicked him out for good yesterday.
A friend said last night: "It's so over between Kate and Pete. She's brought in new guards and they won't let him get close to her at all." The couple had violent bust-ups over his scrapes with the law and a recent fling before they split.

Many of the papers report on

Gore's 100mph drug bust

THE son of eco campaigner Al Gore was in jail on a drugs charge last night — after being caught driving at 100mph in a “green” car.
Al Gore III allegedly had marijuana and prescription drugs in his Toyota Prius — the world’s most popular environmentally friendly motor.
Cops said Gore, 24 — whose dad is former US Vice President — was travelling at 100mph when they stopped him near San Diego, California, early yesterday.
Officers said they searched the car after smelling marijuana. says the Sun

The Independent reports on the

EU plan to drain wine lake branded 'a betrayal of tradition to capitalism'

Brussels has proposed the destruction of hundreds of thousands of acres of European vineyards in an attempt to drain the EU "wine lake" and reconquer markets lost to the New World.
In proposals which will be hotly disputed in wine-producing countries from France to Bulgaria, Brussels wants to pay producers of unsaleable wines to "grub up" their old vines. And from 2013, national restrictions on the planting of different varieties of vines would be lifted to encourage "competitive" growers to shift to types of wine more in demand from consumers.
The practice of "sugaring" immature wines or -chaptalisation - which increases yield and strength in more northerly vineyards would be banned.

CLASS SPY IS BANNED reports the Mirror

A TEACHER who secretly filmed pupils swearing and being abusive for a TV documentary was suspended yesterday for unprofessional conduct.
Angela Mason, 60, was banned from teaching for a year by the General Teaching Council.
She used secret cameras in schools for Five's Classroom Chaos.
Mrs Mason, of Hampstead, North London, admitted filming without pupils' permission but claimed it was in the public interest.
She said later: "The GTC are out of touch with reality if they think my film gave the wrong impression of what is taking place."

Barred: The teacher who exposed classroom violence says the Mail


Finally the Guardian reports

No to knobbly knees: Butlins tries to bring Miami touch to Minehead

The idea is to bring a bit of Miami to the Somerset coast: an art deco-style apartment block with wonderful sweeping sea views aimed at the more discerning holidaymaker. True, the rotten weather did not help.
A piercing wind that whipped the sand off the beach and slate-grey skies were bound to put a bit of a dampener on yesterday's launch of a development optimistically called BlueSkies. But it was the appearance of Titan, the 8ft tall, talking, dancing robot, there to help breakfast television's Lorraine Kelly cut the ribbon with a glitzy pair of garden shears that really shattered the illusion.