A return to the cold war is the lead in both the Guardian and the Times this morning

Russia's relations with the west plunged to their most critical point in a generation yesterday when the Kremlin built on its military rout of Georgia by recognising the breakaway provinces of South Ossetia and Abkhazia as independent states.
Declaring that if his decision meant a new cold war, then so be it, President Dmitri Medvedev signed a decree conferring Russian recognition on Georgia's two secessionist regions. The move flouted UN security council resolutions and dismissed western insistence during the crisis of the past three weeks on respecting Georgia's territorial integrity and international borders.

says the former


The move brought instant condemnation from the United States, Britain, France, Germany and other Western countries. President Bush appealed to the Kremlin to “reconsider this irresponsible decision”. David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, said that it was “unjustifiable and unacceptable adds the Times

Many of the papers have pictures from the Democrat convention on their front pages,

Michelle takes on her critics and electrifies Denver says the Independent

I am so lucky to be married to the woman who delivered that speech last night," Barack Obama said in an email to supporters. "Michelle was electrifying" – better perhaps than he was, he added, at the last Democratic convention in 2004

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The later additions of the Guardian have a picture of Hillary Clinton as she calls for unity

Hillary Clinton backed Barack Obama last night to be America's next president in an eagerly-awaited speech intended to end the divisions plaguing the party since the nomination battle ended in June.
"I ask all of you who worked so hard for me, who knocked on doors and made those phone calls, who got in arguments from time to time ... to work as hard for Barack Obama as you did for me," Clinton told a lunch crowd of about 2,500 who also heard from Obama's wife, Michelle.

Meanwhile many of the papers also report that

A man at the centre of a suspected assassination plot against Senator Barack Obama has said that the presidential candidate "ought to be shot" because of his colour.

.The Telegraph adds that

The chilling threat by Nathan Johnson, 33, followed his arrest with two other men when an arms cache was found in a pick-up truck. The men, one of whom is said to have strong ties to the white supremacist movement, were last night under investigation and facing initial charges for illegal firearms possession.

It leads with news that Eyesight of thousands to be saved after Nice approves drug

For the first time a drugs company will pay to top up patients' treatment where the level of care paid for by the Health Service is not enough.
In a decision that marks a climbdown for the National Institute for health and Clinical Excellence (NICE), the first 14 injections of the sight-saving drug Lucentis will be paid for by the NHS.
If the patient still needs further treatment then Novartis, the manufacturer, will pay for any additional doses.

The Mail leads with another atack on the Home Secretary,under the headline Smith's secret police,the paper says

Security guards and town hall workers are being armed with sweeping police-style powers, it has emerged.
For a few hundred pounds, state and private sector employees can receive Home Office accreditation.
This allows them to hand out fines for a raft of offences, from dropping litter to riding a bike on the pavement.
They can also stop cars to check their tax discs, seize alcohol from underage drinkers and demand people's names and addresses.

The Express also has the same theme reporting that

AN army of town hall spies who can hand out on-the-spot fines is being recruited by the Government.
Council staff, car park attendants, private security guards and even dog wardens are being used to snoop on the public and issue fixed penalties for minor offences.

Massive voting reform needed to block fraud loopholes reports the Times

Voters may have to take some form of photographic ID into the polling station under controversial proposals to reform the electoral system announced today.
The system needs urgently to be overhauled to restore voter confidence, protect against fraud and bring it into the 21st century, the Electoral Commission says. It calls on the Government to consider a national register with details of every voter to help to eliminate postal vote fraud.

The Independent leads with the news that Fuel prices drive cars off the roads

The credit crunch and the rising cost of running a car has caused traffic on Britain's major roads to drop for the first time since congestion was measured, a report has revealed.
The study, which examined traffic on 34 motorways and trunk roads in England, Scotland and Wales, found congestion fell by 12 per cent in the first six months of this year, compared with the same period in 2007.

According to the Guardian Ministers back away from windfall tax

The government last night appeared to be backing away from calls to impose a windfall tax on energy companies amid concern the cost would merely be passed on to consumers.
Electricity companies warned yesterday that a "legalised raid" on their profits would drive investors away and would "end up on the customers' bills".

Many of the papers report that iPhone advert censored by watchdog

A television advert for Apple's iPhone has been banned after the official watchdog ruled that it misled viewers.
The advert for the handset showed the phone in someone's hand and a finger touching the different icons on the main page.
The voice-over then boasts about how iPhone owners can access "all parts" of the internet at a touch of a button.

says the Telegraph adding

Customers complained that the claim was untrue because the iPhone did not support Flash or Java, two pieces of software needed to watch some online videos and access some websites.

The Sun keeps us up to date with Gary Glitter,the paper reporting that

SCRUFFY pervert Gary Glitter leaves the safety of his secret new hideaway last night — to go shopping for a luxury motor.
The vile pop paedophile ventured out under the cover of darkness with a friend who has been putting him up.He wore a straw hat wedged over a bizarre red wig in a desperate bid to disguise his familiar features.

Many of the papers report on the Ryanair jet that plummeted 26,000ft following a sudden drop in cabin pressure.The Mail reports that

Holidaymakers screamed as the Ryanair plane went into a five-minute dive without warning during the flight from Bristol to Spain.
The aircraft levelled out at around 8,000ft before making an emergency landing in central France.Sixteen passengers needed hospital treatment for damaged ear drums, severe headaches and nose bleeds.
Many later claimed that oxygen masks had failed to work during the ordeal, and criticised the crew for not immediately explaining to them what was happening.
But the allegations were fiercely denied by the airline, which insisted all the masks had worked properly.

The Times reports that Children aged 3-7 put at risk by staff shortcomings in out-of-school clubs

Thousands of children in out-of-school clubs in England are being put at risk because providers are failing to meet basic staffing requirements.
A report from the education and childcare watchdog Ofsted found that out-of-school childcare centres, which include breakfast clubs, after-school childcare and holiday play schemes, are insufficiently staffed and are hiring workers who have not even attained good GCSEs.

According to the Independent

Chinese press and bloggers have been less than favourable about London's contribution to Beijing's Olympic closing ceremony – criticising contributions from the London Mayor Boris Johnson and David Beckham.
As the torch was put out in the "Bird's Nest" stadium, one blogger described Mr Johnson as "arrogant, rude and disrespectful" when he accepted the Olympic flag. There were mixed opinions too about the eight-minute cameo performance featuring a London bus, Beckham, the singer Leona Lewis, Led Zeppelin's guitarist Jimmy Page, dancers and singers

Meanwhile the Sun reports that

OLYMPIC sensation Becky Adlington looks overwhelmed as 15,000 cheering fans welcome her home yesterday.
The swimming star, 19, waved from an open-top bus as crowds chanted her name.

I'm no liar says the front page of the Mirror

X Factor faker Alan Turner yesterday begged the show not to dump him - and said: "I honestly didn't mean to lie."
Tearful Alan, 23, phoned producers to say he told millions of viewers he grew up in a foster home because he was "confused".
He said: "The emotion of the audition got to me. I didn't realise what I was saying would be taken that way. Please give me another chance. I'm not a bad person. I never meant to deceive anyone."

Germany shrinks, France grows, but UK population booms says the Guardian

Britain will overtake Germany and France to become the biggest country in the EU in 50 years' time, according to population projections unveiled yesterday. A survey of demographic trends finds Britain's positive birth rate contrasting strongly with most other large countries in Europe.
The impact of population shrinkage, coupled with the ageing of key European societies, spells big problems for pensions, health and welfare systems across much of the union, says the report, published by Eurostat, the statistical service of the European commission.

Finally the Independent reports on the man who told us how to live life to the full

Dave Freeman, the advertising executive whose travel guide 100 Things To Do Before You Die inspired a generation of travellers to treat each day as if it might be their last, has died in a freak accident at the age of 47.
He fell and hit his head at home in Venice, Los Angeles, on 17 August, it emerged yesterday. Relatives said he had only managed to get round to visiting just more than half the places recommended in his famous book