‘Afghan’s £1bn blunder’ and four MPs ‘lose Labour whip’
July 17, 2025
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The Afghan data breach is dominating the papers for the second day in a row. A High Court judge lifted the superinjuction on Tuesday that had barred reporting on the leak for two years. “Cabinet bid to halt Afghan airlift”, leads The Daily Telegraph which reports a number of ministers objected to plans to grant asylum to thousands of Afghans. The paper says it was forced through using “emotional blackmail” amid a “toxic” atmosphere.
“Thanks for saving us, now we’ll sue you” – states the Daily Mail headline. It says taxpayers could potentially face a £1bn bill as legal companies begin signing up claimants whose safety was put at risk when the database was compromised. Prince Harry is pictured on the front page after he made his third visit to minefields in Angola, retracing the steps of his mother Princess Diana.
100,000 Afghans were left “at risk of death” as a result of the “blunder” says The Sun, which also focuses on the £1bn payout.
The Times reports that secret intelligence used by the Ministry of Defence to keep the Afghan superinjunction in place for two years was deliberately withheld from MPs. The paper says it spearheaded efforts to lift the superinjunction as Afghans had the right to know if they were on the list so they could protect themselves from the Taliban.
“NI hits food prices” warns the i newspaper, writing that prices are climbing as a result of Rachel Reeves’s £25bn increase in employment taxes, alongside the impact of poor harvests and bad weather.
“Four MPs lose the Labour whip as PM attempts to reassert grip on party” – states The Guardian. Back-benchers Neil Duncan-Jordan, Rachael Maskell, Brian Leishman and Chris Hinchliff were suspended and a further three Labour MPs were stripped of their government trade envoy roles after rebelling against a vote on welfare cuts earlier this month. The paper also pictures large plumes of grey smoke after Israel struck Syria’s defence ministry in Damascus.
The damage in Damascus is also pictured on the front page of the Financial Times. The FT’s main story is Debra Crew’s resignation from drinks company Diageo as “falling alcohol sales take toll”.
The Southport victims and murdered MP Sir David Amess are pictured on the front page of the Daily Express. The paper leads on an independent review which said that anti-terror scheme Prevent had “failed to provide” help that may have stopped the two separate attacks.
The Metro leads on US President Donald Trump’s “flip” on files related to the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, who died in 2019. The paper reports Epstein’s ex-girlfriend Ghislaine Maxwell has launched a fresh appeal against her conviction for helping Epstein sexually abuse young girls.
The Mirror states “BBC’s kitchen nightmare” as it reports on John Torode becoming the second presenter to be sacked from MasterChef. The chef was let go after an allegation against him using “an extremely offensive racist term” was upheld. Torode said that while he “does not believe that it happened”, he did apologise immediately afterwards.
The Star reports that “under-fire” Thames Water CEO Chris Weston has blamed rain for an increase in water main leaks, despite much of the UK being in drought. The company is currently under scrutiny as part of an inquiry into reforming the water sector.
