Burnham and Macron to agree police reinforcements at Channel launch sites

The Prime Minister is to meet President Macron to agree expanded police deployments at the northern French sites from which dinghies are launched. The Daily Express reports the meeting will focus on reinforcements for what it terms "mega dinghy launch sites".

The Independent carries a separate finding that a majority of Britons now agree with Burnham's characterisation of Brexit as a "wrong turn" for the country. The Express warns that millions of pensioners will not forgive the Prime Minister if he touches the triple lock - the mechanism that raises the state pension by the highest of earnings growth, inflation, or a set floor.

What frames all of this is the fact that Burnham arrived at Number 10 from the Manchester mayoralty with a known position on Europe and a known inheritance on the boats. The meeting with Macron is the first test of whether a Prime Minister who called Brexit a mistake can extract more cooperation from Paris than his predecessor managed. The French have historically been willing to accept British money for border enforcement; whether they will accept British direction is the open question.

Kemi Badenoch has used a major speech to issue what the Express describes as a "huge challenge" to the new government, while GB News reports her pledging a ten-billion-pound defence boost and accusing Labour of being "addicted to welfare". The opposition is staking out the ground it thinks Burnham will struggle to hold: pensions, defence spending, and the arithmetic of the public finances. Watch the next fiscal statement - the sums will show whether the challenge lands.