Many of the papers feature a portrait of Prince George accompanying his father, the Prince of Wales, helping to prepare meals at a London homeless shelter. The Sunday Mirror says the 12-year-old was “shown around The Passage in London with Prince William, 43, who was taken there by Princess Di in 1993”.
The Observer leads with an interview with Wes Streeting, in which he wonders “why anyone would want to be PM”. The health secretary, who last month dismissed suggestions from the prime minister’s allies that he was seeking to challenge for the leadership, discusses “leadership, the doctors’ strike and why UK taxes are too high”.
Labour’s “parking space ban” leads the Sunday Telegraph, which reports that the government plans to impose limits on “the number of spaces on new housing developments”. While the government hopes it will “discourage car use in favour of greener alternatives such as using public transport”, the paper quotes critics who say it amounts to a “war on motorists”.
The Sunday People’s top story is the proposed ban on trail hunts. The “cruel sport”, as animal rights campaigners call it, involves “animals and pets… chased and killed by packs of hounds supposed to be following the scent”.
EastEnders actress Jacqueline Jossa has been sent death threats via social media, reports the Sun on Sunday. It reports that police were called to the studios, with an unnamed source telling the paper “they [the threats] were sinister enough to raise the alarm and take action”.
High street businesses fear this Christmas could be their last, according to the Sunday Express, as consumers reel from the Budget. Shops and pubs fear a looming recession as “consumer confidence dries up, the economy stagnates and unemployment rises”, the paper reports.
The Mail on Sunday leads with a “furious landlord” who has barred Chancellor Rachel Reeves from entering his pub “over tax hikes crippling the hospitality industry”. Martin Knowles, who owns the Marsh Inn in Reeves’s Leeds constituency, says he has been hit with a “£2,500 hike in business rates” since Labour won power in July 2024.
“Beijing buys up homes across London”, is the headline splashed across the front page of the Sunday Times. China’s government boasts “a portfolio of 50 properties in England, including multi-million pound mansion houses and blocks of flats in London”, according to the paper. It writes China is “increasing its diplomatic presence as it prepares to build a new embassy in Britain”.
The Independent leads with its interview of British man Aiden Aslin, who was “sentenced to death for fighting Putin”. The paper reports “he was captured and tortured by Putin’s forces and condemned to die after a show trial”. Aslin, who returned to the UK in 2022 after being freed and is now “back in uniform”, claims to “know just how Kyiv can win” its war against Russia, according to the paper.
An extra 125,000 pints will be brought in for “thirsty fans” at Alexandra Palace for the Darts World Championships, the Daily Star reports. “Super, smashed, great!” is the headline, in reference to the catchphrase of TV show Bullseye’s host Jim Bowen “super smashing great”.
An investigation by the Sunday Times reveals that China has been buying homes across London, the majority of which have “no clear use”. It reports that Beijing is also “increasing its diplomatic presence as it prepares to build a new embassy” in the capital. But the former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, who has been sanctioned by China, condemns what he calls “an invasion of spies”.
What’s described as a government “crackdown on parking spaces” is the lead story in the Sunday Telegraph. It says new guidance is being published, requiring councils in England to limit the number of spaces on new housing developments. The Ministry of Housing says drivers will continue to have enough parking options under the changes.
The health secretary, Wes Streeting, addresses speculation about a potential Labour leadership bid in an interview with the Observer. He tells the paper a “bizarre drive-by”, in which he was accused of plotting to challenge Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, is now “water under the bridge”. When pressed on his ambitions, he says he is “diplomatically ducking” the question. “This is not a pitch or a job application”, he says. “The prime minister has got my absolute support”.
“You’re barred, Rachel” is the headline in the Mail on Sunday, which reports Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been banned from her local pub in her constituency in Leeds. The landlord of the Marsh Inn, who was photographed with Reeves shortly after Labour’s election victory, is reported to have put up a sign, making it clear that no Labour MPs are welcome because of the rise in business rates.
And the front page of the Sunday Mirror features a photo of Prince George helping out at a homeless shelter in London, more than 30 years after it was visited by Princess Diana and an 11-year-old Prince William. The paper says George is “following in his gran’s footsteps”, while the Sun quotes the shelter’s boss as saying that “it was a lovely moment in terms of coming full circle from 1993 to 2025”.
