Sunday newspaper round-up: Brexit, Theresa May, People's Vote, Ryanair, Debenhams, Babcock
A Tory rising star today issues a call to arms for MPs to oust Theresa May, saying Britain cannot be led by someone guilty of an “abject failure to govern” at such a defining moment in our history. Writing in the Sunday Times, Johnny Mercer says he “cannot continue to support an administration that cannot function” on issues from Brexit to the Grenfell Tower disaster and the Windrush scandal. - The Sunday Times
The government is facing renewed pressure over its continued ties to Saudi Arabia following the death of Jamal Khashoggi and the humanitarian disaster in Yemen, after all five main Westminster opposition parties signed an unprecedented joint letter calling for a change of stance. The foreign affairs representatives for Labour, the SNP, the Lib Dems, Plaid Cymru and the Greens wrote to Jeremy Hunt saying it was “hard to imagine what crime the Saudi government would need to commit” for the UK government to condemn it. - Observer
Ryanair is facing a public backlash for its failure to remove a man from a plane after he launched a torrent of racist abuse at a fellow passenger. The man was filmed calling the 77-year-old woman an "ugly black bastard", and shouting "don't talk to me in a foreign language you stupid ugly cow" when she spoke with a Jamaican accent. - Sunday Telegraph
Struggling department store Debenhams is preparing a radical overhaul of its 200-year-old business that will include reviewing its store portfolio and slashing its dividend to zero. The company, which announces annual results on Thursday, is understood to have identified around a third of its 166 stores to face possible closure. - Mail on Sunday
Civil servants have started secret contingency planning for a second referendum, it can be revealed. Within the past fortnight they have responded to fears that Theresa May will struggle to get a Brexit deal through parliament and have been “war-gaming” a new vote. - The Sunday Times
The centre of London ground to a halt as an estimated 700,000 people from all over the UK marched peacefully on parliament to demand a second referendum on Brexit. It was the biggest outpouring of public opposition to government policy since the anti-Iraq war protest in 2003. - Observer
Donald Trump on Saturday announced the US is to pull out of a landmark nuclear agreement with Russia, accusing the Kremlin of violating its terms. Mr Trump did not offer specific details on how Moscow had violated the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, but during the past four years America has repeatedly argued that Russia has been in breach of the agreement with its aggressive actions against former Soviet states in Europe. - Sunday Telegraph
Philip Hammond is eyeing a £300m tax cut for shops in Britain's most deprived town centres as pressure mounts on the Government to help high street retailers, we can exclusively reveal. The move – being 'actively considered' at a ministerial level according to sources – could be introduced from April and would mean an instant reduction in bills for the next two years. - Mail on Sunday
Engineering giant Babcock International is poised to announce the closure of its Appledore shipyard next month, despite last-ditch efforts by ministers to save the north Devon site. A dearth of orders has in effect signed the shipyard’s death warrant, with no more work lined up once it finishes a patrol vessels order for the Irish navy. - The Sunday Times
Key industries will be destroyed by a hard Brexit, one of the country’s most powerful chief executives has predicted, amid warnings that Britain’s imminent EU exit has dented investment by four in five businesses. Ralf Speth, the boss of Jaguar Land Rover, said that such an outcome would lead to the closure of plants and major job losses as he warned that some exposed industries would have “no way to survive a hard Brexit”. - Observer
The Government’s £300m investment in low-carbon heating is “not enough” to cut the carbon emissions fast enough to meet the UK’s tougher climate targets, according to the official infrastructure tsar. The investment unveiled by ministers this week hopes to bring forward £1bn of investment in low-carbon heat networks to take the place of carbon-heavy gas heating. - Sunday Telegraph
A ferry hit two yachts, sinking one of them, and ran aground off the Isle of Wight this morning in foggy weather sparking a search and rescue operation. Three boats from the RNLI and Bembridge Coastguard were looking for 'anyone in the water' after reports 'cries' were heard from the harbour. - Mail on Sunday
Pharmacists are calling for emergency powers to switch patients to new medications without consulting their GPs in the event of Brexit-induced drugs shortages. The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) wants the government to give chemists the same powers they would have during a pandemic, allowing them to choose a different drug if the usual prescription were unavailable. Currently, the change needs to be agreed with a patient’s GP. - The Sunday Times
The Post Office boss Paula Vennells received a 7% pay rise last year, while thousands of postmasters took an average 4.5% pay cut. The former L’Oréal and Argos executive took home £718,300 in the year to March, according to accounts filed at Companies House this week, while 11,500 Post Office workers – the vast majority of whom are self-employed – received a combined £17m pay cut to £371m. - Observer
The founder of discount retailer Home Bargains paid himself more than £1m last year as the rapidly expanding company revealed another surge in profits. Liverpool-based Tom Morris, who started the business on a market stall and funded its early expansion using a personal overdraft, has grown Home Bargains into a national chain with almost 500 shops. - Sunday Telegraph
Film and television giant Netflix was embroiled in a racism row last night following claims that it alters the marketing of its programmes to target viewers’ ethnicity. The popular streaming service was described as ‘creepy and racist’ by some black viewers who complained that black actors featured in its advertising of films despite the fact they had minor roles. - Mail on Sunday