Times

The Times reports on growing resentment towards the prime minister among Tory MPs over coronavirus restrictions, comparing some elements to George Orwell’s 1984.

The Times says ministers are preparing to enforce a total social lockdown across much of northern Britain and potentially London to combat a spiralling second wave of coronavirus.

The Times is yet another newspaper to splash with the story about 54-year-old Matt Ratana, the London policer officer shot and killed in the line of duty by a handcuffed suspect who was armed with a revolver.

The Times leads with Rishi Sunak announcing a new multibillion-pound package of support for the economy on Thursday in an attempt to avoid mass redundancies in winter, with the new measures set to include wage subsidies for part-time workers. 

The Times focuses on the more positive side of the PM’s speech, when he claimed that if the UK pulls together to follow the rules, coronavirus will be a “struggle humanity will win”. 

The Times says Downing Street has warned Britain faces a further six months of “very difficult” lockdown measures. 

Downing Street has been told that the UK is now six weeks behind Spain, which recorded 239 coronavirus-related deaths on Thursday, The Times reports. 

Testing also leads many papers. The Times has spoken to a scientist who has toured the government labs that opened in April and are processing the tests. The scientist says the labs are inefficient – using cumbersome techniques and are running out of staff, as they struggle to cope with demand.