Newspaper headlines: ‘Zelensky offers to quit’ and ‘Germany turns Right’ – BBC.com
The German election is the main story for the Times, Guardian and the Financial Times which all focus on big gains by the far-right. The Times says the AfD, which campaigned on immigration, was dominant among working-class voters and performed strongly among younger people. The Guardian says the dramatic surge in support for the party will complicate the formation of a government to help “spearhead” a European response to growing global threats. Writing in the Daily Mail, Andrew Neil, agrees. He says the swing to the right leaves a vacuum in Europe’s most important country during a “continent-wide crisis”.Volodomyr Zelensky’s declaration that he would stand down as president to bring peace in Ukraine is the lead in the Daily Telegraph. It sees the remarks as a “softening” in the Ukrainian leader’s rhetoric, something it says allies have reportedly been urging him to adopt. The Financial Times says his comments are a sign of the extreme pressure he is under as the US hurries to secure a peace deal with Moscow. “Now that’s a leader”, is the headline in the Daily Mirror, which thinks Mr Zelensky’s comments “put Donald Trump to shame”.The Daily Mail says it has seen a letter written by Tory party leader Kemi Badneoch to BBC Director General Tim Davie, about a documentary on life in Gaza which was narrated by the son of a Hamas official. The paper says the letter calls for an inquiry. The BBC, the paper says, is understood to be carrying out further due diligence into how the programme was made.The continued campaign by the Waspi women – to secure compensation for the 3.6m who were hit by changes to the state pension age announced in the 1990s – is the lead in the Daily Express. The group says it has sent a “letter before action” to the Department for Work and Pensions warning of High Court proceedings if the matter is not resolved. The group’s chairwoman, Angela Madden, has told the paper it has won legal actions before and is confident it can win again.The i newspaper cautions that the government’s plan to build 1.5m homes is under threat from a skills shortage. It says industry insiders have warned that thousands more bricklayers, carpenters and plasterers would be needed, but that drop-out rates among apprentices on some relevant courses are as high as 40%. The paper reports that ministers have been told they would need a huge increase in migrant worker numbers to fix the skills gap.And the Times says growing numbers of younger people are taking up fishing because it’s good for anxiety. It quotes the Angling Trust as saying that thousands of young practitioners have been awarded rod licences in the last couple of years. The paper says angling influencers, who post their catches on social media, have also encouraged the younger generation to take up the sport. It carries a photo of England and Manchester City footballer Phil Foden holding a huge fish and says he’s described it as “a great way to relax”.Sign up for our morning newsletter and get BBC News in your inbox.Copyright 2025 BBC. All rights reserved. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.
