Newspaper headlines: Black hole, Brexit summit and May's future By BBC News

Staff Published duration 11 April 2019

image copyright Getty Images image caption Mrs May suffered a bruising night in Brussels, says the Telegraph

News of the latest delay to Brexit came too late for the first editions of this morning's papers - but the final and online editions make the most of the new date, 31 October.

The Daily Telegraph reflects on a "bruising night in Brussels" with French President Emmanuel Macron "haunting" EU leaders in "the Brexit witching hour" to force a shorter extension.

The Guardian reports that Mr Macron "enraged" his fellow EU leaders, insisting on speaking last during their working dinner and to oppose the longer delay favoured by German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The Mail says the UK has been "humiliated again" - being forced to sit back while a "vengeful" President Macron "turned the screw".

The paper concludes that Theresa May's appeal to Brussels goes down as "one of the most demeaning episodes" in Britain's history.

The Times agrees. In its editorial, the paper says Wednesday night's summit was a "historic humiliation" - and even the Suez crisis "barely compares".

The paper calls on MPs to reflect on "how the country got here". It is hard to see any way forward, it argues, "so long as Mrs May remains prime minister".

For the Sun, the new Brexit postponement is the "final confirmation" of Theresa May's failure - and she must now accept "the game is up".

The Telegraph also looks to a change of leader. In its editorial, the paper says Mrs May's premiership has now descended to an "almost tragi-comic triumph of hope over expectation, missed deadlines and broken promises".

The paper reports that Conservative rebels are now looking for a way to get round party regulations which protect the prime minister from another leadership challenge before the end of the year.

It adds that a number of MPs have called on their association chairmen to gather signatures, in the hope that a petition signed by 10,000 Conservative members could force a rule change.

image copyright OLIVIER HOSLET image caption Mrs May shares a joke with Angela Merkel and Donald Tusk

The Financial Times says Downing Street has been forced to abandon plans to bring its Brexit legislation before the Commons again this week - because of "slow progress" in its talks with the Labour Party.

The paper adds Mrs May had been hoping to signal an imminent breakthrough in Parliament when she addressed EU leaders last night. But that approach was dropped, the paper says, amid "increasing scepticism" over whether the two parties will ever agree a compromise.

Several papers report on the sacking of the government's housing advisor, Roger Scruton, for making allegedly anti-Islamic and anti-Semitic comments in a magazine interview.

The Guardian says his comments came at an "especially awkward time" for the Conservatives - as the party has been coming under increasing scrutiny over its stance on Islamophobia while it continues to attack Labour for anti-Semitisim.

image copyright Reuters image caption Could Treasury minister Liz Truss be considering axing the HS2 rail project?

According to the Sun, the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Liz Truss, has "given her strongest hint yet" that the government could scrap the HS2 rail line.

She confirmed that the case for the multi-billion pound project would be examined as part of the next spending review, after suggesting in an interview that local transport matters more to business than high-speed rail links.

The paper says her comments will be seen as evidence of her desire to be Tory leader - because of the project's unpopularity among Conservative MPs in the areas affected.

Meanwhile, it has emerged that a government website aimed at giving advice to gardeners on how to encourage honey bees has inadvertently been directing them to a page advertising an escort service.

The Daily Mail says the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs was alerted this week, when members of the public, seeking tips for their gardens, clicked on a link which urged them instead to "fulfill their fantasies" with "local singles".

DEFRA removed the link yesterday. "It's a honey trap" says the Sun.

And the Times reports on a revealing insight into a day in the life of a Silicon Valley billionaire.

The founder of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, has been describing his daily routine - which includes an ice bath at 05:00, just one meal on weekdays, and no food at the weekend.

image copyright Getty Images image caption Mr Dorsey says "nothing gives me more mental confidence" than going from room temperature into cold

In an interview for a fitness podcast, Mr Dorsey also said he sometimes avoided eye contact for ten consecutive days in a bid to improve his mental "wellness".