Newspaper headlines: Tory rebels threat and 'no river safe to swim in' By BBC News

Staff Published duration 3 August 2019

image copyright PA Media image caption The Lib Dems celebrate their victory in Brecon and Radnorshire as Jane Dodds, left, was elected

There are a variety of stories covered on the front pages of Saturday's newspapers.

In the wake of the Conservatives' by-election defeat in Brecon and Radnorshire, the Guardian suggests Prime Minister Boris Johnson's working majority of one could be wiped out as rebel Tory MPs threaten to defect or resign.

The former justice minister, Dr Phillip Lee, says he is not alone in thinking about switching to the Liberal Democrats or sitting as an independent.

Writing in the i newspaper, the Spectator's Katy Balls says that she is not expecting the prime minister to focus much on winning around wayward MPs - and predicts that an early election is likely.

The polling expert, Sir John Curtice, cautions - through the Financial Times - that current evidence indicates the Conservatives would be at risk of losing at such an election.

The Times describes the result in Brecon as "pretty disastrous" for Labour - saying the party's share of the vote had fallen in every by-election since the 2016 referendum.

The paper blames what it calls "Corbyn's Brexit ambivalence".

The Daily Mail goes further, saying Labour was "utterly humiliated".

It suggests Mr Corbyn's only chance of reaching Downing Street would be what it calls a "chimera coalition with the Lib Dems and the Scottish Nationalists".

Deals between parties?

"Electoral pacts, not parties, are the future," suggests Matthew Parris, writing in the Times, as he reflects on how the Lib Dems' success in the by-election was assured by the agreement of Plaid Cymru and the Greens not to field any candidates.

Meanwhile, in an interview with the same paper, Nigel Farage says he is convinced that Boris Johnson will have to consider a pact with his Brexit Party - and he names some seats where he would like the Tories to stand aside.

In its leader, the Daily Telegraph also indicates that the only way the Tories can win, it believes, is to "knit the Leave coalition back together."

But a government spokesman tells the paper that Mr Johnson has "absolutely no intention" of agreeing to any such alliance.

It is a stance backed by the Daily Express, which says in its editorial column pacts are not needed, if Brexit is delivered.

image copyright Getty Images image caption Home Secretary Priti Patel has given her first interview since taking up her new job

Meanwhile, the Mail's main story focuses on the aims of the new Home Secretary, Priti Patel.

She tells the paper that with extra police officers, she wants criminals "to literally feel terror" at the thought of offending.

But she adopts what the Mail calls a "softer stance" on prison, promoting the idea of rehabilitating prisoners.

Ms Patel also explains her desire to restore public confidence in the immigration system, with an Australian-style points system to favour those with skills.

NHS funding

Hospitals are "falling to bits", the Daily Mirror warns in its front page headline.

The Mirror says ceilings are falling in and sewage is leaking onto wards, because of a £6bn backlog of repairs.

The shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, blames Tory budget cuts, saying lives are at risk.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said the NHS will get an extra £33.9bn every year by 2023-24.

The FT suggests there could be an announcement as early as tomorrow on an emergency injection of between £1bn and £2bn into the NHS.

The Times reports that Downing Street aides are looking at bringing forward former prime minister Theresa May's commitment to give the health service an extra £20bn by 2023.

Meanwhile, the Times reveals that not a single river in England is certified as safe for swimmers.

The paper says 86% do not meet EU ecological standards, and dangerous pollutants are at their highest recorded levels.

The Telegraph reports on a warning from US President Donald Trump's administration that Britain will not get a free trade deal, unless the government drops its new digital services tax.

The 2% tax - due to come in next April - would affect US giants such as Amazon, Google and Facebook.

Several papers report on a study that suggests being socially active in your 50s and 60s may help lower the risk of developing dementia.

The Guardian explains that the researchers found that using the brain for memory and language control during social contact can build the cognitive reserves.

The Sun suggests that their findings indicate that people should go out to the pub or the bingo hall to ward off the condition.