Newspaper headlines: May bids to woo Tories before Brexit debate By BBC News

Staff Published duration 29 January 2019

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The papers look ahead to the votes in the Commons, on a series of amendments to Theresa May's Brexit deal.

The Sun's front page headline is: "Don't let Labour kill Brexit".

There is no story - just an editorial which urges MPs to reject the amendment put forward by the Labour MP Yvette Cooper. It would delay the UK's departure if no plan was agreed by the end of February.

The Sun believes the measure could be a "mortal blow" for Brexit. Ms Cooper has insisted the amendment seeks only to postpone leaving, but the paper fears that any delay could become permanent.

The paper is horrified by the ERG's warning that it will defy the Tory whip, and not support the amendment which seeks changes on the Irish border issue.

The Mail sees that proposal as "eminently sensible", because it could pave the way for a Brexit deal. And it describes those Brexiteers who fail to accept that as "reckless zealots".

There is a section in the Times that seeks to weigh up how significant a day this is in the Brexit process. By the end of the voting, it says, "we will certainly have a better idea of what MPs don't agree on - and perhaps a better idea of what they do agree on".

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The Financial Times says European leaders are "bracing themselves" for a request from Mrs May to extend the 29 March Brexit deadline.

It believes that the "precise response is far from certain".

The EU, explains the paper, would have to decide how long such an extension lasted - and what conditions would be imposed on the UK.

The businessman has always denied wrongdoing - and has warned that any former employee who breaks an agreement not to discuss allegations against him could face legal action.

The Telegraph says there are calls for Sir Philip to remove that threat.

Online addicts

The Times and the Sun both report that Kensington Palace has been struggling to cope with the amount of online abuse directed at the Duchesses of Cambridge and Sussex.

The Times says household staff spend several hours per week deleting what are described as "vicious comments".

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It reveals that the palace has appealed to Instagram to help deal with the problem.

It is shocked by new research from the media regulator, Ofcom, that shows many children spend on average around three hours a day online.

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Particularly disturbing, says the paper, is a tendency among youngsters to watch people online pursuing hobbies and interacting with friends, instead of doing those things themselves.

The paper's cartoonist, Pugh, depicts a father who has disguised a window frame as a tablet computer, with his son who is looking through it.

The caption is: "I've tricked him into thinking the garden's a YouTube video".

Tablecloth charger

It has been set up in Wiltshire after a company was granted permission to cultivate the plants for medicinal purposes.

The paper says the location of the seven-and-a-half acre greenhouse is not being disclosed, because of security concerns.

American scientists have created super-thin, flexible materials that can generate power from the electro-magnetic waves in the air.