Newspaper headlines: ‘Don’t be sorry, smile’ and ‘staggering rise’ in child anxiety rates

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August 27, 2024

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The main headline on the front page of Metro reads: "Don't be sorry, smile... it's been fantastic" — Many papers lead with tributes to former England men’s football manager Sven-Goran Eriksson, who has died at the age of 76. “Don’t be sorry, smile…it’s been fantastic” reads the main headline of the Metro, a reference to a comment he made in a new documentary about his life and career. Eriksson revealed in January that he had cancer and had a year to live at best.

That same quote from Eriksson is the main headline on the front cover of the Daily Mirror. The paper details how David Beckham, whom Eriksson made England captain after becoming manager in 2001, met his former boss to say goodbye. “We laughed, we cried. Thank you Sven,” says Beckham.

The main headline on the front page of the Daily Mirror also reads: "Don't be sorry, smile... it's been fantastic" — That same quote from Eriksson is the main headline on the front cover of the Daily Mirror. The paper details how David Beckham, whom Eriksson made England captain after becoming manager in 2001, met his former boss to say goodbye. “We laughed, we cried. Thank you Sven,” says Beckham.

The Guardian’s tribute to Eriksson also features a David Beckham quote, describing Eriksson as “always passionate, caring, calm and a true gentleman”. The paper leads on a story detailing the “staggering” rise in anxiety among children, detailing official figures that show almost 4,000 children are being referred to NHS mental health services in England per week for anxiety. Doctors, NHS officials and health leaders have described the surge in anxiety referrals as “staggering” and “shocking”.

The main headline on the front page of the Guardian reads: "Revealed: 'staggering' rise in anxiety among children" — The Guardian’s tribute to Eriksson also features a David Beckham quote, describing Eriksson as “always passionate, caring, calm and a true gentleman”. The paper leads on a story detailing the “staggering” rise in anxiety among children, detailing official figures that show almost 4,000 children are being referred to NHS mental health services in England per week for anxiety. Doctors, NHS officials and health leaders have described the surge in anxiety referrals as “staggering” and “shocking”.

“Violent criminals allowed to just say sorry” reads the Daily Telegraph’s main headline. According to the accompanying article, more than 147,000 people accused of offences including sex crimes were handed community resolutions, which can involve an apology and do not result in a criminal record, rather than being prosecuted. A former police officer has told the Telegraph that the increase in knife crime made the use of community resolutions for knife possession especially troubling. The Telegraph also carries a photo of Eriksson on its front page.

The main headline on the front page of the Daily Telegraph reads: "Violent criminals allowed to just say sorry" — “Violent criminals allowed to just say sorry” reads the Daily Telegraph’s main headline. According to the accompanying article, more than 147,000 people accused of offences including sex crimes were handed community resolutions, which can involve an apology and do not result in a criminal record, rather than being prosecuted. A former police officer has told the Telegraph that the increase in knife crime made the use of community resolutions for knife possession especially troubling. The Telegraph also carries a photo of Eriksson on its front page.

The Times also leads on a crime story, with the headline “police have given up on punishing shoplifters”. The paper says analysis of official figures shows that the majority of police forces did not issue a single penalty for shoplifting over the year to March. The Home Secretary has reportedly said that the “shameful neglect” of shoplifting must end. There is also yet another tribute to Sven-Goren Eriksson, referring to the number of high-profile relationships he had that “made headlines outside the sports pages”.

The main headline on the front page of the Times reads: "Police have given up on punishing shoplifters" — The Times also leads on a crime story, with the headline “police have given up on punishing shoplifters”. The paper says analysis of official figures shows that the majority of police forces did not issue a single penalty for shoplifting over the year to March. The Home Secretary has reportedly said that the “shameful neglect” of shoplifting must end. There is also yet another tribute to Sven-Goren Eriksson, referring to the number of high-profile relationships he had that “made headlines outside the sports pages”.

The front page of the i newspaper features an investigation it has conducted into one of the UK’s largest care providers. Analysis by the newspaper has found that since Voyage Care was taken over by Kuwait in January 2022, around a third of its care homes have seen a drop in their performance ratings and 23 saw a drop in safety standards in assessments by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Voyage Care says that 89% of is locations in England have been rated either “Good” or “Outstanding” by the CQC and that locations in Scotland and Wales are “100% compliant”.

The main headline on the front page of the i newspaper reads: "Safety fears at British care giant owned by Kuwait - despite £500m in taxpayer cash" — The front page of the i newspaper features an investigation it has conducted into one of the UK’s largest care providers. Analysis by the newspaper has found that since Voyage Care was taken over by Kuwait in January 2022, around a third of its care homes have seen a drop in their performance ratings and 23 saw a drop in safety standards in assessments by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). Voyage Care says that 89% of is locations in England have been rated either “Good” or “Outstanding” by the CQC and that locations in Scotland and Wales are “100% compliant”.

“Top defence contractors poised for $52bn cash bonanza as orders soar” reads the main headline of the Financial Times, referring to the profit leading aerospace and defence companies are expected to make over the next three years as governments buy weapons at an increased rate due to heightened global tensions. The front page also features a denial by French President Emmanuel Macron that the arrest of Telegram’s CEO, Pavel Durov – known as the “Zuckerberg of Russia” – was politically motivated.

The main headline on the front page of the Financial Times reads: "Top defence contractors poised for $52bn cash bonanza as orders soar" — “Top defence contractors poised for $52bn cash bonanza as orders soar” reads the main headline of the Financial Times, referring to the profit leading aerospace and defence companies are expected to make over the next three years as governments buy weapons at an increased rate due to heightened global tensions. The front page also features a denial by French President Emmanuel Macron that the arrest of Telegram’s CEO, Pavel Durov – known as the “Zuckerberg of Russia” – was politically motivated.

The Daily Mail leads on an exclusive about military training being cut back to save £400m to fund pay rises for troops. According to the paper, the changes will include soldiers pretending they are firing weapons rather than using live ammunition. The Ministry of Defence said the pay increase would be funded through “reprioritisation and saving measures”, adding that it would “never compromise the safety of our personnel”.

The main headline on the front page of the Daily Mail reads: "military training cut back to fund pay rises" — The Daily Mail leads on an exclusive about military training being cut back to save £400m to fund pay rises for troops. According to the paper, the changes will include soldiers pretending they are firing weapons rather than using live ammunition. The Ministry of Defence said the pay increase would be funded through “reprioritisation and saving measures”, adding that it would “never compromise the safety of our personnel”.

The Daily Express leads on comments by Reform UK MP Nigel Farage, who has accused the government of “making economic decisions on the basis of who will vote for them at the next election”. Mr Farage is backing the paper’s campaign calling for the reversal of cuts to winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners. He has warned of other “shocks” to come in Labour’s October budget.

The main headline on the front page of the Daily Express reads: "Farage warns of 'chocks' to come in Labour budget" — The Daily Express leads on comments by Reform UK MP Nigel Farage, who has accused the government of “making economic decisions on the basis of who will vote for them at the next election”. Mr Farage is backing the paper’s campaign calling for the reversal of cuts to winter fuel payments for millions of pensioners. He has warned of other “shocks” to come in Labour’s October budget.

Quoting “cheery AI boffins”, the main headline of the Daily Star reads “our last chance to stop psycho killer robots” – referring to comments made by an expert at Human Rights Watch. Mary Wareham is among those calling for restrictions on artificial intelligence-powered lethal autonomous weapons systems – known as Laws – which select and target locations without human intervention. Ms Wareham wants a decision on whether world leaders ban them or not to be taken at a United Nations summit next month.

The main headline on the front page of the Daily Star reads: "Our last chance to stop psycho killer robots" — Quoting “cheery AI boffins”, the main headline of the Daily Star reads “our last chance to stop psycho killer robots” – referring to comments made by an expert at Human Rights Watch. Mary Wareham is among those calling for restrictions on artificial intelligence-powered lethal autonomous weapons systems – known as Laws – which select and target locations without human intervention. Ms Wareham wants a decision on whether world leaders ban them or not to be taken at a United Nations summit next month.

The Guardian leads on what it calls the “staggering” rise in anxiety among children since the Covid pandemic. It says official figures show that more than 500 young people a day are being referred to NHS mental health services in England for anxiety. Experts tell the paper there are a number of reasons – including worries about exams, the influence of social media and post-pandemic uncertainty. The Guardian says mental health leaders fear the figures may only be “the tip of the iceberg” and that the situation lays bare an urgent need to tackle the crisis in children’s mental health.

The Daily Telegraph reports that police are increasingly letting knife and sex offenders escape prosecution, if they say “sorry”. The paper says that, in the year to March, more than 147,000 people accused of offences, including violent crimes, were handed community resolutions – which do not result in a criminal record. It bases its report on analysis of Ministry of Justice data. A former police officer and former Number 10 adviser, Rory Geoghegan, tells the paper that an increase in the number of knife offences has made the use of community resolutions for knife possession of “particular concern”.

The front page of the Times also focuses on crime. It says that police have “almost entirely” given up on punishing shoplifters, despite the number of offences soaring. It says its own analysis of official data has found that 431 shoplifters were handed fixed-penalty notices for thefts under the value of £100, in the year to March. The paper says this represents a 98% drop from a decade ago, when more than 19,000 were issued. The Times says insiders fear the almost total lack of enforcement is encouraging further criminal behaviour.

The Times says analysis of official data shows a significant decrease in the number of fixed-penalty notices given out for shoplifting

Reuters A security camera in a shop — The Times says analysis of official data shows a significant decrease in the number of fixed-penalty notices given out for shoplifting

The Daily Mail says vital military training is being cut back to pay for “salary hikes for troops”. According to the paper, a £400m shortfall means some battlefield exercises are being axed or scaled back, with soldiers being forced to “pretend” to shoot, rather than using live ammunition. In a statement, the minister of defence tells the paper that the government “would never compromise” on the safety of personnel.

The largest aerospace and defence companies are set to rake in record levels of cash over the next three years, according to the Financial Times. It says they stand to benefit from a surge in government orders for new weapons amid rising geo-political tensions. The paper says the top five US defence contractors are forecast to generate cash flow of $26bn by the end of 2026 – almost double the figure at the end of 2021.

The death of Sven-Goran Eriksson, the first foreign manager of an England football team, is widely covered on the front and back pages. Many picture him in contemplation and highlight his words from a recent documentary on his life: “Don’t be sorry, smile”. The Daily Express calls him a “special man”, while the Daily Mirror is among those to report on David Beckham’s final time with his former manager, saying: “We laughed, we cried… and we knew we were saying goodbye.” On its back page, the Sun headline says simply: “Thanks, boss.”