The Sun, the Mirror and the Mail's front pages all focus on Prince Andrew – who was named in court documents relating to the convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The Mirror says a lawyer representing a number of Epstein's victims believes the British police should investigate sexual assault claims against the Duke of York. The Daily Mail quotes royal insiders as saying that Prince Andrew "will never return to the royal fold" after the release of the documents – and that the claims will have served to "crystallise" the King's determination to act. No Way Back is the paper's headline. Prince Andrew has strenuously denied all allegations.
The prime minister's "signal" on Thursday that a General Election will be held in the second half of this year also makes a number of the front pages. The Express reports Rishi Sunak is "laying down the gauntlet" to Labour by pledging tax cuts. The paper quotes him as saying this would "be the biggest difference between us and the Labour party".
The Guardian leads with Sir Keir Starmer's promise – in response – that he will "fight fire with fire" in an election campaign and won't shy away from aggressive tactics.
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Royal Navy will decommission two warships this year because of a lack of sailors. The paper says the crews of HMS Westminster and HMS Argyll will be sent to work on the new fleet of eight Type 26 frigates as they come into service. A Navy spokesman tells the paper that operational requirements are kept under constant review.
The junior doctors' walkout in England is the lead in the Times, which quotes Health Secretary Victoria Atkins warning that striking medics cannot be allowed to "switch the NHS off". It says she has promised to start talks with doctors' leaders within 20 minutes if industrial action is called off. The Telegraph reports that striking doctors are being warned that the NHS will start formally collecting evidence of the harm to patients caused by their "refusal to help struggling hospitals". The paper says that all known requests for unions to allow doctors to cross picket lines and cover shifts have so far been rejected by their union, the BMA.
There's disturbing news about bathroom cleanliness in the Daily Mail which details the findings of a survey which found that one in 10 only washed their bath towels twice a year. The paper describes the figure, obtained by quizzing more than 2,000 people, as "surprising". It says men come out worse – the research found 5% of them admitted to washing their towels just once a year.
A couple of the papers carry the endearing photo of a baby elephant being cuddled by its mother after the two were separated at a reserve in southern India. The Mirror reports that the "little lost nelly" was two miles away from its herd, but rangers managed to reunite the pair. The photo shows them lying snuggled together. The paper reports that a viewer of the reunion posted it was "a heartwarming reminder of the bond in the animal kingdom".
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