EU 

Express
THE EUROZONE will soon face a new debt crisis, with Italy replacing Greece as the epicentre, a Swedish MEP has told Express.co.uk.
New analysis by Deutsche Bank has warned that booming Covid debts, a relaxed attitude to heavy borrowing and a complacent view that interest rates will never rise will lead the world into a new economic crisis. Eurozone nations, which ran into such trouble ten years ago, are likely to repeat their mistakes with economies across the rich world straying down the same dangerous path, senior economist Sebastian Becker has said. He explained: “Credibility could become an issue as most governments were not able to achieve balanced budgets in the ‘golden’ pre-pandemic years characterised by robust growth, booming labour markets and an ever falling sovereign interest bill. Indeed, advanced economies have never achieved a balanced budget on average for the past 30 years.
“A continued and careless buildup of debt can potentially lead to self-reinforcing loops of high debt and high risk premium, which do turn explosive at one point.”
That point could be at 130 percent of GDP or more – levels breached by Italy and Greece.
Mr Becker’s warning has also been echoed by Swedish MEP Peter Lundgren, who claimed a new European debt crisis is on the doorstep, but with Italy being the epicentre this time.
The European Commission has given the green light to Rome’s €191.5billion (£164.6bn) recovery plan. 

Northern Ireland 

Express
THE British public strongly support Northern Ireland remaining part of the United Kingdom, according to new polling which reveals sharp concern that the actions of the European Union are a threat to peace in the province.
More than half (53 percent) of people say it is “important” that Northern Ireland stays part of the UK, compared with just 12 percent who say it is “not important”. The Savanta ComRes polling comes as debate mounts on both sides of the Irish border about the potential of a referendum on Irish unification. A mere seven percent of more than 2,000 UK adults polled said it was “not at all” important that Northern Ireland remains part of the union, compared with 29 percent who said it was “very” important.
People who voted for Brexit are most likely to value Northern Ireland’s status as one of the four nations of the UK. While nearly two-thirds of Leavers (65 percent) said it was important it stayed, this was true for less than half of Remainers (49 percent).
The polling also reveals strong suspicion that Brussels may be trying to use special arrangements for Northern Ireland to thwart Brexit.
Forty-two percent agreed that “by tying Northern Ireland to EU single market rules the Northern Ireland protocol (NIP) is a backdoor way of not implementing Brexit” – and a mere nine percent disagreed. 

Freedom Day 

Express
BORIS Johnson is set to resist pressure to delay the end of lockdown again and continue to force people to use masks.
It comes as Tory MPs have urged the Prime Minister not to lose his nerve and to confirm that freedom day will happen on July 19. Mr Johnson is set to announce tomorrow whether step 4 of unlocking is definitely going to happen having outlined that it will bring to an end almost all the covid rules in England. While the Prime Minister will still urge caution and emphasise the need for personal responsibility a backlash led by Labour and hardline pro-lockdown scientists has failed to dissuade him from his planned course of action.
A Number 10 spokeswoman told The Sunday Express: “We’ve achieved what we set out to do when we delayed step 4, vaccinating millions more people and providing them with the best possible protection against this virus. By 19 July, every adult will have had the chance to receive a first dose of the vaccine and two thirds of adults will have received a second dose, which is so crucial for protecting ourselves and others.
“As a result of our vaccines and the phenomenal national effort over the last few months, that crucial link between cases, hospitalisations and deaths has been weakened, but this is far from the end of dealing with the virus and we must continue to be cautious.”
She added: “The Prime Minister will review the latest data tomorrow and set out our plans for step four.
“We need to learn to live with the virus, but caution remains key. The Prime Minister will urge the public to continue to use their freedoms responsibly, so we do not put at risk the progress we have worked so hard for.” 

Guardian
Boris Johnson faces a growing revolt over plans to end most Covid restrictions on 19 July – including the mandatory wearing of face masks on public transport and in hospitals – as half of the public now say they want “freedom day” to be delayed.
Last night, as doctors and other NHS workers demanded that mask-wearing continue in hospitals, regional political leaders broke ranks, saying they would override the national government on the issue and strongly advise people to continue wearing masks on public transport.
Andy Burnham, mayor of Greater Manchester, told the Observer that with Covid cases rising rapidly again, “freedom day” risked becoming “anxiety day” for huge numbers of vulnerable people, because the government was making unwise decisions.
“The government is simply wrong to frame everything from here as a matter of pure personal choice. It is not,” said Burnham. “Many people who are vulnerable to the virus have to use public transport and do their food shopping in person. That is why the wearing of face coverings in these settings should have remained mandatory. I will be strongly encouraging the people of Greater Manchester to continue to wear masks on public transport out of respect for others.”
London mayor Sadiq Khan is also involved in urgent talks with the government, Transport for London (TfL), private train operators, and trade unions as support grows for the wearing of face masks to remain mandatory on the capital’s transport network. 

NHS 

Telegraph
The number of patients on hospital waiting lists could soar to 13 million over the coming months as a result of Covid-19 and successive lockdowns, the Health Secretary has warned.
In his first interview since being appointed to the role, Sajid Javid told The Telegraph that “shocking” internal modelling showed that the current record number of 5.3 million patients  waiting for treatment could more than double over the coming months.
Mr Javid warned that the pandemic has worsened “non-Covid” health problems, as those who needed medical attention chose not to go to hospitals for fear of catching coronavirus or because of a “very British” attitude of not wanting to overburden NHS staff.
Modelling shown to Mr Javid suggests that some seven million people who would have been “expected in normal times” to seek medical treatment “did not turn up during the pandemic”. The figure includes tens of thousands of people who are believed to have missed out on cancer checks and treatment for conditions such as heart disease, as well as patients officials believe have gone untreated for mental health problems exacerbated by the lockdowns. 

Similar stories appear in the Mail, Guardian, Sun, Independent. 

NI Veterans 

Telegraph
Boris Johnson’s plan to give Northern Ireland veterans a legal exemption from prosecution is to be unveiled this week, and will also protect republican paramilitaries, The Telegraph understands.
Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland Secretary, is preparing to set out proposals for a statute of limitations on prosecutions for crimes committed during the Troubles.
The new cap on historic prosecutions is expected to apply to combatants on both sides of the conflict.
Mr Lewis had pledged to deliver plans to Parliament before the summer recess, which begins on July 22.
Trials linked to the Troubles will be blocked as ministers move towards a “truth and reconciliation” approach, modelled on a similar policy used in post-apartheid South Africa, and will focus on reconciling communities in Northern Ireland rather than pursuing combatants.
It will also allow people who were involved in the conflict to testify about what happened without fear of prosecution, giving closure to families of those who were killed.
The decision follows the collapse of two trials of British paratroopers – known as Soldier A and Soldier C – in May, which saw key evidence ruled inadmissible by a judge. 

Illegal migrants 

Breitbart
Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) has announced it will no longer bother to attempt prosecuting most illegal migrants even under existing laws, as Home Secretary Priti Patel is once again claiming the Tories are poised to get tough on mass migration.
A new deal between prosecutors, police, border agents, the FBI-style National Crime Agency (NCA), and the Home Office will see prosecutions for illegal entry largely abandoned,  according to The Times, except possibly in cases involving people who have previously been deported.
“Asylum seekers often have no choice in how they travel and face exploitation by organised crime groups,” the CPS claimed in a statement.
“The guidance therefore advises that passengers of boats and other vehicles should not be prosecuted unless they are repeat offenders or have previously been deported — and should instead be dealt with by administrative removal channels,” it added.
The move completely undercuts Priti Patel, the Secretary of State responsible, broadly speaking, for policing, national security, and border control in the Boris Johnson administration, in her latest efforts to convince the public that the Tories are getting tough on illegal immigration, proposing new laws that could see illegal migrants handed four-year sentences.
Such measures will count for nothing if prosecutors do not take illegal migrants to court in the first place.
The Crown Prosecution Service’s stance that illegal aliens will “usually be better dealt with by removal” runs contrary to the fact that the British government’s record on deportations is extremely poor and getting worse, with the number of even convicted foreign national offenders (FNOs) being removed from the country having collapsed by some 79 per cent.
On illegal migrants who have been crossing the English Channel from France and, more rarely, the Low Countries, on small boats, in particular, the government’s record has been similarly abysmal, with Corporate Watch claiming that just 136 out of many thousands had been removed during what was supposed to be a major deportation effort in the months leading to Britain’s formal break with EU governance at the end of December 2020. 

Football 

Mail
England is on the verge of history today as the Three Lions prepare for their biggest match in 55 years after the Queen, Prince William and Boris Johnson rallied the players ahead of their Euro 2020 final against Italy.
An expectant nation is hoping Gareth Southgate’s side will claim England’s second ever major international trophy with around 60,000 fans cheering on at Wembley and millions more watching anxiously on screens across the country.
The prime minister called on Southgate and his ‘band of brothers’ to ‘bring it home’ while the Queen sent her ‘good wishes’ and praised the squad’s ‘spirit, commitment and pride’ in letters to Southgate on the eve of the final.
She also recalled the moment in 1966 when she handed the World Cup to England captain Bobby Moore, the last time the country played in a major tournament final, also at Wembley. 
Capturing the mood of a nervously expectant nation, Prince William said in his rallying cry: ‘I can’t really believe this is happening… You bring out the very best of England and we are all behind you. The whole country is behind you.’
And in an open letter to her husband, Kate Kane, the wife of England captain Harry, said she had been moved to tears when she ‘started writing down how proud you’re making us all’. 
Some fans decided to settle any pre-match nerves by hitting the pubs and bars last night and England will be hoping to continue the party atmosphere long into the night with a famous win over Roberto Mancini’s Italy. 

Telegraph
The Queen has written to Gareth Southgate praising his England team for their “spirit, commitment and pride” and sent her “good wishes” in the hope the squad make history when they take on Italy at the Euro 2020 finals.
Recalling how she presented Bobby Moore with the World Cup trophy amid jubilations at Wembley in 1966, she explains how she witnessed firsthand what victory really means for England players.
The letter, sent from Windsor on Saturday night, explains how she hopes “history will record” the young team’s Euro 2020 triumph at Wembley as well as how they all conducted themselves in an exemplary manner throughout the tournament.
She wrote: “Fifty-five years ago I was fortunate to present the World Cup to Bobby Moore and saw what it meant to the players, management and support staff to reach and win the final of a major international football tournament.
“I want to send my congratulations and that of my family to you all on reaching the final of the European Championships, and send my good wishes for tomorrow with the hope that history will record not only your success but also the spirit, commitment and pride with which you have conducted yourselves.” 

A similar story can be seen in the Independent. 

Express
ITALY’s major newspaper has mocked England’s football motto, arguing it is because of the English’ arrogance, Italians often do better than them.
England reached its first major tournament final since winning the World Cup in 1966 after beating Denmark 2-1 in a gripping encounter at Wembley Stadium on Wednesday. Gareth Southgate’s Three Lions had to come from behind to win and, as the match went into extra-time, a penalty decided the match. Southgate told the UEFA website: “I’m so proud of the players.
“It was an incredible occasion to be a part of. The fans were incredible all night.”
England will now face Italy in the final after the Azzurri beat Spain on penalties on Tuesday.
While the Italian side has looked imperious during Euro 2020, England will hope the home support at Wembley can inspire it to a historic victory on Sunday.
English fans have already started dreaming and the song ‘Football’s Coming Home’ continues to be played and sung across the country.
In a recent article, famed Italian journalist Beppe Severgnini has argued it is because of England’s Football’s Coming Home attitude, Italy often does better. 

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