'Hell on Earth' and green policy 'retreat'

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ByBBC News
Staff

Many of Monday's front pages picture holidaymakers fleeing on foot in Rhodes, dragging luggage behind them under orange, smoke-filled skies. Wildfires on the Greek island have led to evacuations of hotels and travel chaos as people scramble to find transport and shelter. "Hell on Earth" is how the Daily Express describes it. The paper says terrified families have been forced to abandon their possessions in the dash for safety. It quotes one British mother saying: "I thought I was going to die."

Sun 24/7/23
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Another holidaymaker quoted in the Sun says the situation is "like the end of the world". The paper says many tourists escaping hotels had just seconds to spare "as the inferno raged around them".

Metro 24/7/23
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Metro's headline is simply: "Rhodes on fire." It says many are spending another night in sports centres or on beaches before trying to catch a flight out.

Mirror 24/7/23
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The Daily Mirror says UK jets are flying to Rhodes to rescue "exhausted" tourists, with some 19,000 people evacuated from hotels so far.

Guardian - 24/7/23
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The Guardian says thousands of people on Rhodes have been forced to flee the "nightmare", as the fires raged for a sixth straight day. The paper says Greece has mounted its biggest evacuation ever as a result, moving thousands of people from villages and resorts.

Telegraph 24/7/23
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Travel companies are under pressure to repatriate thousands of Britons from the Greek island, says the Telegraph. The paper adds it understands the PM is urging travel firms to ensure that tourists who want to can return home.

i newspaper 24/7/23Image source, BBC
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The i also depicts crowds of travellers on foot in Rhodes - but its main article says the Tories are being warned against "fiddling with green policies" in the face of what it calls a widening split in the party over whether to scrap "unpopular, expensive" climate pledges.

Times 24/7/23
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Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is planning to hold firm on net-zero goals, the Times reports, but he could retreat on green policies that cost consumers in order to woo voters. Things under consideration are low-traffic neighbourhoods and deadlines for landlords to meet energy efficiency targets, according to the paper.

FT 24/7/23Image source, BBC
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Meanwhile, the Financial Times reports that some of the right-wing policies of Florida governor Ron DeSantis are discouraging some Republican party donors, who are now rethinking their support for his US presidential bid. It says such a retreat could harm the DeSantis campaign.

Daily Mail 24/7/23
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The Daily Mail has interviewed Chancellor Jeremy Hunt about his experience of skin cancer. He tells the paper he is "blessed" that it was caught quickly but speaks about how it has affected other members of his family.

Daily Star 24/7/23
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And finally, the Daily Star picks up on the news that extra seconds are to be added to the green man at traffic lights in order, it says, to give "unfit Brits" longer to cross the road. We've become older and fatter, the paper concludes.

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