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'No welfare cuts before election' and 'Police probe Epstein's Balmoral stay'

Warning: Friday's paper review contains spoilers for the Celebrity Traitors UK

"No welfare cuts before election – as Britons face 'worst decade' for pay growth," reads the headline on the front page of the i Paper.
Fallout from Chancellor John Healey's Budget continues to fill many of the front pages. "No welfare cuts before election" is the i Paper's headline, writing that the chancellor made the admission "amid predictions it will jump by almost 30% to £431bn by 2032" as he "faces criticism over Budget delay in tackling spending cuts".
"Prepare for decades of pain, warns IFS," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Telegraph.
The Daily Telegraph continues with warnings from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) to "prepare for decades of pain" after "Healey accused of 'unhelpful fiddling' after ducking welfare changes in the Budget". It calculates that "a typical family's disposable income would rise by an average of 2 per cent over the 2020s in the wake of the Chancellor's measures".
"Defence to benefit from off-the-book spending," reads the headline on the front page of the Times.
"Defence to benefit from off-the-book spending" says the Times in its top story, in an effort to "avoid billions in tax rises or public service cuts next year". According to the paper, "Healey is in advanced talks with at least three other Nato members about setting up an international bank that would finance a 'significant' part of the extra spending" while Treasury is also "looking at a mechanism that would allow private companies to provide the upfront funding for equipment such as fast-jet training aircraft".
"Humiliation for Healey: Chancellor forced into screeching U-turn just hours after promising to cut welfare bill before next election," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mail.
The Daily Mail says the chancellor has been "forced into screeching U-turn" on what it calls "the runaway benefits bill" – suggesting that it is a "humiliation for Healey".
"Police probe Epstein's stay at Balmoral with Andrew," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Express.
The Daily Express leads with its exclusive reporting that Police Scotland are looking into the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein's "stay at Balmoral" with Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor. According to the paper, the force "confirms 'active enquiries are ongoing'." Mountbatten-Windsor has consistently and strenuously denied any wrongdoing.
"Star Trek's final frontears: Legend of stage and film dies, 86," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Star.
The Daily Star also carries the story on the "cops probe" into Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor time in Balmoral, although elsewhere it leads with tributes to Sir Patrick Stewart, who has died aged 86. "Star Trek's final frontears," the paper writes next to a photo of the late actor, with tributes remembering him as a "legend of stage and film".
"Manosphere 'as bad as smoking': Toxic male forums now a health problem," reads the headline on the front page of the Metro.
The manosphere is "as bad as smoking", reports the Metro, quoting new research from the gender equality institute Global 50/50. It says online misogyny "monetises the promotion of violence against women and girls, harms mental health and make it hard for boys and men to get help". Comparing the counter-manosphere strategy to smoking, the paper carries the warning: "Britain must use same approach to stop harm to boys and young men... and save women's lives".
"Netanyahu accused of smearing Arab voters to hold on to power," reads the headline on the front page of the Guardian.
The Guardian leads with the latest on the Israeli parliamentary elections, reporting that Benjamin Netanyahu has been "accused of smearing Arab voters to hold on to power". After no major bloc secured a majority of seats to win power, "Netanyahu and his allies called on the internal security service, Shin Bet, to investigate alleged vote buying and other irregularities in Palestinian communities in Israel", according to the paper.
"Alphabet shares battered as cash burn deepens investor fears over Al returns," reads the headline on the front page of the Financial Times.
"Alphabet shares battered" writes the Financial Times, saying that Google's parent company "has burnt through cash" which "deepens investor fears over AI returns". Reporting that Alphabet's share value dropped 15 per cent on Thursday, the paper says "the plunge reverberated across markets, as the tech-heavy Nasdaq slumped 1.5 per cent".
"Obscene greed: Shell's £8bn profit share," reads the headline on the front page of the Daily Mirror.
The Daily Mirror reports on oil giant Shell's profits, contrasting them with household bills and pump prices "continuing to soar amid the Iran and Ukraine wars".
"Fright of the round table," reads the headline on the front page of the Sun.
Finally, the Sun leads with new details about actor James Acaster's appearance on the Celebrity Traitors. Admitting he was a traitor "left him so distraught filming was halted" and "welfare staff checked on the comic before the Round Table vote", the paper says.
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