A number of Sunday’s newspapers lead with tributes to Ed Pettifer, 31, who was killed in the New Orleans attack. The Sunday People reports the Prince of Wales has expressed his sadness over the British man’s death. He was the stepson of Alexandra “Tiggy” Pettifer, née Legge-Bourke, who was the prince’s nanny as a child.
The Sun reports that William was in “shock” at the death of Pettifer, who was one of 14 people killed in the attack. The paper describes Pettifer as a “pal” of William’s.
The NHS is braced for a “perfect storm”, reports the Sunday Express, as a “deadly combination” of freezing temperatures and “surging” winter viruses “threatens to push the health service to breaking point”. It comes as the Royal College of Emergency Medicine “predicts at least 14,000 unnecessary deaths” due to A&E delays this winter, the paper adds.
The Sunday Times reports Nato will urge Sir Keir Starmer to significantly increase spending on air and missile defences, as an investigation by the paper finds the UK is “increasingly vulnerable to ballistic missile attacks”. The military alliance is expected to make a formal request later this year when it issues member countries with updated force requirements, the paper claims. Pictures is Luke Littler, the 17-year-old world darts champion, cradling his trophy at home in Warrington.
The Sunday Telegraph reports a new net zero “flight tax” on airlines risks adding “hundreds of pounds” to the cost of family holidays. New rules that came into effect last week “force airlines to fill their planes with at least 2% green fuel, rising to 10% and then 22% by 2040”. The paper says it has seen a Whitehall impact assessment which forecasts the policy “could add £302.40 to the average price of return plane tickets by 2040” for a family of four.
The Mail on Sunday leads on a poll it commissioned asking people what they think of Sir Keir Starmer’s performance. Around a third of respondents said they think the prime minister will be “ousted…within a year”, its front page says. The paper claimed voters are furious after polling 1,144 British adults over the Christmas and New Year period.
The Sunday Mirror leads on an interview with former Strictly Come Dancing pro Giovanni Pernice, who said “I feared my career was over” after bullying allegations were made against him.
And finally, the Daily Star says that “budgie smugglers” have been judged one of the “sexiest things you can wear in 2025”.
