What the papers say – September 13

Future of the pensions triple lock features amid a range of stories on Wednesday’s newspaper front pages.

What the papers say (PA) (PA Archive)

Pensions, flooding in Libya, spying, crime and the Princess of Wales’s injured fingers feature across the front pages of Wednesday’s newspapers.

Doubts over the future of the pensions triple lock – which ensures annual rises in line with either earning growth, inflation or 2.5% – appear on several of the fronts.

The Daily Mail focuses on comments by Works and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride, who said the system is “unsustainable” in the long term.

That fear is echoed in the i, which says neither the Conservatives nor Labour have pledged to keep the existing formula beyond the next election.

The prospect of losing the triple lock leads the Daily Express to warn Prime Minister Rishi Sunak not to make “sneaky” changes to the policy.

The Guardian reports that the triple lock is facing a one-off cut which could save £1 billion, but it leads with a dramatic picture from the aftermath of the flooding in Libya and describes it as “beyond comprehension” with thousands of people killed.

The flooding dominates the front of the Metro, which reports that at least 10,000 people are missing with two dams bursting near the city of Derna in the wake of Storm Daniel.

The Times is one of several titles to carry a picture of the Princess of Wales on a visit to HMP High Down with strapped-up fingers after a trampolining accident, but it leads on a warning from MI5 to the Conservatives that two potential parliamentary candidates could be spies for China.

There are more security fears in The Daily Telegraph with former defence secretary Ben Wallace warning human rights laws are thwarting efforts to stop terrorists.

Security fears closer to home dominate the front of the Daily Mirror as it declares it the “Year of the Shoplifter” and demands help for shop workers to fight what it calls an “epidemic”.

While the Mirror highlights the lack of prosecutions, The Independent focuses on the strain facing the prison service as it says thousands of experienced officers have left the service and left “jails at breaking point”.

The Financial Times leads on an interview with former prime minister Sir Tony Blair as he warned Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer he will not be able to tax his way out of inherited trouble if he wins the next election.

And the Daily Star suggests giving 85% is the best way to achieve success.