'Call to shield police from trials' and Ofwat 'faces axe'
· BBC NewsThe acquittal of Martyn Blake, the firearms officer who shot Chris Kaba in 2022, continues to lead the papers.
The Times reports, external that the Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley wants officers to be exempt from criminal charges unless prosecutors can show they "deliberately departed" from their training.
The Guardian says, external the National Police Chiefs' Council is also calling for similar changes. But the paper says campaigners have criticised such a move as a “cynical attempt” by police leaders to secure “effective immunity” for officers.
According to the Daily Telegraph, external, what is described as "the most effective drug for Alzheimer's" is set to be blocked for use on the NHS. The paper says regulators are set to declare the treatment - donanemab - as safe for use, but that the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence is expected to rule that it is too expensive for NHS patients. The paper says such a move would disappoint groups that have campaigned for better access to new drugs on the NHS.
A couple of the papers report on research which suggests the high cost of living may be playing a role in the return of scurvy, a condition caused by a lack of vitamin C. The Times says, external a report in the British Medical Journal details a case of a man whose doctors were unable to explain his painful rash and bruising until it emerged that he ate little fruit or vegetables and lived mainly on processed foods. One of the authors is quoted saying that "scurvy is seen as a disease of the past" but that in some cases people are struggling to afford good quality nutritious food.
The Guardian says, external ABBA's Bjorn Ulvaeus, Radiohead's Thom Yorke, and actress Julianne Moore have joined thousands of other artists to warn about the threats of artificial intelligence to their industries. In an open letter, the group says "the unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI is a major, unjust threat to the livelihoods of the people behind those works, and must not be permitted".
Many of the papers reflect on the King and Queen's six-day visit to Australia, which wrapped up on Tuesday. The Times says, external it ended on a "high" as more than 10,000 people waited to the see the royal couple at the Sydney Opera House.
The Daily Mirror, external says the event marked a "turning point" in the tour, after the King and Queen were heckled earlier in the trip. The Daily Express, external focuses on another of their engagements on Tuesday, the quintessentially Australian activity of a barbecue. The paper says the couple were on "sizzling form".
And the Telegraph, external highlights Bernard the Eurasian black vulture, who has become the first of his kind to have stem-cell treatment to alleviate arthritis. The 28-year-old bird of prey, who's cared for by the Horstmann Vulture Trust in South Wales, had been experiencing stiffness in his leg. Since he underwent the procedure at the start of the month, conservationists say his movement has improved and that he is "much happier wandering around".
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