The Papers: ‘Covid passports’ and ‘green light for racists’

image captionSeveral papers look ahead to what summer has in store. Those wanting a quarantine-free holiday will have to swap Spain for Bahrain under new travel rules, the Sun reports. As many European countries experience a surge in cases and struggle to vaccinate citizens quickly, the Gulf state is rapidly rolling out its vaccination programme. This means the country will get the “green light” under plans unveiled next week, according to the paper.

image captionThe Times says “vaccination hotspots” such as the United States, Maldives, Israel and Malta could be the first countries to open up for British holidaymakers this summer. Under a new traffic light system, travel to red-list countries will not be permitted, amber countries will mean people will need to quarantine for up to 10 days and green-list countries will not need any quarantine, the paper says. Separately, Oxfam is facing new allegations of sexual exploitation, bullying and mismanagement, the paper reports.

image captionCovid passport trials are set to begin as early as next month, the Daily Mail reports. Theatres and stadiums will be lined up to pilot the scheme under plans discussed by ministers, the paper says, with the passports potentially being used in pubs, restaurants, nightclubs and cinemas. However, the scheme is likely to be contentious, the Mail adds, with some Conservative and Labour figures labelling such documents “divisive and discriminatory”.

image captionThe Daily Telegraph says the FA Cup final and the World Snooker Championships are among the events that could require coronavirus vaccine passports. Meanwhile, millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money have been invested into the Dutch vaccine factory at the centre of a European row over jab exports, the paper reports. It says that about £21m was meant to secure shipments for the UK from the Halix factory in Leiden. Brussels has insisted that the doses should be diverted to EU nations, the paper adds.

image caption“Get set for summer fun” is the headline on the front of the Daily Mirror as the paper reports that the entertainment and culture industries will receive £400m to bounce back from lockdown.

image captionThe Daily Express leads with comments from England’s chief medical officer, Prof Chris Whitty, who has said we will have to learn to live with coronavirus – like we do the flu. This way, Britain can avoid future lockdowns, the paper adds.

image captionMeanwhile, Doreen Lawrence has become the latest person to hit out at the government-commissioned race report, which she says threatens to push the fight against discrimination back 20 years, the Guardian reports. The Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities said family structure and social class had a greater impact than race on people’s lives. The 258-page report claimed the term “structural racism” was “too liberally used”. Lady Lawrence, whose son Stephen was murdered in 1993, said: “My son was murdered because of racism and you cannot forget that. Once you start covering it up it is giving the green light to racists.”

image captionAnd the i leads with an investigation into links between Westminster and big business. The paper says at least 66 of Former Prime Minister David Cameron’s ministers and officials found private sector jobs linked to their role in government within two years of stepping down.

image captionFinally, a giant, yellow thumbs up dominates the front of the Daily Star, with the paper reporting that the emoji – and several others – fall foul of the “hip and trendy” test and is actually a signal of your age.