The Papers: '45m Brits in drought' and a 'Not-so-small boats crisis'

The papers lead with the arrival of a record-breaking 230 migrants on a single 49ft dinghy, with the Daily Mail noting that this number surpasses the capacity of a Boeing-737. The Sun takes a similar approach, calling it a "not-so-small boats crisis" and estimating the crossing to cost taxpayers £25m. The French lifeboat service warns of no limit to the migrants smugglers will place on the giant dinghies, echoing Andy Burnham's call for the justice secretary to prepare plans to exclude killers of PC Harper from early release.

The government refutes that the prime minister agreed with Burnham's demand. The Daily Mirror reports Britain's drought conditions, stating that 45 million people are now in affected areas. Firefighters have warned they are unprepared for the surge in wildfires caused by the dry weather, with the Fire Brigades Union urging a national priority in equipping crews.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch told the Daily Express that Burnham must rule out further tax rises for his policies, and the Budget will be a tricky test for the prime minister and Chancellor John Healey. Labour emphasizes problem-solving over point-scoring in response. The Financial Times reports on Wall Street's ambitious lending effort, with some of the largest financial groups investing $500 billion in AI data centres alongside the artificial intelligence company Nvidia.

Finally, the Daily Star reports on Jeff Bezos nearing a deal to buy a stake in Liverpool football club, featuring a picture of a player with Bezos' face edited on.