Friday newspaper round-up: Grocery inflation, income tax, rail strikes, landlord rules

The Treasury will be able to slash the basic rate of income tax by 2p if Britons who left jobs during the pandemic return to work, a Cabinet minister has declared. Mel Stride, the Work and Pensions Secretary, who is responsible for overseeing the Government’s drive to boost employment numbers, said there were still 400,000 fewer workers than before Covid. A 2p cut in the basic rate of income tax would mean a fall from 20 per cent to 18 per cent. - Telegraph

Rail services across Britain will be severely disrupted on Friday as train drivers stage the first of the latest wave of planned strikes in a long-running pay dispute. Members of the drivers’ union Aslef will strike for 24 hours across virtually all the big passenger operators in England, stopping some major intercity and commuter services entirely. - Guardian

President Zelensky has been blocked by the BBC and other international broadcasters from addressing the world at the Eurovision Song Contest. A request by the Ukrainian leader to make a surprise video appearance during the final, in which he was expected to urge the global audience of 160 million to continue their support for his country in the face of Russian aggression, was turned down by event owners. - The Times

Landlords in England will be able to evict tenants for antisocial behaviour more easily as part of a wider package of reforms to the rental market, after heavy lobbying by industry organisations and Conservative backbenchers. Michael Gove will use the renters’ reform bill, which could be introduced to the Commons as soon as next week, to strengthen landlords’ rights when it comes to dealing with alleged antisocial behaviour. - Guardian