01 January 2021

What the papers say – January 1

01 January 2021

Hopes for a brighter year despite the continuing battle against Covid-19 and a new direction for the UK dominate the front pages at the start of 2021.

The Daily Telegraph leads with Boris Johnson hailing two reasons to “hope for a much brighter future” – Brexit and the British-made Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine.

And the Daily Express carried a positive message for the country after it finally left the single market, with a front page headline of “Our Future, Our Britain, Our Destiny”.

The Prime Minister is celebrating what he feels will be an “amazing” future for the UK, The Times says, while also reporting the country will be short of vaccines for months.

The Guardian, however, carries the front page headline of: “In crisis, without fanfare, UK finally ends the EU era”.

And The Independent poses the question of whether Britain is now “Off the hook – or cut adrift?”

Meanwhile, the “promise of a better tomorrow” awaits thanks to the arrival of the new Covid vaccine, according to the Daily Mirror.

But the i says the race is now on “between virus and vaccine” as deliveries of the new Oxford-developed jab are set to begin.

The Daily Mail reports a million people in the UK have already received the Pfizer vaccine, but urges the Government to speed the process up as the new jab is rolled out, with a cry of “Get a move on”.

Featuring a syringe striking twelve on Big Ben’s clockface, The Sun has launched a campaign calling for volunteers to join a “Jabs Army” and help with the massive task of having the nation vaccinated.

And the Daily Star rounds off with a blunt message to farewell the annus horribilis that was the past 12 months, splashing with “Up yours 2020!”

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