Papers tackle Oldham riots

The newspaper first editions went to press before the latest violence in Oldham, but there is widespread criticism of the Liberal Democrats' home affairs spokesman, Simon Hughes.

Commentators criticised his suggestion that the tough line taken by the Conservatives on asylum seekers may have contributed to a climate of racial intolerance in the town.

"A disgrace", is the Daily Mail's view, and it dismisses Mr Hughes' comments as part of a Stalinist campaign to stifle open and honest debate on asylum.

The Daily Telegraph agrees, saying he should be thoroughly ashamed of himself.

It says he exploited the violence for partisan gain while warning everyone else against playing the race card.

The Independent is blunt, rejecting his remarks as "nonsense".

Apocalyptic spoof

Apathetic voters are offered a spoof journey into the future in The Mirror.

The dateline on the paper reads 28 May 2006, a stunt to paint a picture of Britain five years after a Tory election victory.

As readers may expect, the paper's seven-page spoof is fairly apocalyptic, with hospitals and schools closing down, Mirror journalists incarcerated for backing the rights of asylum seekers and sterling on the slide against the euro.

Moreover, Tony Blair has become the UN's High Commissioner for Human Rights after spending months studying theology following his election defeat.

Remember, the Mirror warns its readers, if you do not bother to vote on 7 June, it may just come true.

Expat activists

Voter apathy should not be a problem among the thousands of British expatriates living on Spain's Costa Del Sol, according to The Times.

It has travelled to the region, known locally as Little England, to discover what it calls a corner of a foreign land that is forever Tory, and about to vote in droves.

The paper says it found a hotbed of Conservative activism that would make William Hague weep with joy if just a trickle of such political passion could find its way back home.

Train pain

Most papers contrast the news of the latest triumph for the French high speed rail system with continuing problems facing the British network.

The Times describes how the French TGV was smashing speed records on a new coast to coast service between Marseilles and Calais while trains were halted in the UK when tracks buckled because of "sun on the line".

The Mail calls it a tale of two railways, and adds that the French system - where ticket prices are a third of what they are in Britain, and 98% of trains are on time - will seem like science fiction to long-suffering UK passengers.

Misread situation

Finally The Sun tells how an embarrassing blunder landed a man in police cells on his stag night.

Mark Kitchen was arrested after asking a woman in a police uniform to remove her clothes, thinking she was part of a stripogram act organised by his friends at a bar in Halifax.

She turned out to be a real police officer and radioed for help.

Magistrates gave him a conditional discharge, accepting that he had misread the situation.