Britons' Sri Lanka ordeal dominates papers

The ordeal of the 47 British tourists caught in the middle of a deadly terrorist assault at an airport in Sri Lanka is captured in words and pictures by many of Wednesday's papers.

Candace Bovill-Taylor, who is pregnant, tells The Times how she cowered in a ditch with her young daughters as bullets struck the ground and the trees around them.

Sarah Liddle tells The Mirror that she did not expect to see her husband again.

The Daily Star hopes that Britain's tourist industry will benefit as holidaymakers conclude that there is no place like home.

Railtrack apologises to families

The tone adopted by the new Railtrack chairman, John Robinson, at the company's annual meeting is widely discussed.

According to The Guardian, the company signalled a new approach to the way it does business by issuing its first public apology to the families of recent train crash victims.

The Independent speaks of a highly unusual bout of corporate contrition as Mr Robinson apologised for what the paper calls his company's boardroom greed and deadly incompetence.

The Daily Mail says the shareholders listened in stunned silence as he owned up to his firm's failings.

The Daily Express believes that the chairman defused a ticking time bomb of protest.

The Sun linked the story with Tuesday's accident in Edinburgh beneath the forthright headline "Seven hurt in crash as rail boss grovels".

Controversial plastic bullets plan

The Guardian reports that controversial plans to stop police recruits in Northern Ireland from being trained to fire plastic bullets are likely to form part of what it calls a last-ditch deal to save the peace process.

The paper says that ex-paramilitaries might be allowed to play a role in local police boards and terrorists on the run might be offered indemnity from prosecution.

The Daily Telegraph says that the Ulster Unionists are preparing to reject the proposals.

No early referendum on Euro

The Financial Times and the Express believe that pro-Euro politicians and business people are in for a disappointment.

The FT, which carries an interview with the Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, says that a campaign to promote membership of the single currency will not begin until an economic assessment has been completed and that could be two years away.

The Express asserts that the Chancellor Gordon Brownhas emphasised his opposition to an early referendum on the euro by failing even to mention it in an article about Labour's goals for its second term.

Beckingham Palace's 'tacky' website

The Mail wonders if it has found Britain's tackiest internet site.

Visitors can apparently learn all about Victoria "Posh Spice" Beckham, her husband David and son Brooklyn via a virtual reality tour of Beckingham Palace, a cartoon version of the family's mock Georgian mansion in Hertfordshire.

By clicking on a section in the Throne Room, fans will discover that the England football star likes golf and pickled onion crisps.

Victoria favours Kir Royale cocktails, peas and fresh fish.

BBC bans free biscuits

The Guardian is among several papers to report that BBC bosses are to ban free biscuits for staff at meetings.

The Corporation has calculated that more than £200,000 a year is spent on biscuits it says.

It also claims that personal kettles could also be on the way out to eliminate what an internal report calls "the potential safety and electrical loading issues" and to reduce cleaning costs.