Papers attack 'out of touch' Irvine

There is a chorus of disapproval for the Lord Chancellor's comments that first-time burglars and those who commit non-violent break-ins should be spared jail terms.

Lord Irvine's support for recent judicial guidelines, recommending alternatives such as community sentences, is lambasted by The Express, the Daily Mail and The Sun.

The Express says his comments demonstrate how out of touch he is, accusing him of arrogance, pomposity and an utter failure to understand the concerns of the public.

It says he and the Lord Chief Justice Lord Woolf, who first issued the guidelines, have thrown commonsense notions of justice out of the window.

'Sack Irvine'

The Daily Mail dismisses the notion that keeping burglars out of jail will help reduce prison overcrowding.

It argues that when the jails are overcrowded the answer is to build more.

The Sun believes that by encouraging judges not to jail burglars, Derry Irvine betrays both his office and the government.

The Daily Telegraph sees the government putting out a mixed message; promising tougher sentences for those caught carrying illegal weapons but promoting community penalties for burglars instead of jail.

The paper suggests ministers have decided that when in search of a favourable headline or an empty soundbite, prison does work.

Gangland trap

The father of one of the girls murdered in the Birmingham gang shootings describes his anguish in The Daily Mirror.

Arthur Ellis says his family is caught in a terrifying gangland trap, with his daughter Charlene dead, her sister Sophia in hospital wounded, one son on the run with the gang that carried out the shooting, and his brother a member of the rival gang.

Arthur appeals to his two boys to come forward, fearing that an all-out turf war is about to erupt between the two gangs.

Teaching crisis

The Guardian says the survey by the General Teaching Council, showing that a third of teachers in England plan to quit the classroom in the next five years, will make worrying reading for the Education Secretary.

It amounts to more than 28,000 teachers leaving the profession for other jobs, almost as many as were recruited last year.

The figures demonstrate to The Times the scale of recruitment difficulties faced by ministers, as they struggle to deal with an ageing and demoralised profession.

Cold front

With the cold weather continuing to blast Britain, The Financial Times warns that an even worse chill is in store for the City of London.

It says that tens of thousands more jobs will be cut in financial services as the sector faces a gloomy winter.

The FT's predictions are based on a quarterly survey carried out by the CBI, which provides more evidence of a weakening economy.

Finally the government's environment watchdog is taken to task in The Independent, which reveals that it has been investing millions of pounds in oil companies.

It claims the Environment Agency - which is in charge of flood protection - invested £64 million of its pension fund in oil company shares.

The paper points out that these same firms have been condemned for causing global warming which has led to the flooding.