Newspaper headlines: Meghan warned about her father as Truss-style budget risk looms

Meghan’s 2018 letter draws attention

Several newspapers report on Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, and allegations concerning her estranged father, Thomas Markle. She said she received a letter containing “troubling and disturbing allegations” in 2018, according to the Daily Telegraph.

The allegations followed reports that images of child sexual abuse said to belong to Markle were found at his former home in the Philippines. Markle, 82, who is based in the US, denies possessing such images.

The Daily Mail says Scotland Yard is seeking the letter, while sources told the paper the Metropolitan Police “never investigated Mr Markle”. The Daily Express reports that Meghan’s half-brother, Thomas Markle Jr, reportedly alerted police.

Warnings ahead of the Budget

With the Autumn Budget due on Wednesday, The Times reports a warning from Andy Haldane, a former Bank of England chief economist. He urged Prime Minister Andy Burnham not to risk a crisis like the one associated with Liz Truss’s mini-budget.

That budget included unfunded spending pledges, including major tax cuts, and was followed by Kwasi Kwarteng’s sacking, a collapse in bond markets and Truss’s resignation. Haldane said unfunded measures could “crater” the economy and called for cuts to public spending.

The FT Weekend reports that Chancellor John Healey is planning a £20bn lending boost for business leaders and an infrastructure bank. The paper says this would require changes to fiscal rules, while the Treasury argues it could support 100,000 jobs by 2035 in sectors including AI, defence and green energy.

Other issues in the papers

The i Weekend reports a 15-13 split among ministers over whether the UK should rejoin the EU, with ministers also divided over whether to hold another referendum. The Independent also reports that Scotland is preparing for Storm Boleo after Storm Austen disrupted south-west England. Its photograph shows part of Brighton’s historic West Pier collapsed after winds of 100mph.