
AI-generated summary
The UK government has allowed local mayors in England to introduce a tourist tax starting in 2028, with political parties divided on its implementation. The 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks is being commemorated across media, highlighting both the immediate tragedy and long-term health effects on first responders and survivors. Meanwhile, a vote on assisted dying is underway in the House of Commons, driven by advocacy from terminally ill individuals.
Several of Friday's papers lead on the news that from early 2028, local mayors in England will be able to impose a tourist tax. The Guardian notes that the move has been "welcomed" by regional leaders, but ministers are facing "outrage" from the hospitality industry, which it says was expecting much stricter controls on how much could be charged and how the money will be used.
Labour mayors have committed to keeping the levy below 5%, the Daily Telegraph reports, while Reform UK and Conservative mayors have pledged not to introduce it at all. It reports that Burnham's own backbenchers have said the plans will damage the economy, describing it as "anti-growth" and arriving at "the worst time" for the hospitality industry.
"What the hol, PM?" asks the front page of the Sun, suggesting the move is at odds with the prime minister's vow to help with cost of living.
Actress Helen Mirren glitters front and centre of the Times, after the 81-year-old "dazzling dame" attended the London premiere of the new series of MobLand. The main story for the paper is a potential £100 increase on energy bills by the end of the decade, which it says is due to a "failure to upgrade Britain's power network".
Several publications have used their front page to mark the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks in New York City. On Tuesday 11 September 2001, hijackers seized US passenger jets and crashed them into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center, killing 2,977 people. The i Paper says it was the "day that changed the world".
Similarly, the Metro describes a "day of terror that shook the world". It adds that 9/11 has left a "deadly legacy", reporting that thousands of people who breathed in the toxic dust that followed the fall of the two skyscrapers have since died from cancer.
The 9/11 tribute twin light beams are pictured on the front page of the Financial Times, which shine every year on 11 September to commemorate the victims of the attack. The paper also carries a story that leads on the surge in US long-term borrowing costs, which it says have reached their highest in nearly two decades.
The Daily Express has spoken to a terminally ill woman ahead of the vote on assisted dying in the House of Commons on Friday. Hannah Slater, a 38-year-old with incurable cancer, told the paper that MPs should "just pass the bill".
The vote on assisted dying is also the lead story for the Daily Mirror. Dame Esther, who is 86 and terminally ill with cancer, said that though she had planned to end her life at an assisted suicide clinic in Switzerland, she is now too frail to travel. She demanded that ministers vote in favour of the bill, writing that "everything I didn't want to happen I'm having to go through now".
AI outlook — possibilities, not facts
The assisted dying bill will pass in the House of Commons vote.
Likely · Within days

US President Donald Trump told the Republican National Convention in Texas that he was tired of politics and promised a brief speech, noting that participants would have a good time listening to music. The US midterm elections will take place on November 3.

U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance addressed a protester holding a Mexican flag at the Republican Party's presidential convention in Texas, asking him to go to Mexico and calling him an idiot. The incident occurred in Dallas on September 11th.

State Duma deputy Valery Seleznev from the LDPR proposed reducing the working week for parents of minor children by two hours without reducing wages, as well as introducing an additional paid day off every three months for parents of two or more children.

Secretary-General of the Executive Yuan Zhang Dunhan announced the counter-signature of the Unmanned Vehicle Ordinance and explained the Executive Yuan's principle of "doing something and refraining from doing something." He emphasized that the power of counter-signing is a constitutional defense mechanism for the Executive Yuan to assist the president. It must protect budget power and national secrets. He used Shohei Otani's delayed payment contract as an example to explain the necessity of the annual budget. He also clarified that the composition and operation of the Special Strategy Committee are determined by the Executive Yuan, and confidential parts will be kept confidential.

Regarding the 'G3 Seoul Plan' announced by Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon the day before, Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, said that it was unfortunate that it was announced in a situation where stable market activities may not be guaranteed, and that it was announced after Mayor Oh's first trial ruling, raising doubts about its driving force.

The Executive Yuan decided to counter-sign the KMT version of the "Regulations on Strengthening National Defense Independence and Development of the Unmanned Vehicle Industry". The Democratic Progressive Party expressed regret that it did not pass the House version but respects the decision and will continue to supervise to ensure the security of national secrets and the maintenance of budgetary rights.