News that the UK government secretly relocated thousands of Afghans after a data leak put their lives at risk from the Taliban dominates Wednesday's papers. The Daily Telegraph leads with its take on the "£7bn Afghan migrant cover-up", saying the UK secretly offered asylum to 24,000 Afghans after a 2022 data breach exposed the names and personal details of 19,000 people. The paper says the scheme was kept secret for almost two years due to a super-injunction requested by the government.
The UK government fought for two years to keep the "fiasco" hidden using an "unprecedented" super-injunction to gag the media and public, says the i Paper. The paper also quotes former defence secretary Ben Wallace who defended the court order saying "The judge did the right thing... It saved lives".
The Metro reports the gag order was finally lifted by a High Court judge on Tuesday, who says the injunction had "given rise to serious free speech concerns".
The Times features quotes from Labour chairman of the defence select committee Tan Dhesi, who says the data breach and super-injunction were "an absolute mess and wholly unacceptable". Alongside is a photograph of UK troops and Afghans sitting on the ground as military helicopters fly over them.
The Financial Times follows with its coverage of the "secret multi-billion pound scheme", saying the plan was to relocate 25,000 people at a "potential cost of £7bn" according to a government estimate. The paper reports that the government has moved about 18,500 Afghans to the UK so far.
"Ministers still won't come clean on secret Afghan airlifts" declares the Daily Mail. The paper says taxpayers and MPs were "kept in the dark" as the cost of the scheme was signed off.
"Panicked" minsters and officials at the Ministry of Defence learned of the data breach in August 2023 and feared publicity of the incident could put the lives of thousands of Afghans at risk, the Guardian reports. Elsewhere, the paper also reports on the firing of Masterchef John Torode after an allegation of racist language was upheld.
The Daily Mirror headlines their lead on Torode's firing with "BBC's kitchen nightmare". The paper says the incident has left Masterchef's future "in doubt".
"Sackings don't get tougher than this" says the Daily Star, as it features a story on Torode breaking his silence after "getting the boot".
Finally, the "moronic mission" of two men who cut down the iconic Sycamore Gap tree takes top spot on the Daily Express. The paper reports the men have both been jailed for four years after felling the world-famous Northumberland landmark in a fit of "drunken stupidity".
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