04/03/2014 The Papers

draws to a close, we will hear from Michael Vaughan, who describes the

South Africa captain as a great of the game. That is all coming up

after The Papers. Welcome to our look ahead to what

the papers will be bringing us tomorrow. With me are James Miller

from the Sunday Post, and also a journalist from the Sun. The

Telegraph is saying that a high-protein diet is as bad for your

health as smoking, according to research which tracked thousands of

adults for 20 years. The Express also leads on a health story, that

positive thinking could be as effective as anti-inflammatory drugs

to help beat the pain of arthritis. The Scotsman leads with the crisis

in the Ukraine, with a picture of John Kerry in Kiev.

That is also the lead on the front of the Guardian. The Mirror has a

story about the Coronation Street actor Michael Le Vell, who is

apparently stepping down from the soap. The Metro is leading with a

story about five men who worked as part of a nuclear plant armed force,

who have won damages after they said they were too unfit to carry guns.

The Daily Mail is reporting that Downing Street is facing allegations

of a cover-up after an aide was arrested over child abuse imagery.

The Financial Times beads with Putin stepping back. -- leads. We are

going to start with Ukraine. The war of words, according to the Guardian.

What is interesting, I think, is that not many papers have got this

story on the front page. Yes, clearly it is a very important

story, but it is less of a kind of on the brink moment, which would

ring it to the attention of papers like mine, which had it on the front

yesterday. -- which would bring it. I think everybody felt a little

relieved to see Putin on that armchair, in that press conference,

and to see John Kerry in Kiev, because at least there is a sense

that people are talking. It is still on the front page of the Sun. We

have a next close of tomorrow that Britain is still selling arms to

Russia. But it is not the splash that we had yesterday, when everyone

was nervous that we are off towards World War III. It does seem that

temperatures have called a bit on this story. Yes, looking at the

papers, it seems Putin has taken some of the heat out of things

today. Although tonight, we are hearing that shots have been fired,

and much as it pains me to say it is a newspaperman, it is the sort of

story which newspapers are struggling to keep up with, because

it seems to be changing so quickly. Sam, given the profile of your

readers, on the Sun, what is it that makes a big geopolitical story like

Ukraine, what is it that can get it on your front page? A lot of our

readers are in the Armed Forces, so they are interested in any potential

conflict around the world. If you are a parent of someone who is going

to get flown out potentially to Syria or Ukraine, it is not going to

happen in this case, but... And also, simple things like prices. --

like gas prices, how much a loaf of bread is going to cost. Russia is

also one of the biggest wheat producers in the world. We have to

tell them the story, and keep them up to date with events. But it is

such a fast changing story, that it is, yes... And it is the knock-on

effect of what is going on with a story like that, that you can sell

to your readers? Yes, they are interested in world events anyway.

But yes, how is it going to affect the man in the street, is what we

are looking at as well. Let's go onto the Telegraph, and James,

high-protein diet, as bad for health as smoking. We all know what

happened to Mr Adkins, who decided that he felt that low carbs and

high-protein was the way forward, but it seems to be official now.

Yes, it is interesting there is no mention of Atkins in the headline.

High-protein diet, what does that mean to a lot of people? A lot of

people understand meat, but a high-protein diet is an interesting

headline. I think we have known for a while that too much meat is bad

for you, and this sets out exactly how much is too much. Interestingly,

it says a person weighing nine stone should eat about 45-50 g of protein

a day. That is mainly women, I would suggest. This is very much targeted

at... Not very many men, anyway. The figures are quite scary, aren't

they? It says that a chicken breast or Simon Philip still accounts for

about 40% of the recommended daily protein intake. -- or salmon fill

it. It worries me, because just when you think you have got a handle on

the latest diet, everybody changes the rules. I think this includes

eggs and is well. The way we have done it in the Sun is to say that a

fry up is just as bad as a cigarette. It reminds me of the old

thing about, if you give up smoking and drinking, you do not have

longer, it just feels like it. That one works for me! Family breakdown

is the other main story on the front page of the Telegraph. Family

breakdown could cost taxpayers ?46 billion, James? Yes, I am not quite

sure, that figure has been quoted in Parliament, but again, from the

Relationships Foundation, a think-tank, and exactly how they

came up with this figure is not exactly set out. It is interesting,

as an unmarried parent, by choice, apparently I am four times more

likely to separate from my partner. I would suggest that is not true,

obviously, and hopefully I am not convinced that it is something to do

with being married. I think it is certainly, there is good evidence

that people who get married are more likely to stay together, and the

divorce rate is going down. Maybe it is just my personal situation which

makes me doubt it. The article says that you have got the usual costs,

legal fees, the cost of separation. You have got child maintenance

payment collection, but on top of that, it talks about spending on

children in care, and a proportion of spending on the health, education

and criminal justice system, Sam? Yes, these stories tend to crop up

in the run-up to an election. But those figures suggest to me that it

is the underclass we are looking at, the very poor, where this is a

problem, and I think that is what Lord Freud is saying. Children in

care, spending on health, education and criminal justice, suggests this

is a complete breakdown. It does always concern me that centres like

sure start have been closing down, in my personal opinion, because

these are the places where you can teach young mums how to bring up

their kids, how to give them values, how to give them the basics

in life, so that saddens me. James, is there a sense that these figures

have been potentially over-egged by people who perhaps feel that the

institution of marriage is the bedrock of society? There is a

political aspect to this. The Tories are bringing in their married

people's tax allowance, there has been controversy about that, saying

the cost of splitting up is very high and therefore the relatively

small cost of this tax allowance we can justify quite easily. It does

seem very high indeed. Let's go on to the Express. A new way to fight

the agony of arthritis, a step forward and that is positive

thinking. Basically meditation is better for you than

anti-inflammatory drugs according to this new research, which could save

a fortune on the NHS. Particularly among Express readers who might be

more elderly and prone to these conditions. I wonder if that is why

they have taken a psychologist out with the World Cup team. Has Wayne

Rooney got arthritis? That should be on the front page of it is true! It

is funded by Arthritis Research Uk, a reputable body, and there seems to

be credence in this? I was very suspect when I first saw it but it

seems to stand up as being fairly decent research. It is fascinating

stuff, pain, because it is by its very nature all in the mind.

However, it doesn't really help people who are suffering to say to

them, think yourself better. It is like saying that it is your fault

and you can get out of it. I question whether it would save

money, but talking therapies actually cost quite a bit of money

because you have got to pay somebody to talk to the patient and drugs are

very cheap. But meditation is obviously nice and cheap, you can

teach people to meditate quite quickly, I assume. I am no expert in

meditation! Do you think there will be people tomorrow picking up this

newspaper and thinking that they will give this a go? Possibly. There

is hope in every health news story and that is why people put them on

the front page. I read this and my back started aching so I suspect

some people might pick it up, feel more pain and go to the doctor

tomorrow! It is definitely a mental pain with you, clearly! My guests

will be back in one hour to talk more about the papers. At 11 o'clock

we will have a report from John Simpson on the stand-off earlier

today between Russian and Ukrainian troops in Crimea. Now, Sportsday.