Monday's papers

The ramifications of the attempt to down a plane over the US continues this morning

MI5 is hunting for possible accomplices of the Detroit airline bomber amid fears that he may have been planning to launch the attack from Britain. says the Telegraph

Security sources believe that Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab, 23, may have developed links with other extremists during the three years he spent studying at University College London.

Repercussions from the failed Christmas Day plot continued yesterday, with Barack Obama ordering a review of US security as politicians demanded to know how the British-educated Nigerian was able to get on the plane after his father, a wealthy banker, had been concerned enough to warn US diplomats that his son might be a security risk.

reports the Guardian

Whilst the Times reports that

In the final hour before landing in the US, passengers are now banned from standing up, using toilets and holding blankets.
In-flight entertainment is being withdrawn where it includes maps of the plane’s location, for fear bombers will be able to pinpoint targets.

The Sun claims that 25 British-born Muslims are plotting to bomb Western airliners.

The British extremists in Yemen are in their early 20s and from Bradford, Luton and Leytonstone, East London.
They are due to return to the UK early in 2010 and will then await internet instructions from al-Qaeda on when to strike.

Meanwhile the Mail reports that almost 1.5million student visas have been handed out in the past eight years.adding that

A string of other terror suspects have used the student visa route into the UK - not always by attending so-called bogus colleges.

The Independent leads with the impending execution of a British national in China.

No one has told him that he is about to die. But unless last-minute pleas for his life prove successful, a Kentish Town taxi driver who suffers from mental illness will be shot dead by the Chinese authorities within 24 hours.

Akmal Shaikh faces the death sentence — most likely to be carried out by injection — for having four kilogrammes (8.8lbs) of heroin when he flew into the western city of Urumqi, in the mainly Muslim Xinjiang region, two years ago.

says the Times

Iran was plunged deeper into crisis on a day of religious mourning yesterday as political tensions erupted into violence that left at least nine dead, including a nephew of the main opposition leader.reports the Guardian

Amateur video footage from the centre of Tehran showed an enraged crowd carrying away one of the casualties, chanting, "I'll kill, I'll kill the one who killed my brother".says the Telegraph

Gordon Brown is facing the unwelcome prospect of a New Year by-election following the death of Labour backbencher David Taylor. reports the Mail

Mr Taylor, MP for North West Leicestershire, suffered a heart attack while walking with his family on Boxing Day.

Meanwhile the Independent says that divisions in the Cabinet over whether Labour should pursue a "class war" campaign against David Cameron opened up yesterday, as two ministers warned that it would backfire on the party.

The Guardian reports that Jack Straw, is to order a comprehensive review of Britain's much-criticised libel laws,

Straw has previously promised to act against libel tourism, fearing Britain's restrictive libel laws are being exploited by plaintiffs with few real links to the UK.

A record number of shoppers are taking advantage of the high street sales to make extra savings before the rise in VAT at the end of the week.says the Telegraph

Shoppers ignored the traditions of a quiet, family Sunday to rush to the high street and grab bargains of up to 50 per cent off the normal price.
Two of the country's biggest retailing giants, John Lewis and Marks and Spencer, started their sales yesterday. Both were closed on Boxing Day, unlike most of their high-street rivals.

adds the Mail

The Independent reports that more than seven million households struggle to pay their fuel bills, almost double the official estimate,

In an opinion poll for the National Housing Federation, two-thirds of people in "fuel poverty" said they heated their homes less than would like because they could not afford the high prices of gas and electricity.

The Times' Britain of the year is Joanna Lumley

By sheer dint of her personality — a charm that could melt icebergs, a voice like silk — she managed not only to get the change in policy she and her fellow campaigners wanted, she also left the Government looking clumsy, foolish, leaden-footed and duplicitous.

According to the Sun,millions of bank accounts are at risk because they can be accessed by crooks with just one phone call.

A Sun investigation found a shocking flaw in security at Barclays, which has 12million customers in Britain and 48million worldwide.
It revealed that armed with just 4 personal details - including a name and address - fraudsters can ring the bank and gain valuable information.

Finally as New Year approaches,the Guardian says that psychologists say that New year's resolutions are doomed to failure

Many of the 78% who fail in their plans are focusing on downside of not achieving goals.We break them, become dispirited in the process and finally more despondent than we were before.