Daily Express, on UK Politics, 23 October 2026

The Daily Express turns the Government's "be ready" campaign into a reader poll and asks in its own headline whether Labour is "scaremongering", without the quotation marks or attribution its own body text uses. Two opposition politicians are quoted at length, including the closing line, while Wes Streeting's defence gets two sentences. The facts about the campaign itself are reported accurately.

3.0

Minor

out of 10

What we found

  1. Headline goes beyond the article

    Minor

    “Is Labour scaremongering over new stockpile warning?”

    What the words do
    Puts the word "scaremongering" into the Express's own headline question, with none of the quotation marks or attribution the body uses.
    What a reader comes away believing
    That scaremongering is a fair open question about the Government's advice rather than one side's accusation.
    What is actually the case
    The body only reports the word as an accusation Streeting was answering, and the Express's own earlier piece sources it to a Question Time audience member.

    How we know

    Show it in the article

  2. One side gets the space

    Minor

    “"Meanwhile ordinary people need help with the cost of living - not bossy lectures about bottled water."”

    What the words do
    Gives the last word in the article to a Reform UK MP's attack line with nothing set against it.
    What a reader comes away believing
    That the campaign amounts to bossy lecturing and the Government has no answer.
    What is actually the case
    Streeting's stated reason, that the UK is behind the rest of Europe on preparedness, is quoted earlier but never set against the closing attack.

    How we know

    • Elsewhere in the article“They are way ahead of us on some of this stuff”

    Show it in the article

Every underline is part of a finding. Press one to see why.

POLL:

POLL: Is Labour scaremongering over new stockpile warning? Have your say in our online poll on the Government urging households to stockpile tinned food and water Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Add us as preferred source Comments POLL By Katie Harris , Senior Political Correspondent 07:52, Fri, Oct 23, 2026 Updated: 07:55, Fri, Oct 23, 2026 Wes Streeting defended the Government's advice to stock up (Image: Getty) Labour is facing criticism after calling on the public to stock up for a crisis . Under the Government's new "be ready" campaign, households are being urged to stockpile three days of key supplies in the event of an emergency such as extreme weather or a cyber attack. The checklist includes items such as bottled water, non-perishable food, a battery or wind-up FM radio to receive updates during outages and cash in case electronic payments or cash machines are disrupted. Defence Secretary Wes Streeting defended the move against accusations of "scaremongering" on last night's BBC Question Time . Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT He said: “We did have this debate though, just to reassure… because we want people to be alert but not alarmed, and the truth is we looked around the rest of Europe, ‘what are our friends doing across the continent?’. They are way ahead of us on some of this stuff.” Get the latest politics news - straight from our team in Westminster and more I would like to receive emails from the Daily Express featuring our latest products, services, offers, and promotions from across the Reach Plc family . Subscribe Invalid email You agree you are 18 or over. We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. You can unsubscribe at any time. More Info . The 9 items Brits must stockpile after new warning Households told to stockpile food, water and medicine in new warning Tory shadow national security minister Alicia Kearns said the measure was “lecturing the public”. She said: “Preparing for emergencies is important. But the Government should get its own house in order before lecturing the public. It isn’t families that are failing to fund our defence or secure reliable energy – it’s Labour. Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT “With rising threats to our national security, we must all be ready to face all eventualities. We each have a role to play, but the Government must lead by example." Article continues below ADVERTISEMENT Have your say in our poll below and let us know more in the comments section Reform UK MP Danny Kruger added: "Ministers should be doing their job not telling families how to do theirs. Government needs to urgently invest in defence to deter aggressors and harden the target. "With our undersea cables, our military bases and our civilian infrastructure all exposed to Russian or Iranian attack - and all our digital systems exposed to hackers from anywhere in the world - the need for a major uplift in defence spending at next week's Budget is critical. Labour Party Emergency News Share Article Share Article Facebook X LinkedIn Reddit Bluesky Email Copy Link Link copied Add us as preferred source Comments

Read the original article on express.co.uk (opens in a new tab)

What it gets right

  • “defended the move against accusations of”

    Keeps "scaremongering" as an accusation others made rather than stating it as the paper's own description.

  • “The checklist includes items such as bottled water, non-perishable food”

    Reports plainly what the campaign actually asks of households, so readers can judge it for themselves.

  • “Reform UK MP Danny Kruger”

    Names the critic and his party, so the reader knows whose attack line they are reading.

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