Wednesday newspaper round-up: Brexit, UK electoral laws, GE, Deliveroo

Theresa May is facing mounting pressure to secure a breakthrough in EU negotiations after the Democratic Unionist party expressed shock at the handling of the Irish border question and Brexit-supporting Conservatives said the time had come to walk away. Senior cabinet members also voiced unease at May’s tactics, and complained they were not informed in advance about Downing Street’s plan to promise the EU some form of “regulatory alignment” to help move the divorce talks on to the next stage. – Guardian

The head of the elections watchdog has demanded urgent reform of the UK’s electoral laws and warned that the country faces a “perfect storm” of threats that could put the integrity of the system at risk. Sir John Holmes, the chair of the Electoral Commission, also confirmed to the Guardian that the body has launched an inquiry into possible Russian interference in the EU referendum and is waiting for evidence from Facebook, Google and Twitter. – Guardian

As many as 670 British jobs are at risk after US conglomerate General Electric said it had submitted a proposal to employee representatives following a review into its power division. The UK cuts are thought to be part of a wider cull, with 4,500 roles to be slashed across Europe, according to French newspaper Les Echos. – Telegraph

Russia took a step closer to becoming the world’s largest exporter of shipped gas with the start-up a $27bn (£20bn) project in the Arctic circle. The liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, located by Russia’s remote Obe River in the far north, began production on Tuesday and will export its first cargo of super-cooled liquid gas by the end of the week. – Telegraph

The boss of Aetna is in line for a $500 million payday if the health insurer’s takeover by CVS goes through. Mark Bertolini, chief executive of America’s third largest health insurer, would receive most of the payout through shareholdings and options amassed since taking the helm of the company seven years ago. – The Times

Deliveroo has tried to address criticism of how it treats its self-employed workers by offering them an income insurance policy that protects their pay if they get injured or fall ill. The four-year-old fast-food delivery platform said that the policy, for which its scooter, motorbike and bicycle couriers would have to pay £1.85 a week, would provide cover when they suffered an injury while working for Deliveroo or when illness left them unable to work. – The Times