the tories know. it's clear talking to voters in that area of south wales today, that the tories are competitive in parts of the country like that. one of the reasons for that is because of brexit, because this has been such a conundrum for labour. remember, most of their mps were on the remain side. their leader, lukewarm about the whole thing. millions of their voters wanted out. what they have to do at the start of the campaign is try to solve that headache. today they went some way towards doing that. there was a very clear guarantee for eu nationals who've come to live in this country. they we re come to live in this country. they were clearer on freedom of movement. but one of the problems i think they still have is it is a deliberate pa rt still have is it is a deliberate part of their approach to leave some options on the table. that may be sensible. that may well appeal to lots and lots of voters, but by leaving some options on the table, like potentially some form of continued membership of

so where will the tories try to boost their numbers? the north west and the midlands are crucial battle grounds. here, there are numerous marginal constituencies where very few votes separate conservative and labour. at the last election, labour made little headway here. in the west midlands, high on the list for the tories, will be places like wolverhampton south west and walsall north, both have slender labour majorities. but some argue that the current tory lead in the polls might not be easily translated into seat gains from labour. once you start looking at the electoral geography of labour's vote, it has a lot of very safe labour seats, and therefore, getting a large majority can be quite difficult and certainly if the polls are perhaps exaggerating the tories‘ lead a little bit or certainly if that lead comes down, to let's say seven, eight nine points, still quite substantial, that could still mean that theresa may doesn't end up with anything like as large a majority she might like. labour desperately need a revival in scotla

today, the tories are going to do just that and sadly, the labour party is going to vote with the tories and make life easy for them. we of these benches will not vote with the tories, but given the arrow keys that the party is going to be voting with the tories, there will be a general election and boy, we look forward to that. —— given their realities. because, in scotland, we... mr morris, normally you have a very mild manner, you are a very restrained individual. but you have become overexcited. calm yourself, ta ke become overexcited. calm yourself, take some sort of soothing medicine, it will have a good impact! in scotland, the general election will bea scotland, the general election will be a two horse race, a straight fight between the snp and the tories, do i think that mainstream regardless of whether they voted to leave or remain will vote for a hard tory brexit? i do not believe that will be the case. while the board for more cuts to public services? i do not think so. while they vote for a party that is undermining the mandate given by the voters any scottish general el

that's why she's not mentioning conservatives and tories very much. fl ,, a conservatives and tories verv much. .. ,. a gas}; saying censervatives and tories verv much. .. ,. a qostg saying theresa may letters “a ,. , in —........ letters =r"4 . ‘ has in —........ , letters =r"4 . ‘ has a in —........ , so so bad butjeremy corbyn is quite so bad butjeremy corbyn is not polling anywhere near as well as the party overall. but jeremy corbyn on the i is pledging £3 billion to close the education gap. we know a lot of head teachers are saying they will really struggle over the next couple of years to make ends meet. friends who work in teaching say the same, they are looking at whether they can lose a teaching assistant here or cut an entire teaching posts here or cut an entire teaching posts here and cope with one fewer staff member. —— post. the interesting thing isjeremy corbyn has made a pledge at a teachers conference but because we don't have the labour ma nifesto because we don't have the labour manifesto yet and everything costed, the tories are hammering him for sayin

we have said all the non—tory parties have said all the non—tory parties have said they will not do deals. to be fairto labourand this said they will not do deals. to be fair to labour and this is an important point, it is the most recent party when it comes to brexit. all the others are fairly united generally so they have a difficult thing. it is a genuine dilemma. the clear thing they see if they would not accept no deal as a serious option,... unlike theresa may. so a clear demarcation there. christopher, the front page of the i as well, ukip are targeting muslims. they want a ban on the vale and this is being seen as frankly targeting a particular section of society. this is their social integration announcement today. peter whittle was the deputy chairman and paul nuttall was there today. it was a bit of a messy press conference. they were trying to say they wanted to ban face coverings. i said does that mean beekeepers as well.“ to ban face coverings. i said does that mean beekeepers as well. if you are walking into a big public building ina are walking into a big public building

now those tory hardliners wa nt to ta ke party and now those tory hardliners want to take over the country as well. it is no surprise that ukip right now is losing support to the tories because the tories are now threatening to take the uk in a direction that a few years ago ukip could only have dreamed about, but it should alarm all of us and whatever our politics, we should all stand up against that right ward drift of the country that the tories are determined to effect and in scotland, knows, we know from long experience that there has always been a cost to voting tory but the price at this election has never been higher and it will be those that are least able to pay that price who will bear the biggest burden. the tories will i will pose a double hit on scottish families and communities. they will make scotla nd and communities. they will make scotland a poorer country and a more unfair, unequal society. and you don't have to just take my word for that. the resolution fundation think—tank issued its annual audit of living standards recently and it said this, "a particularly tight s

the tories have not been a friend to wales. we are not rolling over for any tory to take our seats, we will be out in force. it is early days, but any day out on the campaign trail is precious. leaders turn up two places where they think they are in the game. with possible gains in wales and scotland, theresa may is not just contemplating wales and scotland, theresa may is notjust contemplating a tory majority, but hoping to make true her claim, there are no torino go areas. brexit might have redraw the map, but she wants to colour it blue. yet, as she swept away, it won't be easy. here are anywhere else, the tories can be sure they will always be welcome. so theresa may says this election is about giving her a clear mandate for the tough brexit talks ahead. for labour, accused of sending confusing signals on brexit, today was a chance to clarify its position. the shadow brexit secretary sir keir starmer said labour accepted that free movement of people could not continue, but suggested eu nationals could still be allowed in if

so, where will the tories try to boost their numbers? the north west and the midlands are crucial battlegrounds, here there are numerous marginal constituencies where very few votes separate conservative and labour. at the last election, labour made little headway here and they face a huge challenge. certainly, theresa may is calling this election against a backdrop where she is very, very much the favourite to win and, in truth, against the backdrop where no opposition party has ever gone into an election in such a weak position in the opinion polls. now, labour desperately need a revival in scotland if they're to form the next government, but the tories and lib dems will also be hoping to prise some seats away from the snp. fascinating too will be the south—west of england, the lib dems' former heartland. they were wiped out here at the last election and are hoping for a comeback, but how will their pro—eu message go down in a region that voted for brexit? the prime minister seems to be trying to make this a brexit election. if you

she needs to achieve a big if, turn wales into tory territory. it's audacious to pop up in rock solid labour land at the start. she was only with activists, with friends, but her appeal is to you. give me a mandate to lead britain. give me a mandate to speak for britain. give me a mandate to fight for britain and give me a mandate to deliverfor britain. she would not be drawn, again, on whether she'll raise or lower taxes. how far are you willing to go to grab seats in parts of the country that, until now, have been labour heartlands? so, i will be out and about around the country in all sorts of areas, all parts of the country, taking this message, a vote for me and a vote for the local conservative candidate is a vote to strengthen our hand in the brexit negotiations. really? from coast to coast? taking places like porthcawl would mean taking lifelong labour voters, like brian and ira, who've almost decided to do it. first time ever, if i do. because the valleys are labour. wales, labour's strong hold. i'm on the border really. i voted for out

the tories believe ukip‘s on the run too. since the referendum, their main reason for being has gone. so they're arguing for a burka ban, no more islamic schools — hardly speaking softly. they call it integration, their rivals say it's islamophobia. what we want to see is people sign up to british law, sign up to a british way of life and indeed enjoy the full fruits our great society has to offer. the ukip leader less keen to chat about his own future, chased by reporters for an answer on whether he will stand as an mp. at the other end of the spectrum, the lib dems think there's hope from their opposition to brexit. they believe they can gobble up votes in parts of the country that voted remain. they're promising a second referendum on the final brexit deal. we have, if you like, a coalition of chaos. conservatives, labour and ukip. all lined up backing the hardest of all brexits, exit from the single market, cutting off all our ties with our friends and neighbours in europe. yet even among usually mild mannered lib dems,

if members of the tory benches are concerned about the tory benches are concerned about the house of lords then move to abolish it or have coherent reform but stop using them as props. the prime minister is pretending she needs the election now so she has a strong hand in the short term whereas we really know she is after a free hand in the longer term in terms of the wriggle room around periods of adjustment. does my friend appreciate that the nearest parallel to what is happening now in this campaign for an election is the... order, order. please faced the house. you were busy talking. i was being spoken to by an illustrious member of the opposition whips office. the nearest parallel is the election of 1974 when ted heath, the then prime minister, decided on a very narrow argument that the miners were on strike and it would be about who ru ns strike and it would be about who runs the country. and most general elections are about a lot of things. this one was about a specific thing, and cani this one was about a specific thing, and can i say, what happened in effect was that the lab

we have seen the damage the tory government has done to scotland over the past few years. the cuts that we know about already to scotland's budget imposed by a conservative government at westminster amount to £3 billion. the tories, where they give tax cuts to the very wealthiest in our society are removing support from disabled people. disabled people are losing £30 a week. some of them are having their mobility vehicles taken away from them. it is disgraceful. and that is the damage a conservative government has done with a small majority. we in scotla nd with a small majority. we in scotland must not allow the tories a free hand to do even more damage to our country and to the fabric of our society. applause theresa may has already told us what this general election is about for her. it is about removing opposition and strengthening her hand to do whatever she wants. well, let us make sure on june whatever she wants. well, let us make sure onjune the 8th we send a loud message from scotland that we are not prepared to give a conservative government a free hand to do w

it seems all the tory party will do is be rude aboutjeremy corbyn. the world is more unstable and more uncertain than perhaps we thought it was going to be 20 years ago, and that is why theresa may's leadership now is so important and why it is so important for me, i'm afraid, to draw the contrast between her approach and what i think would be the chaotic approach underjeremy corbyn. jeremy corbyn is in their sights. you could call him the underdog. in a park today in the marginal seat of harlow. but labour mps fear their leader has to be reminded notjust to talk to his true believers, but to the whole country. the tories think that makes him a real outsider. we take a message out to the country. politics is of course always personal, but so far, this campaign has been much more about tory attacks on jeremy corbyn than a big battle of ideas. what do you think about what the tories have been doing? it is getting very personal. that is their nature, david cameron was a bully and now they are proving to be bullies. it seems like a witch—hunt. it does

and to the tory leader in scotland, ruth davidson. the scottish conservatives always put the union first, and that's what people know. that's why whether you're a tactical voter, and i'm not necessarily someone who expounds that, but if you're a principled voter, your vote, if you don't want the snp, if you don't want to encourage their tunnel vision to break up britain, is to vote for the scottish conservatives. what do you do if you're a labour voting brexiteer who likes this government's direction of travel? we're in greater manchester... and non—tory area as we are, we're not going to vote for those,

it suits the snp for the tories to stay in power. that's why they refused to vote theresa may out of office yesterday. and every day that the tories remain in power 430,000 scots go without a real living wage. waspi women go without the pension they have worked their whole lives for. and young people have their housing benefit stripped away from them. it suits the snp for the tories to stay in power because the only thing the snp has ever cared about is independence. so tell us, first minister, on the 8th ofjune, what is more important? kicking the tories out of office or having another divisive referendum ? jeremy corbyn is unelectable and will leave labour carping from the sidelines. how do we know that? because that's what kezia dugdale said aboutjeremy corbyn. so, you know, iagree with kezia dugdale about how awful and how damaging this tory government is. that's why i think it is so utterly shameful and disgraceful that labour have allowed itself to get in the position that this lot are 20 points ahead of them in the opinion pol

some tories are nervous. in the south—west, some havejust got some tories are nervous. in the south—west, some have just got their seats for the first time in 2015 and now face a potentially resurgent liberal democrats eating away at their majorities. you have people on their majorities. you have people on the tory right who did not really wa nt the tory right who did not really wantan the tory right who did not really want an early general election as they could see that theresa may only has a majority of 18 and needs the unionists onside. they can see they have quite a lot of leveraged over theresa may. if her majority goes up to 50, 60, they're negotiating power for a clean break from to 50, 60, they're negotiating power for a clean breakfrom europe, perhaps a free trade deal for europe, becomes diminished. there are opponents in her own party who will be loyal in public today. they'll be interested to see what sta nce they'll be interested to see what stance opposition parties take on it. there just was a sweet spot that she could use. thank you very much. the pol

don't like talking about is tory policy. this election will highlight the dangers to scotland of -- [inaudible] and we live with one of the most unequal countries in the developed world but the tories want to make even more unfair. experts say that the policies will cost the largest increase in inequality since the days of margaret thatcher. happy to give way to the leader. >> i'm grateful to him for giving way. does he agree with me that if this election is as the prime minister says about the more secure future to this country, that is an election such national significance, we should have an early change in the laws, britain's 1.5 million, 15 and 17-year-olds say in in what would be very much their future on the eighth of june? >> making speech about and franchising 16 and 17-year-olds. i totally agree. it is against unsustainable the young people up and given the vote for some elections and referenda but should be denied it in others. i give way to the audible gentleman. >> he will be aware that supreme court made it abu

tories sound account. some in former lib dem strong holds expect a tough fight and hope the lib dems aren't ready for the road back to westminster. i don't think the liberal democrats have restored their infrastructure from their dramatic losses over 2015. you know you're going to have a fight on your hands. we're of course going to have a fight on our hands. we're always going to fight to win as well. nigel farage... going to fight to win as well. nigel farage. .. since going to fight to win as well. nigel farage... since nigel going to fight to win as well. nigel farage. .. since nigel farage left going to fight to win as well. nigel farage... since nigel farage left to seek his own political fortunes, backing donald trump, not leading ukip after the eu referendum, the pa rty‘s lost ukip after the eu referendum, the party's lost ground, lost the odd election they might have won. the referendum's gone, so is nigel farage, you're a party without a purpose. 0h, farage, you're a party without a purpose. oh

she will smash rebel tories. i should say thatjohn woodcock has said that he cannot endorsejeremy corbyn as the next promised. this is a labourmp. —— corbyn as the next promised. this is a labour mp. —— labour. he says there is still time forjeremy corbyn to stand down as labour leader before the general election. there must be serious panic now in labour heesh q. there must be serious panic now in labour heesh 0. they are all seeing that the lib dems are in a stronger position than they are. they don't know what their own position is. —— hq. the lib dems are very happy with this and hope it will kill off labour and the tory rebels. i think that some say this is choice between theresa may's vision for the country and jeremy corbyn's vision for the country. i will take that. i think that the majority of the british public would much prefer theresa may's overjeremy corbyn, which would draw us into a socialist hellhole. once you swim through the quagmire that is brexit, what you haveis quagmire that is b

david cameron thought the tories would not be in power. they promised no tax increases, no national insurance increases at all during the lifetime of the parliament. that cannot happen when you have a social care crisis. the nhs is falling apart, education in england and scotland as well. the other thing which is interesting, those of us long enough in the tooth to remember the bombshell imagery used by the conservatives in an election some years ago saying that labour were about to drop it. they are turning that on its head. they are turning that on its head. they are waiting to find out whether labour can trumpet. in the last election they tried to say they would follow the tory tax spending plan and the issue here is whether labour will come out tomorrow and say they are. they have already broken that orthodoxy. john mcdonnell, the shadow chancellor, has said, if you are rich, we are coming to get you. by richie means 70,000. 70,000 does not seem rich to me. if you are earning 20... most people earn between 20 and 30,000. if you earn 70

protection from the tories. residing officer in the weeks ahead, these benches will set our vision for britain's future. we will stand up for britain's future. we will stand up for scotland to stay in the united kingdom. we will say no to a second referendum so scotland can get on with building better schools and public services. but what about the snp's plan. the first minister's first intervention in this election has been to say that she put jeremy corbyn and number ten. has been to say that she put jeremy corbyn and numberten. is has been to say that she put jeremy corbyn and number ten. is it because, uniquely, this first minister season mr corbyn the wisdom and foresight and leadership skills that are needed in a prime minister. or could it possibly be because, in his own words, jeremy corbyn is fine with another independence referendum. is that the alliance she was really seeking in london? this is hired staff on the tories. you only have to look at it to see corbyn is not going near number ten. that brin

tory mp5 in remain will be many tory mps in remain constituencies who will be deeply anxious that mr —— mrs may has underestimated the residual disillusionment of brexit. there is a huge risk for mrs may in case she has miscalculated the strength of feeling, not just on has miscalculated the strength of feeling, notjust on the brexit side, but also on the remain side. thank you. time for the weather now with louise lear. good afternoon. i'm sure gardeners and growers not particularly happy that i am starting with a picture of frost. it is good to be one of the talking point this week. take a look at the overnight lows we had. this morning, —6 in scotland. temperatures across the nation just below freezing. at this time of the year, add some sunshine and temperatures do recover. where we have got clear skies by day, we're going to see those temperatures falling away overnight. tuesday night across england and wales is glad to be another cold, potentially frosty one. put another way, take a look at yesterday's satellite picture. more clout in england and wales. clear skies throug

it's all up whatever the tories come back with. it's allup in whatever the tories come back with. it's all up in the air, even i might not like it and vote against it. will we get another referendum? i wouldn't have thought so. i think referendums are on the back burner now after the last one! ronnie campbell, we'll leave it there, thanks for your time. thank you! the us and south korea are taking part in a joint military exercise involving aircraft carriers and fighter jets — an action which pyongyang has called "a provocation". washington says the eleven—day exercises — which take place every year — were planned months ago, but tensions are currently especially high on the korean peninsula. steve evans reports from a us airforce base in south korea. 80 aircraft fly from this base in south korea, and bases injapan. practising air—to—air combat, and bombing targets on the ground. us planes and south korean planes integrating as one strikeforce is the idea. i don't think it's any different than anywhere else in the world. the training that we do every day is designed to

today the tories are going to do just that, and, sadly, the labour party is going to vote with the tories and make life easy for them. we on these benches will not vote with the tories but, given the reality -- the labour party will be voting with the tories -- there will be a general election, and, boy, we look forward to that contest -- ecause in scotland -- mr. speaker: order. mr. morris, you normally have a very emollient manner. you are a very restrained individual, bordering on the cerebral, but you have become rather overexcited. calm yourself. take some sort of soothing medicament that will have a beneficial impact upon you. mr. robertson: in scotland, the general election will be a two-horse race -- a straight fight between the snp and the tories. do i think that mainstream scots, regardless of whether they voted remain or leave, will vote for a hard tory brexit? no, i do not. will most mainstream scots will vote for more austerity and cuts in public services? no, i do not. will most scots will vote for a party that is actively undermining the mandate already given by the voters

the tories believe ukip‘s on the run too. since the referendum, their main reason for being has gone. so they‘re arguing for a burka ban, no more islamic schools — hardly speaking softly. they call it integration, their rivals say it‘s islamophobia. what we want to see is people sign up to british law, sign up to a british way of life and indeed enjoy the full fruits our great society has to offer. the ukip leader less keen to chat about his own future, chased by reporters for an answer on whether he will stand as an mp. at the other end of the spectrum, the lib dems think there‘s hope from their opposition to brexit. they believe they can gobble up votes in parts of the country that voted remain. they‘re promising a second referendum on the final brexit deal. we have, if you like, a coalition of chaos. conservatives, labour and ukip. all lined up backing the hardest of all brexits, exit from the single market, cutting off all our ties with our friends and neighbours in europe. yet even among usually mild mannered l

the labour party or the tories. trributes have been paid to the former royal naval officer run down by his own car as manchester police question a man over the killing. a new campaign to highlight the plight of dementia patients as the alzheimer's society says more than a million people will have the condition by 2021.

labour areas which voted for brexit could be fertile territory for the tories. it is about providing the strong and sta ble it is about providing the strong and stable leadership this country needs, about strengthening our hand in the negotiations that lie ahead and sticking to our plan for a stronger britain. that will enable us stronger britain. that will enable us to secure that more stable and secure future for this country and ta ke secure future for this country and take the right long—term decisions for the future. and as the voters of bolton digests news of the snap election, some have already made up their minds. i voted liberal democrat last time. but now theresa may has got my vote. can you tell me why that is? i think she is a strong leader, notjust because she is a woman, but she is strong. and i think she will do the country well. she's not messing around with all this bickering in parliament and, you know, she is trying to do a good job of a bad situation that she has been left in. labour hope to succeed by attacking the government's record on t

you cannae trust the tories. in glasgow, the snp first minister knows that it will be hard to hold all 56 scottish seats won by her partyjust two years ago, but opinion polls suggest the snp is on course to return more mps than all their rivals put together. this election does ensure that decisions about the future of our country are taken by the scottish people and the scottish parliament, not by a right—wing tory tory government at westminster. the liberal democrats want to keep the uk in the european single market and keep scotland than in the uk. —— and keep scotland in the uk. people in scotland don't want another independence referendum. it would cause uncertainty and chaos at an already difficult time. labour says the conservatives have put the union between scotland and england at risk. theresa may has only given the snp the excuse they were looking for to have a second independence referendum because of her gamble with brexit. but theresa may's tories think they are on the verge of a scottish comeb

not least because unlike the tories he won't commit as she affirmed today to the tory ambition to cut immigration to under 100,000. no mention of the fact the target has been missed for years. this election is about ensuring we have strong and stable leadership in this country in the national interest. it's about strengthening our negotiating hand for brexit and about sticking to our plan for a stronger britain, developing a more secure future for ordinary working people in this country. jeremy corbyn‘s a happy campaigner. comfortable with his fans. but he needs millions more. a brutal election beckons. and laura kuenssberg is in westminster for us now. sojeremy so jeremy corbyn sojeremy corbyn starting out as the underdog but clearly believes he can appeal. one thing is completely clear from today. jeremy corbyn is not going to be squeezed into any kind of election straitjacket, he's sticking to what he has always run on, sticking to the same kind of pitch that captured the labour leadership for him. his appeal is clear, right round to the whole country. he says the tories are the

it is what the tories trying to do, make it about you. i do not do personal abuse, i don't do name—calling, i don't believe in that kind of politics. we are sent to parliament to represent people and put forward a serious debate and that is what we will do. if you were prime minister and the president of america asked the uk to support them in a strike on syria, what would you do? call the secretary general of the united nations. we need enhanced pressure to get political settlement in syria. raising potential military action against syria is controversial in any campaign. the other parties were not impressed. unilateral, illegal intervention would be counter—productive and it seems borisjohnson would be counter—productive and it seems boris johnson is would be counter—productive and it seems borisjohnson is following tony blair in that respect. if the government wants parliamentary authority they should ask for it, not speculate why do —— and jumped what president trump does. the prime minister would not go as far as foreign

only us, or the tories, can form a government. i implore people in scotland to fight for the party of progress, and not the vicious tory party. tributes to the former royal naval officer run down by his own car. manchester police have arrested a man. memories of the good times. the alzheimer's society says dementia ll be the biggest killer of the 21st century. when sport is about more than about winning. the men who embodied the marathon spirit. maybe i was a bit overzealous in my support. it was wonderful. it was needed, needed to kind of hit home as well. yes. coming up in the sport on bbc news... 11 months on, can rafa and newcastle return to the premier league? a win against preston tonight in the championship and they'll be back at the first time of asking. good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. french voters face a clear choice in the next two weeks. the run—off in the presidential race will be between two political outsiders who have left mainstream parties on the sidelines. emmanuel macron‘s en marche party â

a tory chicken stalked tony blair in1997 media. a tory chicken stalked tony blair in 1997 when he was accused of ducking tadic —— tv debate. labour supporting took busy david cameron as he tried to negotiate terms for the debate in 2010. today, the daily mail reported that in has come out of retirement. mark easton, bbc news. the former chancellor, george osborne, has announced he's standing down as an mp to concentrate on his newjob as editor of the london evening standard. he'd faced intense criticism after taking on the newspaperjob alongside several otherjobs plus his role in parliament, as our deputy political editor john pienaar reports. from political big beast to big city editor, and the greenest hack in the newsroom. the new boss in fleet street chooses to see his future as moving on, not coming down. george osborne told me today he will use his new role to fight for his liberal conservative views against any harsher vision of brexit. myjob as editor of the evening standard is to speak for london, speak for my readers,

i do admire tory consistency. it is always five years in the future. another tory row can promise. upon minister leaves a government that has increased national debt i 700 billion pounds a month more than any other labor government and the history -- in history put together. debt has risen every year they have been in office. we know their economic plan was long-term. does the prime minister want to -- in thew far and long-term it can be before we get the debt falling? honorable gentleman stands up and talks about debt, this is a labour party that will be going into the election, pledged to borrow an extra 500 billion pounds. ordinary that mean for working people? i will tell the right honorable gentleman what it means. we know what the plan would entail because we have been told by the former labor shadow chancellor. he said the following. you would have to double income tax if they were in power, you would have to double national insurance, you have to double council tax, and you would have to double the 80 as well. that is their plan for the economy. >> all her government has --

the tories start strongly. labour and its leader trail badly. sojeremy corbyn and his supporters are working hard from the start to beat the odds, to point out the issues and policies they hope may somehow prove the polls and pundits wrong. i want to use the period untiljune 8th to set out a positive vision of the kind of society that we can live in. post—brexit vision of britain where this country works for them, for everybody and for the equality of everybody in work. the foundation for all to build a fairer economy by investment in good jobs for the future and investment in good quality services for the future. the british public when it comes to general elections vote on leadership and as of now jeremy corbyn is a mile behind. i think the more people focus on our programme and our leadership, the more tawdry what theresa may's offering will seem. the british public don't want a prime minister hand in glove with donald trump. the british public did not vote to be poorer in the referendum on the eu. the more people focus on the issues and th

snp and the tories. labour is the work in scotla nd the tories. labour is the work in scotland and if we have to protect an austerity programme, standing up for scotland, the tories are seeking to undermine our democratic institutions in scotland, not respecting the mandate the scottish government was given and that will bea government was given and that will be a different debate to that in england. i think the expectation is that down south labour is in real trouble, that is quite the tories went for an early election, nothing to do with brexit but for the good of the tory party, but we in scotland... you are criticising it but in that position you would do the same. not a few have a fixed parliament act where we are supposed to be living in times where parties are not supposed to take short—term decisions, but it has happened, we are off, there will be an election campaign and in scotland it will be a fight between ourselves and the tories, and i think voters in scotla nd tories, and i think voters

pensioners right across this land are right to conclude that this tory prime minister plans to ditch the triple lock on the state pension. mr speaker, too many women already face pensions inequality and the tories now won't even guarantee the pensions triple lock and the only reason that they'll not guarantee it is because they want to cut pensions. is not the message to pensioners, you cannot trust this prime minister, you cannot trust the tories on your pension. i say to everybody as i've just said, if you want to know the party in government that has improved a lot of pensioners across this country, it's the conservative party and, under a conservative government those pensioner incomes would continue to increase. and, he talks about inequality for women. it's the change in the structure of the state pension introduced by this government that is going to improve a lot of women, female pensioners in the future, that is going to be much better for them. in the nine months that the prime minister's held her office, she has closed the door on desperate child refugees, she has ignored,

tory lead slashed in half after tax u—turn. what u—turn, and which poll? it is extraordinary. other polls elsewhere have the tories well ahead, sort of a8, but the mail on sunday suggests it is down to a0— wa nted sunday suggests it is down to a0— wanted nine. it is a triple the refusing to rule out any tax increases, refusing to contribute to the triple lock on pensions, and the commitment to .7% on aid, which appears to have gone down quite badly with the court tory heartland. the interesting thing about the poll they quote is that the fieldwork for they quote is that the fieldwork for the interviews was done later, yesterday after the story started to bubble about tax. it is a curious one because we know that the chancellor is looking for cash because he told us he was. he had his tax proposal effectively told he could not do it because it broke the last manifesto, so it won't be a surprise if the conservatives has to find some more money and raise taxes to do so. how many of these things are real shockers? to do so. how many of these things are real shocke rs? it to do

we do not accept that there has to be a reckless tory brexit. specifically, the party said a labour government would guarantee the rights of eu citizens living in the uk. it would legislate to keep things like employment rights and protections for consumers and the environment. and it would scrap the current negotiating strategy, and instead focus on retaining the benefits of the single market and the customs union. the party said its focus would be on protecting jobs and the economy. and immigration should not be the only red line or overarching priority. freedom of movement has to go. and therefore it will have to change. but we must have immigration that works for our communities and our economy. and that means there has to be movement of people to come and work in this country. how that's managed will have to be resolved. but the last thing we want is for our businesses to go bankrupt. labour accepts the current terms of membership of the single market, which comes with the condition of free movement of people, must end, but suggests there c

and we saneremy corbyn go on the nhs, house prices and the tories going on the economy and the tories going on the economy and strong leadership. also why the snp chose to target theresa may about the pensions triple lock. what that means is the current guarantee that means is the current guarantee that state pensions rise either by average earnings, inflation or 2.5% whichever is higher, though something labour is committed to delivering under the next government but theresa may would only say that a future conservative government would continue to ensure state pensions did rise. for the tories there are many people who are traditional tory supporters of pensionable age so clearly political rivals see they can make some capitalfrom this rivals see they can make some capital from this at this stage and the tories will have to address this at some stage in the campaign and perhaps in their manifesto. let's talk about the shape of the campaign we already know the prime minister is not keen to take part in the traditional leaders debates. but there has been a development today with jerem

we know what the tories' game is. it is to destroy labour in england, strengthen their hand for a ha rd tory england, strengthen their hand for a hard tory brexit and more austerity. 0urcampaign will be hard tory brexit and more austerity. 0ur campaign will be based on the fa ct 0ur campaign will be based on the fact the scots have rejected austerity and brexit. we will be saying vote snp to put scotland first to get the best deal. thank you. let's talk about the process. professor gavin philipson joins you. let's talk about the process. professor gavin philipsonjoins me now. just explain to us why this has to be voted on in parliament tomorrow, because of the fixed parliament act? sure. before the fixed—term parliaments act passed in 2011, the prime minister could simply call on the queen to dissolve parliament and the royal prerogative and the queen would grant the prime minister a dissolution. effectively the prime minister had the power to dissolve parliament when she wanted to and could just call a general elec

jeremy corbyn "puts uk at terror risk" is the paper reports that tory campaign strategists claim the labour leader would not take the right decisions to keep the country safe. the observer reports a pledge from lib dem leader, tim farron, that he won't do any coalition deals, saying he wants the liberal democrats be the main opposition. so let's begin. you think no one will pay attention to polls after the debacle of the general action, uk polls are getting a bad reputation abroad. the emphasis on the polls is ludicrous, ina emphasis on the polls is ludicrous, in a way. we don't know if the polls are hurting, which is a phenomenon where they start talking golf each other but yet the papers seem to build their headlines based on polls. they are spending a lot of money on polls. as an ex—editor, i can tell you, you make the investment and probably someone from management said, do you really want to spend that money on a poll question mark —— ? to spend that money on a poll question mark ——? you up quite bright, they have been totally thrown and the baby and the half water bec

your 13 classic tory elegance —— you also seem classic tory arrogance of refusing to debate. when we look at scotland, we need to be seeking to keep the union together. she is playing into nicola sturgeon's hands. it's not focused on the north of england, its focus only on certain groups of people in the south of england. this election cannot be about britain. people will say we've giving you our decision on that, we want you to get on with it. the house of commons is very clearly respected the decision on the referendum in terms of the boat that was taken. this is an election about the record of this conservative government which has caused real pain in areas like my and other parts of the country. that record holding to account is exactly what should happen, including tv debates, as part of the selection process. the liberal democrats voted against brexit. they don‘t respect the result of the referendum stop. you voted against even starting the process. she has asked how she was to achieve brexit very clearly and she wants to get a mandate from the public for that. she‘

it seems all the tory party will do is be rude aboutjeremy corbyn. the world is more unstable and more uncertain than perhaps we thought it was going to be 20 years ago, and that is why theresa may's leadership now is so important and why it is so important for me, i'm afraid, to draw the contrast between her approach and what i think would be the chaotic approach underjeremy corbyn. jeremy corbyn is in their sights. you could call him the underdog. in a park today in the marginal seat of harlow. but labour mps fear their leader has to be reminded notjust to talk to his true believers, but to the whole country. the tories think that makes him a real outsider. we take a message out to the country. politics is of course always personal, but so far, this campaign has been much more about tory attacks on jeremy corbyn than a big battle of ideas. what do you think about what the tories have been doing? it is getting very personal. that is their nature, david cameron was a bully and now they are proving to be bullies. it seems like a witchhunt. it does see

look at the tory voters who went to ukip, they all go back to the tories. theresa may is do what ukip wanted. she is pulling a of europe and bringing back grammar schools. douglas carswell said, myjob is done. a lot of ukip voters will feel the same. vote conservative and you get out

if the tories we re that goes down here. if the tories were to win the most seats here in wales, more than labour, it would be the first time since the 1850s. she's aiming very high. the leader of the labour here in wales, car whenjones, of the labour here in wales, car when jones, admits the of the labour here in wales, car whenjones, admits the party has a mountain to climb but they feel confident that tradition of voting labour will help them in this contest. plaid cymru launched its general election campaign in bangor today. its leader, leanne wood, said her priority was to protect the nation from reckless tory policies. the party currently holds three of the a0 westminster seats in wales. in her launch speed, she said the snap election hasn't taken her party by surprise. we're already in election mode. our machine is already fired up. and while there's talk of polls and voting intentions, it's the local elections on may 11th that will be the real poll. and you keep up to date on the latest on the election campaign on th

the tories have not been a friend to wales. we are not rolling over for any tory to take our seats, we will be out in force. it is early days, but any day out on the campaign trail is precious. leaders only turn up to places where they think they are in the game. with possible gains in wales and scotland, theresa may is not just contemplating a tory majority, but hoping to make true her claim, there are no tory no—go areas. brexit might have redraw the map, but she wants to colour it blue. yet, as she swept away, it won't be easy. here are anywhere else, the tories can be sure they will always be welcome. jonathan bradbury let's discuss the situation in wales in more detail — with jonathan bradbury, who's professor at the department of political and cultural studies at swansea university. he joins us from cardiff. what does the choice of venue today say to you? she should be reasonably confident of making gains in wales, it does not surprise me that she is visiting early in the campaign. i would expect her to do several mor