of investing in wales, record of investing in wales, delivering security for people. this election is about the future. in uncertain times you need bold action, a clear plan to deliver a secure future for people. that is what my track record says and that is what i will deliver four people in wales. ., ., ., ., in wales. some have gone on attack on the labour— in wales. some have gone on attack on the labour government _ in wales. some have gone on attack on the labour government here. - in wales. some have gone on attack i on the labour government here. what about your own record at uk level? they are mainly about the future and they should be but it is reasonable to look at the past was that we can see my track record. inflation back to normal, the economy and e and a better place, wages growing after the difficult times we have had. look at what was government is doing. a war on motorists with top—down 20 mph speed limits. i have been talking to small business owners who are facing thousands of pounds of higher tax bills as a result of what the welsh government has done, even though we have given them the money to deliver tax cuts for small businesses. the last time i was here i was talking to farmers. their livelihoods decimated by welsh government plans when you look at

the state of the welsh nhs, figures out today just demonstrating the state of the welsh nhs, figures out todayjust demonstrating that very sadly, welsh people being let down. the welsh nhs, run by the labour government, is the worst performing in britain. waiting lists of the longest. that is the reality and it is reasonable to point out that vaughan gething and keir starmer are responsible for that. it is a deflection? we _ starmer are responsible for that. it is a deflection? we have _ starmer are responsible for that. it is a deflection? we have a - starmer are responsible for that. it is a deflection? we have a proud i is a deflection? we have a proud record. is a deflection? we have a proud record- to _ is a deflection? we have a proud record- to put — is a deflection? we have a proud record. to put £5 _ is a deflection? we have a proud record. to put £5 billion - is a deflection? we have a proud record. to put £5 billion in - is a deflection? we have a proud | record. to put £5 billion in vested across projects across the country to from wrexham, to anglesey, to barry. we have the north wales electric occasion line. two new free ports, port talbot and anglesey which are going to attract billions of pounds, createjobs which are going to attract billions of pounds, create jobs for people. the announcementjust recently... that's our track record of delivering for the people in wales as well as,

by the way, the overall improvement we've brought to the economy. tax cuts worth 900 tax burden is the highest it's been since the second world war. how do you spend that? well, the tax rate that an ordinary worker is paying right now is the lowest it's been in decades, and someone earning an average is the highest since 1940. economies overall tax burden. the tax burden, the tax rate paid by an ordinary average worker is the lowest it's been in decades. and they're getting a tax cut worth £900 thanks to the actions of the uk government after tax have gone up. it's a net. it's a net rise. no, no, they're paying less tax. now, small businesses in wales right now are paying thousands of pounds more in tax than they would if they were in england. if they're pubs, restaurants, cafes, those are the results of the labour government. i want to cut people's taxes and give people financial security and there's a very clear choice and dividing line on that issue at this election, on the mechanics of what's going on at the moment. you called an early election. does that mean the end of the smoking bill? what is happening with that? yeah. so all of these bills that are in process have to be discussed with all the parties in parliament. there's a period that we can pass

these very quickly before parliament dissolves, but that is a conversation that has to happen with other parties across parliament. so no guarantee that smoking, but that landmark piece of legislation for you, no guarantee that will will go through. and i will do everything i can to move these things forward. but it is dependent on the cooperation of other parties across parliament as well. but you're right, that is something that i did. it's demonstrable of my bold action. i am willing to act in a bold way. i've got a clear plan and that's how we'll deliver a secure keeping are you keeping the welsh government abreast of that because they say they will adopt that bill. again, i'm very happy that that bill has been adopted across the united. across the united kingdom. i think that's something that we can do to have a smoke free generation, which is going to be wonderful for our children, ensure that we reduce cancer deaths, ease the burden on the nhs.

but that's the type of leader i am. i'm willing to do bold things because that's what the situation demands. we live in uncertain times and in uncertain times. we need bold action and a clear plan to deliver a secure future for everyone, their families and our country. and that's what i'm going to do in this election. rishi sunak talking in south wales. we are expecting some of the other party leaders including the sir ed davey for liberal democrats and the snps john swinney to hold events during the day which we will have coverage of here on bbc news. all the parties are of course looking to take parliamentary seats across the uk. early the work and pensions minister said she _ early the work and pensions minister said she is _ early the work and pensions minister said she is not standing this time round _ said she is not standing this time round. fill— said she is not standing this time round. �* ~ , ., ., . _ round. all mps have to decide by june the round. all mps have to decide by june the 7th _ round. all mps have to decide by june the 7th if— round. all mps have to decide by june the 7th if they _ round. all mps have to decide by june the 7th if they want -

round. all mps have to decide by june the 7th if they want to - round. all mps have to decide by| june the 7th if they want to stand june the 7th if they want to stand or not. we may hear of more. the latest one there, the deputy commons speaker announcing that she is not going to re—stand for election. she has been the mp for epping forest for 27 years. in the election all the parties are of course looking to take parliamentary seats across the uk. let's take a look at those now. if you cast your mind back to the last general election in 2019 it was called by borisjohnson in a bid to get his brexit deal through parliament. after all the votes had been counted this was the picture. the conservatives won 365 seats in the house of commons. that gave them a majority of 80 and the time since then there have been by—elections and of course defections. things are looking different for and a half years later. let's take a look at the current picture on the conservatives are down to 344 mp5,

reducing their majority to 38 seats. what are the polls are saying about what could happen next? 0ur polling guru john curtice has been taking a look. as things stand at the moment, on average in the polls, and there are differences between the pollsters, but on average, they put the conservatives 21 points behind at the moment. even the best of them put them at least around 16 points behind. and however you look at it, that is an outcome that would result in labour being elected with an overall majority. so the challenge facing rishi sunak is to try to overturn that very, very substantial labour lead. and frankly no government, apart from john major in 1997, no prime minister has called an election so far behind. so he's going to have to beat the psephological records if indeed he's going to win this election. the economy and the cost of living

are shaping up to be key election issues — so what do small business owners make of the government and opposition's plans? 0ur correspondent ben boulos has been speaking to traders at a wholesale market in birmingham. there are plenty of political analogies to be drawn here at birmingham wholesale market. are we in for a juicy campaign? perhaps the discussion will get as fiery as those chillis there. £8 a box for those, £5 a box for the tomatoes, in case you were wondering. let's find out what the traders here make of the situation. we can speak to gurinder. what is your take on the way things feel economically now? have the cost of living pressures eased? not really. things are too expensive. since covid happened, everything has gone over the sky, obviously. things are expensive, insurance is high, living costs, mortgages, everything has gone up. we need to do something for this, actually. even for the small businesses, things are too expensive at the moment. things are getting tighter. businesses are going down,

especially the smaller businesses. 0k, gurinder, thank you very much for sharing your thoughts with us this morning. over here, you are one of the customers here, you run a catering company. what matters most to you in this election? what do you care about? i have been coming here for 43 years, i have been coming in the market for 43 years. things have gone sky high. but always if a good minister comes into election and wins the election and controls the country and controls everybody, be a nice person to everybody, like i am controlling my business, as i am here myself for 43 years, old that i am myself, if you send somebody else who doesn't know what to take and what to do, and that would really get it down. and so it comes down to who you trust in power? 0k. thank you very much. pam, you are one of the wholesalers as well over here. what matters most to you? what do you want to hear from the politicians in this election campaign?

at the moment, inflation, that is a main aim. plus politics, it is just criticising each other at the moment. one has got a policy, the other one hasn't got a policy to work on it. so you want something more constructive rather than just criticism ? 0k. just talk and nothing solid. 0k, thank you very much. thank you to you both. by the way, what is the mint for? mint is for a fresh sauce that we make, fresh sauce for everybody. bring us a jar when it is made. thank you very much. let's bring in emma thomas, who is the political reporter for the west midlands. what is your sense of the political landscape in this patch? this is going to be a really closely fought area. the west midlands is home to a number of marginal swing seats. it used to be home to a clear red

wall, constituencies which had voted for a labour mp for years. and then in 2019 they turned blue, electing conservative mps. and i imagine a number of those mps will be feeling a little apprehensive this morning, following the prime minister's announcement yesterday. the recent electoral picture is mixed. there were clear successes in may's elections, not least electing the first labour mayor for the west midlands, richard parker. andy street, the conservative, was the only man to have ever held the post before. they gained councils in places like cannock chase. they won the tamworth by—election with a huge swing of 24%. but in some areas, labour didn't do as well as expected, such as in dudley, where they were tipped to potentially take the council and the result ended with the conservatives still in power. so it is really not that clear—cut here. 0k, emma, thank you very much for that analysis. just take a look around this market. look at how busy it is. people coming and going, getting on with their lives. that is one of the challenges of this election campaign. the candidates, the politicians, have to cut

through and grab people's attention when they have got daily life and all sorts of other things going on to contend with as well. and a reminder — we have a special live page up and running online, with the latest from the first day of campaigning for the july the 4th vote. our team of correspondents reporting from across the uk. there are live streams of the politicians and their events. matthew amroliwala will be live in downing street at the top of the hour to take you through the afternoon here on bbc news first stop hour to take you through the afternoon here on bbc news first stop now, it's time for a look at the weather with ben rich. hello. the rain has felt relentless across some parts of the uk over the last couple of days. a swirl of cloud and rain, an area of low pressure worked its way in from the near continent and then became very slow—moving. in parts of cumbria, we've seen more than 120 millimetres of rain in the space ofjust 48 hours. the area of low pressure responsible is still with us.

but it is filling, it is weakening, loosening its grip so the rain is starting to ease off. that said, still some fairly heavy bursts of rain to come across parts of north west england and southern scotland. a number of flood warnings still in force. a lot of cloud as well for many areas, and the best of any sunshine, i think, found across some southern and eastern counties of england, where temperatures will get to 19 or 20 celsius, but cooler further north and west with the cloud, with the splashes of rain. and then, through this evening and tonight, well, it's just a process of this area of low pressure gradually weakening and filling, but still providing lots of cloud, still providing some outbreaks of rain. a mild night for most, but where skies do clear across southern england, south wales, it will turn just a little bit chilly — down to six or seven celsius in places. for tomorrow, our area of low pressure still with us. that means a lot of cloud for much of scotland, maybe the odd bright spell in western scotland. also rather cloudy for northern ireland, northern england into the midlands, a good part of wales.

still some bits and pieces of rain, but certainly not as wet as it has been. best chance of sunshine further south and east, again, temperatures up to 19 or 20 celsius in parts of south east england. and as we head into the weekend, a bank holiday weekend, of course, it is going to feel a little bit warmer. we will see some spells of sunshine, still the chance of some hefty showers. now, saturday should bring a decent amount of dry weather for many. this little weather system trying to push out of northern europe, that mayjust fringe some showery rain into some eastern counties of england. we'll have to keep an eye on that. still a little bit of uncertainty. cloud and rain pushing into the west, later in the day. but in between those two weather systems, actually a slice of sunshine and warmth with temperatures up to around 20 or 21 celsius, so a warmer day on saturday. keeping a relatively warm feel into sunday and indeed monday. some sunshine, yes, but some showers as well, some of which will be

heavy, perhaps thundery. live from downing street. this is bbc news. party leaders hit the campaign trail after the prime minister fired the starting gun for a snap summer election in six weeks' time rishi sunak and labour leader sir keir starmer have been touring the country, with their messages for voters. even though there's more work to do, the plan is working. we have economic stability back.

you now have the power, the chance to end the chaos, to turn the page and to rebuild britain. reform uk sets out plans to run candidates in nearly every seat but nigel farage says he won't be standing. and this is the scene at the post office it inquiry — where former boss paula vennells is appearing for a second day. welcome to downing street. party leaders have hit the campaign trail with six weeks to go until the general election. the prime minister rishi sunak said only the conservatives offer security and economic stability, while the labour leader sir kier starmer promised an end to what he called fourteen years of decline and chaos under the tories. nigel farage said he won't be standing for reform uk