coming up — we'll get reaction and analysis from the bbc�*s resident polling expert, professor sirjohn curtice. our other main headline — another key day of evidence at the post office inquiry, as the former boss paula vennells denies trying to close down a review of the faulty horizon it system. this was important, but i was reassured _ this was important, but i was reassured of— this was important, but i was reassured of the _ this was important, but i was reassured of the same - this was important, but i was reassured of the same time l this was important, but i was. reassured of the same time that these _ reassured of the same time that these bugs _ reassured of the same time that these bugs have _ reassured of the same time that these bugs have been— reassured of the same time that these bugs have been dealt- reassured of the same time thatl these bugs have been dealt with. welcome to downing street where 2a hours ago, rishi sunak called a general election to take

place on ajuly. today, party leaders have hit the campaign trail, delivering their message to voters across the uk — as the countdown to polling day begins. the prime minister rishi sunak said only the conservatives can offer security and economic stability, while the labour leader sir keir starmer promised an end to what he called 14 years of decline and chaos under the tories. and he promised to rebuild the country. we'll be live on the campaign trail in a moment or two, will talk to the people political 30s as well. meanwhile, nigel farage said he won't be standing for reform uk let's get more from our political correspondent damian grammaticas.

back to speak to where we are with the polling in the past two weeks. the most recent poll during the month of may, we are looking at labour on 44%, 21 points ahead of the conservatives on 23%, so very substantial lead. this is the biggest lead that we've had at the beginning of our election sincejohn major went to the country back in 1997. the reform party are narrowly running in third place in terms of votes with 11% across britain as a whole. liberal democrats narrowly behind on seven and the greens, not to be ignored at 6%. of course politics in scotland is distinctive and different, with the strength of the smp they are historically, the labour party there are no running five points ahead of the snp in the

polls, this is the biggest lead they've had over the smp any time since the 2014 independence referendum.— since the 2014 independence referendum. , ., referendum. will be live in scotland in “ust a referendum. will be live in scotland in just a moment _ referendum. will be live in scotland in just a moment moment - referendum. will be live in scotland in just a moment moment or - referendum. will be live in scotland in just a moment moment or two, l injust a moment moment or two, but let me pick up on the thought you started with, remind me, you will have a rolodex in your mind, can you remember a sitting prime minister that's gone into an election or called an election, 20 plus points trailing in the polls? flat called an election, 20 plus points trailing in the polls?— trailing in the polls? not as a matter of— trailing in the polls? not as a matter of choice. _ trailing in the polls? not as a matter of choice. when - trailing in the polls? not as a matter of choice. when john | trailing in the polls? not as a - matter of choice. when john major matter of choice. whenjohn major did it in 1997, admittedly he did hold the election in the end a few weeks earlier then was strictly speaking necessary by law, he decided to hold it on his birthday in april rather than waiting until may. but for a prime minister to opt to go to the country up to six months early when 21 points behind in the opinion polls is frankly unprecedented. there've been

occasions in the past where governments have gone to the country because frankly, they think they having trouble governing and they want to try to see if they can improve their position. labour, in 1951, went to the country. it wasn't clear if they were in a position to win the election, but this does strike one as a very brave or an extremely foolhardy decision. i’m extremely foolhardy decision. i'm auoin to extremely foolhardy decision. i'm going to get out onto the campaign trail, i'll ask you one more question. i'll come back to you and later in the half—hour. everyone watching in terms of the voters, they want to know about issues. in terms of the polling on that, what are the top five issues that voters to talk about?— are the top five issues that voters to talk about? ~ _, ., , to talk about? welcome of the things that voters say _ to talk about? welcome of the things that voters say they _ to talk about? welcome of the things that voters say they want _ to talk about? welcome of the things that voters say they want to - to talk about? welcome of the things that voters say they want to talk - that voters say they want to talk about — the economy, national health service, housing to some degree, immigration, those are the highly

important subjects, but it's not necessarily the ones however that are most likely to determine which way voters decide to go. 0ut are most likely to determine which way voters decide to go. out of those, i would say the evidence is that it's the economy and the national health service that have been predominant in the things that have... when we are looking to see, one of the things that seem to push people either to the conservatives or away from the conservatives, those of the two issues that matter. against the backdrop of all this, of course, we also should never forget what's also in voter's minds is the experience of the fiscal event in october 2022, that's a crucial part of the memory is about economics and the government �*s handling of that, and equally we should not forget the influence of party gate, that is still in the back of voters memories, some of which are quite long. memories, some of which are quite lonu. . memories, some of which are quite lon. _ ., , memories, some of which are quite lon. . ., , , memories, some of which are quite loni . ., , , long. that is interesting given the messa i es long. that is interesting given the messages we've _ long. that is interesting given the messages we've already - long. that is interesting given the messages we've already heard, i messages we've already heard, especially from the conservative

party, i'll come back to you a little later, thank you so much for those thoughts at the start of this hour. i want to get on to the campaign trail though. we arejust outside we are just outside inverness, rishi sunak�*s third big visit of the day. he was in derbyshire first thing this morning and he went to wales, now he's in scotland when he's going to meet at a port shortly. why is he doing all this, why is it such a massive hive of activity in the first place? the answer is simple, he is try to get on the front foot, he knows that he is not the favourite to win the general election, remain in number ten so he wants to get out early and achieve the narrative. that this is a done

deal. but one of the things i've covered a few general elections with the bbc, one of the things you always notice on general election campaigns is news has a habit of getting in the way. there's a couple of things today that i think are a bit awkward for the prime minister. firstly, net migration figures we got through the home office, the figures that show the number of people coming into the uk over the number of people leaving. they've gone down a bit from last year, but they are still huge, still well over 650,000, a lot higher than the conservatives have said they should be. apologies, you can see. he says he's in scotland so we'll get to any live pictures any live events here on the programme in the next little while. they were quick out of the gates this morning, all of the party

leaders their campaign launches. it's been a really busy at first, what, eight or nine hours? let's get more from our political correspondent damian grammaticas. enter the man who has staked everything on this gamble, calling an election now. quite a few of his mps are not convinced by the timing and he has a huge poll deficit to overcome. i want to build a britain, a country where you all can have confidence, restored confidence and pride in our communities, in our society and our nation. earlier he had an admission — he'd promised deportation flights to rwanda. now he says they will happen if he is elected. we have already started detaining people, we have hired the escorts, we have an airfield on standby and we have booked the flights. all of that work is already ongoing and the choice of this election is clear, because if i'm reelected as prime minister on the 5th ofjuly, these flights will go. the labour leader was 200 miles to the south, in kent. keeping with tradition, he stopped for the first baby of his campaign.

less traditional — this location to launch, far from usual labour heartlands. so this election is about a choice, two different countries, two different futures. decline and chaos continuing under the tories, or rebuilding our country under labour. for the next few weeks, sir keir starmer will be pressed for more detail about that change and the plan he has already outlined. we will make the economy stable, how we will ensure we bring down the waiting times with 40,000 appointments every week, extra appointments under a labour government. how we will have the border security command take control of our borders, which have been lost under this government. how we set up gb energy so we'll have prices down for good. richard tice, leader of reform uk, launched without his party's best—known member, nigel farage, reform's honorary president. he has chosen not to enter the fray, saying he wants to help in the us

election this autumn and here where he can. i am absolutely delighted, during this election campaign, that my good friend nigel farage will be helping out significantly in campaigning to drive home the message of reform uk and how we can save britain. also hoping to siphon votes away from the conservatives are the liberal democrats. they launched yesterday. today, their deputy leader said they are concentrating their efforts on several dozen target seats. i think we all know the country is absolutely crying out for change. we all know that, we feel it in our bones. but there are places around the country, around 80 seats, where it is the liberal democrats who can deliver that change, where liberal democrats are the key challengers to the conservatives, and it is in those areas we are really going after conservative mps because we are best placed to beat them in this general election.

when he announced this election, rishi sunak might have been hoping to catch other parties on the back foot, like the snp, whose new leader was installed just this month. the manifesto is well advanced, we are hitting the road today to start the election campaign, so we are ready to go and i will be out and about around the country and i intend to take my message to every part of the country. i am the first minister of all of scotland and i intend to be present in every part of scotland. in westminster, mps were scrambling to see what of all the legislation in progress could be rushed through. rishi sunak�*s own signature measure to ban smoking looks likely to be ditched. it was meant to be part of his legacy. damian grammaticas, bbc news, westminster. let's go live now to the bbc�*s resident polling expert, sirjohn curtice — professor of politics at strathclyde university. sirjohn, you were talking about the

ratings for the parties. a quick question, on the personal ratings for rishi sunak and sir keir starmer, given the prime minister is clearly making this an election, or trying to, about that straight choice. , , �* trying to, about that straight choice. , , ~ �* , choice. yes he is. and it's interesting _ choice. yes he is. and it's interesting he's _ choice. yes he is. and it's interesting he's trying - choice. yes he is. and it's interesting he's trying to l choice. yes he is. and it's i interesting he's trying to do choice. yes he is. and it's - interesting he's trying to do so, because at the moment at least, for many voters, it's not a particularly attractive choice that's put before them. as far as mr sunak is concerned, if we take for example data from you god of —— yougov. he has fallen in popularity during his premiership, typical measures around -40 premiership, typical measures around —40 or so, labour of course get a better reading of course, but sir keir starmer�*s personal ratings, they are not actually as good at as his party's, where we've got a very

long series, he is not as popular as david cameron was before he became prime minister in 2010, let alone tony blair back in 1997. so we do actually have sir here give people the straight choice will get people saying they prefer him to mr sunak and a lot of people will say neither. 0ne and a lot of people will say neither. one of the border issues about this election is it is being fronted notjust by these two gentlemen but also david, john swinney, none of them particularly known for their chrism, none of them particularly known for their ability to express a vision for the country in a clear, crisp concise fashion, and those are the things that tend to get voters interested and excited about the personal choice. i'm not quite sure that it's going to be a particularly interesting election if it is indeed fought as a wholly presidential one.— it is indeed fought as a wholly presidential one. how important is tactical voting _ presidential one. how important is tactical voting likely _ presidential one. how important is tactical voting likely to _ presidential one. how important is tactical voting likely to be, - presidential one. how important is tactical voting likely to be, do - presidential one. how important is tactical voting likely to be, do you | tactical voting likely to be, do you think? ., , tactical voting likely to be, do you think? . , , ..,

tactical voting likely to be, do you think? . , , _, , think? the answer is, it could be. and if it is — think? the answer is, it could be. and if it is it _ think? the answer is, it could be. and if it is it will— think? the answer is, it could be. and if it is it will be _ and if it is it will be disadvantageous to the conservatives. 0ne disadvantageous to the conservatives. one that was evident in this local election, last year's local election it's not great numbers. what you discover that in places where they conservatives are defending a seat against the party, the labour party does about two or three points better, and the liberal democrats do about 2—3 points worse. and that is reversed where the liberal democrats are challengers. when that happens, you can see how it's possible how the losses of the seats will have a scale that eventually proves to be for the conservatives will be rather greater then would otherwise be the case. but i think here again, history is not very kind to the conservatives because the last time we saw tactical voting of this kind in local elections, it was in 1995 and 1996, and we did indeed see it in

1997, it was the election in which tactical voting was evident on that kind of scale for the first time. and it helps to explain why the conservatives in that election fell to around 165 seats, little more than half of the seats that they were trying to defend. 50. than half of the seats that they were trying to defend. so, tactical voting represents _ were trying to defend. so, tactical voting represents a _ were trying to defend. so, tactical voting represents a risk _ were trying to defend. so, tactical voting represents a risk to - were trying to defend. so, tactical voting represents a risk to the - voting represents a risk to the conservatives, you spoke at the beginning aboutjust the giant risk of going to the polls that far behind. ~ ., of going to the polls that far behind. ~ . ., ,., ., of going to the polls that far behind. ~ . ., ., ., behind. what about reform and the threat from — behind. what about reform and the threat from there? _ behind. what about reform and the threat from there? yeah, - behind. what about reform and the threat from there? yeah, that's - threat from there? yeah, that's undoubtedly another risk for the conservatives. actually at the moment, the polls have been showing for quite a while now that there are more people who have switched from conservative to reform, then have switched from conservative in 2019 to labour now, it'sjust switched from conservative in 2019 to labour now, it's just over one switched from conservative in 2019 to labour now, it'sjust over one in five of 2019 conservatives saying they were voting reform. undoubtedly, the first base for mr

sunak�*s lowering that labour largely suna k�*s lowering that labour largely it sunak�*s lowering that labour largely it is to squeeze that reform vote. the last election in 2019, as soon as the election was called we saw the brexit party vote for, the liberal democrats thought they were vote fall. but whether or not history will repeat itself, it's not clear. and i think what certainly one has to remember, even if reform still does get screens, they are now determined to fight in conservative held seats in the weight of the brexit party did back in 2019 —— did not back in 2019, votes the raw reform party get, however small that might be is almost undoubtedly votes being taken away from the conservatives, particularly seats that they are trying to defend. another reason that the outcome in seats could eventually be unkind to mr sunak. fix. seats could eventually be unkind to mr sunak. �* ., seats could eventually be unkind to mr sunak. . ., .,

mr sunak. a final thought then, because as _ mr sunak. a final thought then, because as we _ mr sunak. a final thought then, because as we know _ mr sunak. a final thought then, because as we know anything i mr sunak. a final thought then, i because as we know anything can happen in a six week election campaign. you think of gordon brown, gillian duffy, the hot mic that caught out the prime minister then. you think of nick clegg from nowhere doing externally well in that first tv debate. those are the game changing moments the tories will be hoping happens. your reflections on that and also what are you looking out for in these coming weeks in terms of areas and fights?- terms of areas and fights? well, first thing to _ terms of areas and fights? well, first thing to say _ terms of areas and fights? well, first thing to say is _ terms of areas and fights? well, first thing to say is that - terms of areas and fights? well, first thing to say is that neither i first thing to say is that neither the gordon brown episode or indeed nick clegg's rise in the polls in the wake of his performance debates, in the end didn't make much difference to the final result, the liberal democrats rose and then fell away again. the campaign in which the campaigning recently did make a difference is 2017 when theresa may

come a relatively inept campaigning famous quip in the wake of an apparent about turn in the party's manifesto policy and social care, she said, "nothing has changed". the conservative labour of labour dropped about ten points according to opinion polls during the campaign. he has to hope that keir starmer is as inapt a campaigner as mrs may turned out to be. i'm not sure i anticipate that that will necessarily prove to be the case. and even if it is a ten point fall in the labour lead to, labour is still 11 points ahead, mr sunak is still 11 points ahead, mr sunak is still going to be out of 10 downing street if that is what will transpire. street if that is what will transpire-— street if that is what will trans-ire. ,, g ., ., street if that is what will trans-ire. ,, ., ., transpire. sirjohn, thanks for havini transpire. sirjohn, thanks for having on _ transpire. sirjohn, thanks for having on the _ transpire. sirjohn, thanks for having on the programme. i transpire. sirjohn, thanks for . having on the programme. thank transpire. sirjohn, thanks for - having on the programme. thank you so much for the thoughts and reflections. let's take stock on this the first day, let's talk again to to alysia fitzgerald. as we've

watched through the course of the day, the themes of the leaders have come out with in these early hours, what is your overarching thought? it was immediately clear from about 24 hours ago when sunak actually called the election what the key themes from either side, from the two main parties, would be. for keir starmer, it's been a candidate for change. it's saying we are not the conservative party, we'll bring something new to politics, we will restore hope, we will improve living standards and we will do it in a sensible and fiscally responsible way. and for rishi sunak it was to say that he was a different candidate to something that we've seen from the conservatives in the past. he's stable and he wants to build on the trajectory that he is already set out. he is very much circling back to things that people would often associate with traditional conservatives — defence, immigration, the economy, things he has pitched his time as prime minister on. forthe has pitched his time as prime minister on. for the labour party it is very easy to look back at the

conservative party's record over the last two years and say they haven't done very well at all on those things, so it's very clear now what direction his campaign is going to take. it direction his campaign is going to take. ., , , , take. it was interesting listening to the liberal _ take. it was interesting listening to the liberal democrats, - take. it was interesting listening to the liberal democrats, the . take. it was interesting listening l to the liberal democrats, the pitch he was making, and much more realistic pitch than the last elections from the then leader. i think it's really important to rememberjust how important the other parties are, although it seems to be a two horse race between the conservatives in the labour party, the liberal democrats, the scottish national party, they all have the power to shape the political landscape of the uk. if we look toward scotland for example, the snp when that nap massive landslide back in 2015, so quite a ago now, gained loads of seats and those are predicted to go back to the labour party. liberal democrats are going to be focusing on seats in the south of england where they can maybe take some back from the conservative party, from those constituencies that aren't quite ready to vote for

the labour partyjust yet. so very important and we need to keep an eye on ed davey�*s campaign. itrui’e’iiii important and we need to keep an eye on ed davey's campaign.— on ed davey's campaign. we'll get more from — on ed davey's campaign. we'll get more from scotland _ on ed davey's campaign. we'll get more from scotland because - on ed davey's campaign. we'll get more from scotland because we i on ed davey's campaign. we'll get - more from scotland because we expect more from scotland because we expect more in the last few minutes and we'll talk to her in a moment or two. this is day one and it is important to remember it is a long campaign, i remember being on the road in 1997. it is a long six weeks and we are saying there, news actually happens and it's very important to be able to be nimble on the campaign trail. but physically for those leaders, everything focus on his them for such a long relentless period of time. we've got this election — relentless period of time. we've got this election campaign _ relentless period of time. we've got this election campaign running - relentless period of time. we've got this election campaign running as i this election campaign running as well as various other things that need to get done in the six weeks, we have this. called washup which is where in parliament the conservative government needs to push through as much legislation as possible, all the ones they think of the most important to get through, before parliament actually... important to get through, before parliament actually. . ._ parliament actually... really in portland. _ parliament actually... really in portland. we — parliament actually... really in portland, we were _ parliament actually... really in portland, we were talking - parliament actually... really in | portland, we were talking about parliament actually... really in - portland, we were talking about this earlier. things like the compensation scheme for the blood

scandal, that is contained with a bill, that has to come onto the statute's book, martin's the firm is to let met the families last week and reassured them that would happen. before the summer full to all these things now work right up in the air but certain question marks. i in the air but certain question marks. , , in the air but certain question marks. ,, , ., in the air but certain question marks. i say they are probably are u i marks. i say they are probably are u- in the marks. i say they are probably are no in the air. _ marks. i say they are probably are up in the air, there's _ marks. i say they are probably are up in the air, there's so _ marks. i say they are probably are up in the air, there's so much - up in the air, there's so much to get done in a short span of time, there are so many seats where parties don't have selected candidates yet. they have until the seventh ofjune, there so many seats would big black holes at the moment so doing all that was campaigning on the election trail, trying to win over voters, taking part in broadcast media, getting the message out, it is a very big task and that six weeks is going to feel a lot longer. six weeks is going to feel a lot lower. ., , longer. you 'ust reminded me, actuall , longer. youjust reminded me, actually, because _ longer. youjust reminded me, actually, because along - longer. youjust reminded me, actually, because along the - longer. you just reminded me, | actually, because along the way longer. you just reminded me, - actually, because along the way we could get further dropouts. we already in the run—up the last few months, a number of conservative mps saying they wouldn't be standing, and another with the deputy speaker.

we've had dame rosie winston and another saying they would not seek reelection so that is a big moment from the conservative party and the labour party, itjust shows how many more mps are willing to step down. we saw so many in the past year or so it saying that they wouldn't seek reelection, and abnormally high amount, this will only increase over the next six weeks, we can speculate for ages about who might be the next conservative party leader, but we have to remind her that some of them may not even be here after the election whether that's because they lost their state or because they've chosen not to be reelected. itrui’e’iiii chosen not to be reelected. we'll talk a i ain chosen not to be reelected. we'll talk again in _ chosen not to be reelected. we'll talk again in the _ chosen not to be reelected. we'll talk again in the coming - chosen not to be reelected. we'll talk again in the coming minutes, thanks once again. being on the campaign trail, those party leaders are making promises, what they are trying to convince voters they will give them and let's cross to bbc verify. let's cross to bbc verify where our policy and analysis

correspondent ben chu is taking a look at some of the claims made by rishi sunak in a round of interviews earlier today. it's day one of the election campaign and there are big claims on the economy today from the leaders of both main parties. so let's get into that. firstly, rishi sunak claimed the uk economy is growing faster than other major economies including the united states. he was talking about the first three months of 2024, and as you can see the uk economy to grow faster over that period, at 0.6%, the us at 0.4%. and other economies apart from canada. this is only 13—month period, this is a bit like saying if a football team wins on the first day of the season they are winning the league. if you look at the performance since the end of the pandemic, the record is a lot less flattering than this, the us has grown by 9% in that time, the us has grown by 9% in that time, the uk byjust 2%. we've also looked at another claim from the pm today,

but thanks to government an average person earning £35,000 is getting a £900 tax cut. 0n the one hand, yes, people on £35,000 will get a £900 benefit due to the employee national insurance cuts, but there will be other tax rises, announced since 2021. and when you put all this together, you get an average earner of a benefit of around £340, not £900. and people earning around £15,000, or £75,000 -- £50,000 or £75,000 £15,000, or £75,000 —— £50,000 or £75,000 are £15,000, or £75,000 -- £50,000 or £75,000 are actually worse off in the last few years. finally, let's look at keir starmer�*s claim today. that rishi sunak is planning a £46 billion tax cut. the government has indeed it would like to scrub national insurance on workers and that would indeed be very expensive. national insurance on workers is set

to bring in around £46 billion a year, but the government has not given any time frame for getting rid of national insurance on workers. and the chancellorjeremy hunt after the march budget described it only as a long—term ambition. this is just day one, of course. we'll be here to verify many many more claims about the economy and other areas over the next six weeks of this campaign. back to you.- over the next six weeks of this campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that _ campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that is _ campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that is going _ campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that is going to - campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that is going to be - campaign. back to you. thank you so much, ben. that is going to be so . much, ben. that is going to be so important during the next few weeks, to cover all the various claims his party leaders are making. we know that rishi sunak is going to visit all the four nations through the course of this first 24 hours, he started very early already. rishi sunak has been in south wales this afternoon, speaking to our wales political editor gareth lewis. well, i know that there's more work to do, and as i said yesterday, i know people are onlyjust starting to feel the benefits of the change. and for some people,

it will still be very hard when they're looking at their bank balances at the end of every month. but i do believe we have turned a corner. inflation is now back to normal. the economy is growing at a healthy rate. wages have been rising faster than prices for ten months in a row. energy bills are coming down. and that's why now is the right moment for us to think about the future. and we're living in uncertain times, and that's why we need bold action and a clear plan to deliver a secure future to everyone in wales and across the country. and that's what i plan to talk about over the next few weeks. if you care about the welsh economy, why don't you, as your welsh conservative colleagues are calling for, give wales its share of hs2 money? well, i made a big decision on hs2, and that's going to mean £1 billion for the north wales electrification. actually when i was in wales recently talking about that, it was warmly welcomed by everybody. and when will it happen, prime minister? and it comes on top of... you have to remember, we're taking a step back, for every £1 that is spent across the uk, £1.20 has been given to the welsh government for spending here in wales and we've spent £2.5 billion investing directly in welsh communities through our levelling up funds.

we're here in barry, which is a good example. wrexham is another example. on top of that, we've created two free ports together with the welsh government that are attracting jobs and investment in anglesey, in port talbot. you've seen the announcement this week of wylfa, which is incredibly exciting, as we build more energy security and createjobs in wales. so, look, i've got a strong record of investing in wales, delivering security for people. this election is about the future. in uncertain times, you need bold action, you need a clear plan to deliver a secure future for people. that's what my track record says. that's what i will deliver for people in wales. some of your colleagues have already gone on the attack about the welsh labour government's record here in wales. isn't that deflection? what about your own record over the past 14 years at uk level? elections are a choice, and they're mainly about the future and they should be. but i think it's reasonable to look at the past, and you can see my track record. inflation now back to normal, the economy in a much better place, wages growing after all the difficult times we've had. and look at what the welsh government is doing here in wales. a war on motorists with top—down blanket 20mph speed limits.

i've just 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've given them the money to deliver tax cuts for small businesses. the last time i was here, i was talking to farmers. their livelihoods, incomes decimated by welsh government plans. and when you look at the state of the welsh nhs, figures out today just demonstrating that very sadly, welsh people are being let down. the welsh nhs, run by the labour government, is the worst—performing in great britain. waiting lists are the longest, emergency times the worst. that's the reality of labour in wales, and it is absolutely reasonable to point out that vaughan gething and keir starmer are responsible for that. that was the prime minister a little earlier. labour leader sir keir starmer also spoke to supporters this morning, he was in gillingham. at long last, the election has been called. the time has come, and the wait is over.

and that means through the power of our democracy, the voters now get to choose. the power of the vote, the power each and every one of you has, to change our country, our community and your future for the better. so whether you're a family that's been battling the cost of living, dealing with anti—social behaviour, whether your business that's been struggling for years against the odds of the economy that's in chaos under this government, whether you've served your country, in whatever way, this election is for you. because you now have the power, the chance to end the chaos, to turn the page and to rebuild britain — applause.

and we've had...we've had 14 years of going round and round in circles,