voters are just hours away from being able to have their say about who runs the country. the leaders of all the main parties have spent the day out, making their case, in a final appealfor support. hello, evening. after 42 days of campaigning, we are nowjust nine hours away from polling stations opening in this landmark election. also tonight, joe biden says he won't be forced out of the race for the us presidency, despite the criticism of his performance in a tv debate. hurricane beryl hits jamaica, bringing winds of nearly 150 miles an hour. for cavendish it is done! and, britain's mark cavendish makes sporting history — winning a record number of stages at the tour de france. coming up on bbc london —

15 years on, why questions remain and stay with us here on bbc news for continuing coverage and analysis from our team of correspondents in the uk and around the world. in nine hours from now, polling stations will open and people will be able to have their say about who runs the country. all the political parties have spent a final day out on the campaign trail, pushing for votes. our political editor chris mason is here. thanks, jane. this time tomorrow — ten o'clock, on the nose — we will have the results of what is known as the exit poll. it will give us the first indication of who's going to be walking through this door on friday as our prime minister. but the results are about more than just who forms the next

government, but also about how many mps from the competing parties will be sitting on these green benches in the house of commons for around the next five years. i've been following the last six weeks of campaigning, which culminated in the closing speeches tonight. six weeks ago, it was a bit damp. so this is it — a general election is on. if you want change, you have to vote for it. here they are. funny old business, following the prime minister on the campaign trail. are you changing many minds? well, look, chris, you can see we're having a conversation here. would you describe yourself as a socialist? look, yes, iwould. fireworks, smiles, promises, questions and one more day of persuasion. rishi sunak was at school in romsey, in hampshire, today. hi, girls, how are you? hello. how is he, i wonder, after hearing a cabinet colleague on radio 4 this morning pretty

much concede defeat? where the polls are at the moment means that tomorrow is likely to see the largest labour landslide majority. the largest majority that this country has ever seen. what therefore matters now is what kind of opposition do we have? tonight, i want you to hear the final words the two men who want to govern for the next five years said on the campaign trail. first, the prime minister. i say it again — we have 24 hours left. we do not surrender to labour. we will fight for every vote. we will fight for our values and we will fight for our vision of britain. cheering his wife, then his mum and dad joined him on stage, a sense of a resigned pride in the air. keir starmer! the labour leader, was in east kilbride, south of glasgow, this afternoon. he'd been near whitland in carmarthenshire this morning. tonight, he flew to redditch

in the west midlands. note the exuberance here as you listen to sir keir starmer�*s final pitch. imagine a britain moving forward together with a labour government. that is what we're fighting for. let's continue that fight. if you want change, you have to vote for it. vote labour tomorrow! cheering. the scottish national party leader, john swinney, has been toasting a marshmallow next to a big plastic frog in castlemilk in glasgow today, and he had a fluorescent jacket moment too. ithe election is well and truly overl and done with south of the border, i and the issue for scotland is — i who's going to protect scotland's interests in the next - westminster parliament? and people know they can rely on the snp to do exactly that. j well, my bus to work didn't get this welcome this morning, but sir ed davey�*s did from liberal democrat activists in harpenden in hertfordshire this afternoon. tomorrow, we have the chance to win the change our country desperately needs.

yellow bus in, pink car out. zany capers over and out for the lib dems. nigel farage, from reform uk, has been at a boxing club and was asked how he thought his party would do. it's very tough to call what's going to happen. the thing we can't measure and the polls can't measure is the youth vote. you know, are all these people online, the millions of them who've have been very supportive, are they actually going to go and vote? i don't know. the green party of england and wales is hoping it's heading towards gains. the level of support has been phenomenal. i've been stopped in the street repeatedly by people asking for a selfie or even for a hug. it's my pleasure to be here seeing you off. i and the leader of plaid cymru, which would like to see an independent wales, did a pep talk in a drizzly car park near ammanford. if it wasn't for plaid cymru - and those using the platforms that we have, there wouldn't have been a mention of wales - during this campaign - at all and people can see that.

and here's a mention of northern ireland, too, where a panoply of parties contest seats in races that feel very different from elsewhere in the uk. so, this is it. it's over to you to sketch how this place will look, feel, sound and decide for the next five years to come and, ultimately, who will live here. chris mason, bbc news, westminster. many seats across the country are predicted to switch from conservative to other parties after tomorrow's election. our political correspondent alex forsyth has travelled to henley — once the seat of borisjohnson, and considered a tory heartland — now the new constituency of henley & thame is one the liberal democrats have in their sights. she's been to great yarmouth, which had a big conservative majority last time round, but as alex explains, is now a labour target.

jingle: # bbc radio norfolk! # election polling day tomorrow... early morning and great yarmouth is waking up to the imminent choice facing the country. yeah, i'm getting a lot ofjunk mail. that must be about it. leaflets through the door? oh, yes. reading them? no! the seaside town on the norfolk coast has had its share of challenges. the question now is whether people have been persuaded by the solutions on offer. we will vote. yeah, but whether we will get what we want, i don't know. this seat has echoes of others around the country. it was somewhere the conservatives won pretty comfortable at the last election in 2019, when they fought under the banner of brexit. politically, things look very different now, and it's a sign of labour's ambition through this campaign that they've had their eyes set on seats like this. the political battle that is under way here hasn't escaped katie. we've had a lot of canvasses around,

just in my village. even yesterday we had a leaflet drop of about ten different leaflets. teni? yes. an expert in animal behaviour, their welfare is her priority. but not the only issue. there's lots of new housing going up, which of course we need. but they are not putting the infrastructure in. if i want to get a doctor's appointment, i can't. it does matter. whoever gets in is going to try and do some radical changes. the way people vote here might reflect who ends up in number 10. but the election involves far more than two parties, and presence of reform uk in places like this has set conservative nerves jangling. in fact, across the country, the tories have been fighting a defensive campaign. head further south and the party faces another challenge. henley—on—thames, with the royal regatta in full swing this week, has been the epitome of the tory heartlands, and it's the kind of place the lib dems have been targeting. it hasn't escaped the notice ofjim, who runs a local boating business here. this whole sort of protest vote,

if you think of tactical voting, there is a lot of that going on. there has not really been a sense of people coming forward with their policies and what they are going to do for the country. it doesn't sound like you feel very enthusiastic about this election. no. i wish i did. the liberal democrats have had a very deliberate strategy, targeting seats they think they can win. most of them from the conservatives, and a lot of them here in the south of england. and they are not the only party. the green party has had national messages. but on the ground, they have concentrated their campaign where they think they can have the most impact. just off henley high street, fashion retailer lawrence is still weighing up the options. to be honest, i actually don't know which way i'm going to go. still undecided? still undecided. i don't think any party has got the answer to every problem. if you had to sum up how you're feeling about this election campaign in one word, what would it be? haphazard.

and if politics is the art of persuasion, this campaign is in the final stretch. alex forsyth, bbc news. and there's a full list of candidates standing in all constitutencies on our website, bbc.co.uk/news over the last six weeks, we've followed the campaigns in all nations of the uk. now on the eve polling day james cook, hywel griffith and sara girvin share their thoughts on which issues lie at the heart of the election in scotland, wales and northern ireland. the snp has dominated politics in scotland for years. now, under its new leader, john swinney, it's battling to hold onto seats here in the central belt, where labour are hopeful of making gains. the conservatives, they're defending seats along the border and in the north—east. their scottish leader announced his resignation during the campaign. and the lib dems are focusing on mostly rural areas. as i've crisscrossed the country, voters have been telling me they are concerned about the cost

of living, the state of public services and the pace of the shift from oil and gas to renewable energy. there's been a row about rishi sunak�*s decision to call this election during the scottish school holidays — with some voters disenfranchised because they haven't received their postal ballots in time. and in the background, as always, there's been the issue of the constitution, with brexit and independence both arousing strong emotions. the conservatives had their best result in decades in wales in the last election. this time, it's a fight for survival, trying to avoid the total wipeout they experienced here in 1997 and 2001. it may not have helped to have to suspend a candidate just a couple of weeks ago because of the betting scandal. over the campaign, labour's had to defend its record in power in wales at the senedd, in particular long nhs waiting lists and the first minister, vaughan gething, losing a vote of no confidence here. but the polls suggest they're still on course to win the lion's share of seats.

boundary changes mean there are fewer of those up for grabs, down from a0 to 32 seats this time. for small parties like plaid cymru, that limits their ambitions to two, three, maybe four seats. arguably, for them and reform, this campaign has been more about wooing voters ahead of the next senedd elections in 2026. the possibility of a future referendum on irish unity, the outworkings of brexit, how northern ireland is funded and the instability of devolved government have all featured heavily. and it's already school holiday time here, which may affect voter turnout. now, there are 18 seats up for grabs. last time, the democratic unionist party took eight, sinn fein followed closely behind with seven, the social democratic and labour party took two, and the alliance party had one. massive changes are not expected. but if the dup loses any ground, it could lead to sinn fein, who want a united ireland, taking the lead. they are already the biggest party

at assembly and council level, and they will want to make it a hat—trick at westminster. if they manage it, it will lead to inevitable debate about the constitutional future of this place. it may all come down to one or two seats — but in northern ireland, even small changes can shape the big picture. once the votes have been cast, the results will come through overnight tomorrow, into the early hours of friday. 0ur deputy political editor vicki young is here to talk us through some of the key things to look out for. thank you very much, jane. this is the electoral map made up of 650 constituencies. boundaries have altered since the last election to reflect population changes. a party needs 326 seats to win a majority in the house of commons. now, here's a reminder of the party leaders who fought the 2019 election. they've all been replaced,

apart from nigel farage who returned at the start of this campaign. and this was the result of the last election. borisjohnson, promising to get brexit done, won with an 80 seat majority and jeremy corbyn led labour to its worst result since 1935. the tories made significant gains in the so called red wall. these were places that in many cases had voted labour for generations. across a swathe of england from northumberland to lancashire, through the black country and lincolnshire labour strongholds turned blue. these are the seats keir starmer is hoping to recapture. in the south of england, there's a different battle. rishi sunak is trying to fend off the liberal democrats in what they've dubbed the blue wall. places where the lib dems came second to the tories last time. a corridor stretching from south—west london through the home counties to the south—west. and what about the battle in scotland. the snp won 48 of the 59 seats up for grabs making them westminster�*s third largest party.

labour were reduced to just one seat but are confident that they can benefit from recent snp scandals. in northern ireland, 18 seats are up for grabs. the democratic unionist party won the most in the last general election, but other parties are hoping to change that this time. but worth remembering, sinn fein mps don't take up their seats in the house of commons. in wales, labour lost ground to the tories last time but now it's conservatives fearing losses. plaid cymru are hoping to hold on, or gain, in the west and north of wales. for smaller parties like the greens and reform uk, it can be difficult to translate their votes into seats but both will be hoping to have a voice in the commons after the election. if you still have questions ahead of tomorrow's election, head to the bbc news website and app where you'll find details of candidates in your area, guides to party manifestos, interviews with party leaders and links to the recent debates across the bbc.

chris is with me. just a few hours to go. your thoughts?— just a few hours to go. your thoughts? this is a landmark election. _ thoughts? this is a landmark election, because _ thoughts? this is a landmark election, because no - thoughts? this is a landmark election, because no party i thoughts? this is a landmark. election, because no party has ever won five elections in a row in the modern era, that is the brutal truth that confronts rishi sunak. keir the brutal truth is that labour are world beating losers when it comes to general elections, they last won an election 19 years ago, and they last won from a position of opposition 27 years ago. so something has got to give. you can see in my report, the contrasting demeanour of the two men out on the stump tonight, and interesting language from the labour leader on a flight from glasgow to birmingham, perhaps his most confident yet on

what might be around the corner, saying he is ready for what comes next, and says they have been doing a lot of preparation for government. labour think they are going to win and the conservatives expect to lose. 0ne and the conservatives expect to lose. one final thought, and the conservatives expect to lose. 0ne finalthought, park and the conservatives expect to lose. one final thought, park for a lose. 0ne finalthought, park fora moment lose. one final thought, park for a moment the cynicism and the anger and frustration that you might have about politics on any given day of the week and consider a world map and at those places where people do not have the right to choose who governs them. tomorrow, just like in 2019 and or the general elections before that, that collective expression of the will of the country lies with the people in polling stations around the country and that is imperfect but it is a magical privilege. chris mason, thanks for _ magical privilege. chris mason, thanks forjoining _ magical privilege. chris mason, thanks forjoining us. _ president biden has insisted tonight he's not pulling out of the race for the us presidency, despite growing pressure to quit following his tv debate with donald trump last week. in a phone call to democratic

campaign staff this evening, he's reported to have told them that no one would push him out. 0ur north america editor sarah smith is in washington. tell us more. it is a measure of the anic tell us more. it is a measure of the panic inside — tell us more. it is a measure of the panic inside the _ tell us more. it is a measure of the panic inside the democratic- tell us more. it is a measure of the panic inside the democratic party i panic inside the democratic party that the president is taking part in these meetings to reassure allies, and on a call to his campaign staff, he said, let me say this as clearly as possible, i am the democratic nominee, no one is pushing me out, i am not leaving, that was his quote, but the pressure is ramping up. there are now two elected democrats in congress who have openly said that he should stand aside and there are dozens more ready to come out and say that publicly if over the next few days he cannot reassure people he is up to the job. next few days he cannot reassure people he is up to thejob. there is polling that suggests nearly three quarters of american voters think he is not fit to be president, and there is another significant development happening. there are

really senior party figures who have not come out and said they wantjoe biden to stand aside, but they are openly talking about what should happen if he does. and what they believe should happen is that the party should coalesce around a vice president kamala harris as their candidate, not have a messy nomination battle for who should fight the presidential election for the democrats, the party is clearly preparing for the possibility that joe biden might not be their candidate in november. sarah smith with the latest _ candidate in november. sarah smith with the latest in _ candidate in november. sarah smith with the latest in washington, - with the latest in washington, thanks forjoining us. hurricane beryl has hit jamaica this evening, with winds recorded of nearly 150 miles an hour. the vast category four storm has left a trail of devestation as it barrels its way through the caribbean. on one island, union, 90% of homes have been destroyed or damaged. nick davis has just sent this report

from the jamaican capital, kingston. waiting for a hurricane is a slow build, but when it arrives, the wind, the rain, the sheer destructive power of these powerful storms is something nobody wants to go through. rain has flooded roads and damaged critical infrastructure as winds approaching 150 miles an hour tore into the island, but it's people's homes that have taken the brunt of the damage. the prime minister explained the gravity of the situation facing his nation. jamaica must take this hurricane seriously. i am now declaring the whole ofjamaica to be a disaster area. people injamaica have been watching its deadly and destructive progress across the region over the last few days, and today was their turn to face a storm that's now on record as the earliest ever category five hurricane that's formed in the caribbean. these events normally occur later in the season when the oceans are warmer, but this year, beryl has been moving over waters two to three centigrade higher than normal. scientists are linking that to climate change.

we're getting reports already. social media is obviously very active at the moment with people who are doing the emergency services, sending videos of areas which have already been inundated. the area near the airport is pretty much been... there's big rocks, big boulders which are used as coastal protection. water's already going over that, so technically, kingston harbour is now also part of the caribbean sea. on its path through the caribbean, beryl has already left a trail of destruction. this is the island of union, where 90% of the homes have either been destroyed or seriously damaged. a similar story can be told on many other places on the storm's track. there are reports of several deaths, and the death toll may rise. after the assessments are made here, preparations will begin in the cayman islands and then mexico, also on this storm's deadly track. nick davis, bbc news, kingston, jamaica. ajudge has ruled there is sufficient evidence for the former leader of the democratic unionist party,

sirjeffrey donaldson, to face trial on historical sexual offence charges. sirjeffery now faces 18 charges involving two alleged victims, including rape, gross indecency, and indecent assault. he appeared in court in newry in county down with his wife, who's also been charged — she faces five charges of aiding and abetting, in connection with the alleged offences. sirjeffrey has said he would be strenuously contesting the charges. the daughter and son—in—law of captain sir tom moore have been banned from being charity trustees. hannah ingram—moore and her husband colin were disqualified after an investigation by the charity commission into the captain tom foundation — that was set up in honour of sir tom who raised £38 million for the nhs by walking laps of his garden during the covid pandemic. mark cavendish has made sporting history after winning

a record number of stages at the tour de france. his 35th victory was secured with a sensational sprint finish, and meant the 39—year—old beat the record set by the legendary eddy merx nearly half a century ago. jane dougall reports. this is the reason he kept competing... commentator: cavendish! it's done! the story is finally complete! at the age of 39, mark cavendish now holds the record for the most stage wins in cycling's greatest race. battling so hard, his chain came off as he crossed the line. known as the greatest sprinter the tour de france has ever seen, he now has a special place in its history. you know, he said 20 odd years ago that he was going to be the best sprinter in the world. and, you know, of course, back then we all sort of laughed it out of the room. but at the grand age of 39, when really almost every professional cyclist has seen their better days, yeah, to finally get that one

stage over the line, a legend is born. the record of 3a stage wins had been held by eddy merckx for four decades. cavendish drew level with him in 2021, but then fought illness, injuries and depression, eventually announcing that last year would be his final tour de france. but any hopes of winning a stage and beating the record were ended suddenly when he crashed and broke his collarbone. cavendish delayed retirement for one more year, and so the crowds gathered today to gain a vantage point as stage five reached its crescendo. look at mark cavendish, beautifully placed. he burst clear of the pack to take a record 35th stage win. no one has ever done it better! it was back in 2008 that the rider from the isle of man won his first, earning himself the nickname the manx missile. bbc sports personality of the year is mark cavendish! he went on to win international

acclaim and was knighted last month, but in cycling circles this achievement will be seen as his finest. mark cavendish and his family sharing the dream of a fitting final chapter. jane dougall, bbc news. now, at first glance you may struggle to work out what this is! it is a painting — which has been digitally enhanced — of a wild pig and three people in red pigment, and it's been discovered in a cave in indonesia. you'll see it's rather weathered — that's because it dates back more than 50,000 years. researchers believe it's the oldest example of figurative cave art in the world. pallab ghosh has the story. nestled among the lush mountains of the indonesian island of sulawesi are caves that contain the earliest rock art ever discovered. inside is a faded painting that transforms our ideas of when human creativity

first emerged. and here it is. the darkened arch is a pig. and if you look closely at this enhanced picture, you can see three human—like figures, one in front and two either side. it was painted at least 51,000 years ago. it's older than anything else we've got at the moment from the rest of the world, and it raises questions about whether this art was developed specially in that region, or whether this is part of a wider pattern that we don't yet have the data on, to show that it was something that was much more widespread. as homo sapiens spread around the world, did they take this kind of art with them? cave paintings have been found all across the world. the big question is whether the ability to produce art first emerged in africa, where modern humans evolved, and spread when our species left the continent?

or did it emerge independently in different places later, as there became a social need for recorded communication? pallab ghosh, bbc news. britain's emma raducanu has cruised into the third round of wimbledon — the first time she's reached the third round of a grand slam since winning the us open. her victory came on the day it was announced she'll also be playing in the mixed doubles with andy murray. joe wilson has been watching all the day's action. emma raducanu's career has often been challenging, some days outstanding. this was a cracker. her second round opponent in the singles was elise mertens, the world's top ranked player in doubles. commentator: got it! she couldn't reach that. the shotmaking, athleticism, it was all there. if she's still rebuilding her form and fitness, a win in 75 minutes does wonders for the confidence. game, set and match, raducanu. number one court wanted more, specifically to hear raducanu's take

on the day's other big news — she's going to play mixed doubles with andy murray. it's a real gift and it's a real honour that he asked me, and it's a moment that i could never say no to, and i'm just super excited to be on the mixed doubles court and hopefully learn a thing or two about coming to the net or something! i think the fans always really enjoy it when it's two players that they know and want to get behind. yeah, it should be should be a brilliant atmosphere in the matches we play. notice he says "matches" plural. still big expectations. sonay kartalfrom brighton, wearing the cap here, has completed two exceptional victories. in the second round she beat the world number 45 clara burel. sonay kartal is ranked 298 in the world. she has overcome injury and illness... she's done it! ..and next she'll play coco gauff. determination deserves rewards. on day four, here on court number one, there are two

all—british singles matches. more? well, elsewhere, among the others, in the doubles, it's the murray brothers. joe wilson, bbc news, at wimbledon. time for a look at the weather. here's louise. had to, had to win that point. keeps