you're watching bbc news. i'm simon mccoy live at westminster, where mps have voted overwhelmingly to back theresa may's call for an early election just seven weeks tomorrow onjune 8th. di was to the right 522, the nos to the left 13. the prime minister said a conservative victory would give britain stability during and after brexit. people will have a real choice at this election, they will have a choice between a conservative government that has shown we can build a stronger majority and a labour party whose economic policy would bankrupt this country. but her decision not to take part in any tv debates during the campaign is criticised by labour leaderjeremy corbyn. mr speaker, if she is so proud of her record, why won't she debated? the former chancellor george osborne announces he's quitting as an mp — for now — to concentrate on his newjob as a newspaper editor. i'm annita mcveigh,

and also in the next hour — prince william speaks out about his mother's death. he says the shock of losing her still lingers 20 years later. you never get over it, it is such an number live of the big moment in your life that it never leaves you. police name the man they want to question about an acid attack at a london nightclub as arthur collins — the boyfriend of a reality tv star. and sam warburton of wales is named as captain of the british and irish lions for their tour of new zealand this summer. good afternoon, i'm simon mccoy, live in westminster, where parliament has voted overwhelmingly in favour of a general election,

seven weeks‘ tomorrow onjune 8th. eyes to the right 522, nos to the left 13, so the ayes have it, the ayes have it. only 13 mps voted against, well above the required two—thirds majority. theresa may says victory injune would give britain stability during and after brexit. but the labour leaderjeremy corbyn said a snap election would give the british people "the chance to change direction". as the debate began, the former chancellor george osborne said he was quitting politics "for now" to concentrate on his new role as editor of the london evening standard. our political correspondent ian watson reports. the question is that there shall be an early parliamentary general election. the ayes to the right 522, the nos to the left 13. this is the

moment that mps overwhelmingly backed the prime minister's for an election almost three years early on june eight. most labour mps and lib dems supporting the election she eased the two thirds of supply when support fetching needed and use the debate thereau test her campaign themes. as i was saying the government has the liver donor priorities are set out last year, despite predictions of immediate economic and danger, since we have seen consumer confidence remain high, record numbers ofjobs and economic growth that has exceeded all expectations. at the same time we have delivered on the mandate we we re we have delivered on the mandate we were handed by triggering article 50 before the end of march, as we pledged to do. as a result, britain is leaving the eu and they can be no turning back. the liberal democrats are also keen to fight on brexit though from a rather different perspective. cheering this morning the lib dem leader

visited the scene of his party's by—election victory in richmond, south—west london, last year. by—election victory in richmond, south—west london, last yeahm by—election victory in richmond, south-west london, last year. it is an opportunity for the british people to choose to change the direction of our country, to reject a hard brexit, though to stay in the single market. however you voted la st single market. however you voted last year, the vote have a decent stronger position in this country that we desperately need for the good of democracy. back investments to the international media gathered. it has made it a global event. theresa may might well want this to bea theresa may might well want this to be a brexit election but prime minister ‘s can't always said the terms of the debate. and pains could have a life of their own and labour wa nts to have a life of their own and labour wants to love the photos back towards public services and the economy. the labour leader used a parliamentary debate to criticise theresa may's refusal to take part in televised election debates but also criticised the conservatives record in parliament. the prime minister talks about a strong economy but the truth is most people

are worse off than they were when the conservatives came to power seven years ago. the election gives the british people the chance to change direction. this election is about her government's failure to rebuild the economy and living standards for the majority. the snp expect labour to lose ground in england so when their leader came to westminster today, she made a clear pitch for the anti—conservative vote in scotland. only the snp stands between scotland and an increasingly hardline tory government. it is a vote to end posterity, and for investment in our public services. the watchword in politics was in me has been expect the unexpected. 50 days from now we will know if theresa may has successfully strengthened her handle shot herself in the third. won former chancellor

george osborne has announced he is quitting as mp. he says he will continue to fight for the button he loves from the editor's chair of the evening standard ‘s. loves from the editor's chair of the evening standard 's. so now in future you mean to make your voice heard loud and clear as we head towards brexit. as you said sit in your editor's chair, will you be a thorn in the side of the reason they? do you know, more so than at any time in my life the british people want from the media straight fa cts people want from the media straight facts and world class analysis. that is what they will get from the paper, the evening standard, that i edit. i think it is so important that the british people have in front of them the information they need to take these very big decisions about our country's future, starting this general election. newspaper editors quite like to be a pain in the neck the prime minister 's and for that matter chancellors, will you be that for cruiser may? without fear or failure we will speak the london and the values i have espoused as a

chancellor and member of parliament in16 years, the chancellor and member of parliament in 16 years, the openness, tolerance, enterprise and diversity i think makes britain a great country. that is what i have fought for my life and the now i am not only fighting for those things in the house of commons, i will be fighting for them in the seat of the great british newspaper. even if it makes the prime minister upset with you for some time? my job is the editor of the evening standard is to speaker london, my readers, this country and its future. our country has some big decisions to make about the kind of britain we want to be. those values of openness, tolerance, diversity and enterprise are ones i hold dear and i fought for diversity and enterprise are ones i hold dear and ifought for in government as chancellor, in parliament as the mp and now i am going to fight for them in that editor 's chair at the evening standard. as a london editor, as george osborne, do you believe that too is a the concerns of the manias and big business or the city of london as we head towards brexit?

let's see what is on offer at this general election. i am let's see what is on offer at this general election. iam now let's see what is on offer at this general election. i am now speaking asa general election. i am now speaking as a newspaper editor, speaking as the voice of my readers, and we have got to make sure that notjust london broncos is heard, but the voice of a britain that wants to play a big role in the world stage, that celebrates the fact we have a diverse society, that is optimistic about the future, not afraid of the future. those are the things i have a lwa ys future. those are the things i have always believed in. they don't change whether i am chancellor of the exchequer or editor of the evening standard. with me now is the former deputy prime minister and ex lib—dem leader, nick clegg. earlier he confirmed that he will fight to retain his sheffield hallam seat for the liberal democrats. why? because i believe, this election, it is unlike any election i have ever encountered because there is only really one issue, which is to the british people think

it is right to give theresa may a landslide majority are basically impose any kind of brexit that she once on the country with no meaningful opposition, no meaningful scrutiny. i think that is wrong not only because i disagree with the ha rd only because i disagree with the hard brexit she wants to pursue, i also fundamentally disagree with it asa also fundamentally disagree with it as a matter of democratic principle. healthy opposition holding the powerful's feet to the fire is an essential agreement of our democracy and what she wants to dubai calling this election to exploit the wea knesses this election to exploit the weaknesses of jeremy corbyn this election to exploit the weaknesses ofjeremy corbyn is to arrogate herself extraordinary amount of power. now that it cares about the —— nobody who cares should be relaxed about it. she would say back at you because this country voted for brexit and they want to get on with it. who is stopping her? sorry to interrupt, but i only splutter with indignation because it

is such a ludicrous perfected fake reason. sorry to interrupt you, but didn't tim farron say he did want to grind things to a halt. we have nine mps. for heaven sake. for the last year people have been denigrating the liberal democrats are being such a small parliamentary party. last night theresa may turned it into a roaring elephant. opposition parties oppose, that is what we do in a democracy and it is very important we do it effectively. but you don't oppose brexit. she has got every single vote through the house of commons that she wanted with in my view the soup i'm connivance of the labour party. i can't understand why the labour party has given the government of the day a blank cheque. but this idea that theresa may has been stopped by the house of commons from doing what she wants is simply untrue. it is a fabrication, and why is she fabricating this? she

needs the alibi which she has invented, i don't know how she managed to do it with a straight face, it is a ludicrous confection, she needs to do that because what she needs to do that because what she is really after is exploiting the opportunity, which presents itself because of the weakness of jeremy corbyn, to get for herself such a large majority that she can basically for the next half a decade do basically for the next half a decade d o exa ctly basically for the next half a decade do exactly as she wants, and to impose upon our country either a bad brexit deal, a hard brexit deal, or no deal at all. i think that it simply unacceptable, and i also think there are plenty of brexit voters who during the course of this election campaign will feel quite queasy and a little bit uneasy about this rather cynical attempt by the conservatives to give themselves the wherewithal to do exactly what they want, no questions asked, over the next five years. watt if she was watching you now, she would say nick clegg is exactly right, i want the power to just get clegg is exactly right, i want the power tojust get on clegg is exactly right, i want the power to just get on with this because i have that mandate already, ijust want because i have that mandate already, i just want to make it a little because i have that mandate already,

ijust want to make it a little bit stronger. she does not have the mandate to make the country poorer and economically weaker which is what she's doing with her particular version of hard brexit was dog let's scrollback for moment. i now have the right wing brexit supporting press wa nt the right wing brexit supporting press want to rewrite history and claimed that everyone in the whole country claimed that everyone in the whole cou ntry voted claimed that everyone in the whole country voted brexit with perhaps me and ken clarke who didn't, but it was very finely balanced. the vast majority of younger voters crucially voted for a different future. what theresa may is saying i don't care what you think, i don't care what you thought, this is what she is saying the younger voters, i do care that you want a different future, i am going to force you to swallow a future that you voted against. i think a lot of young voters in particular will get pretty cheesed off about that in the next seven weeks, and say hang on a minute, then pick as the granted. and my experience, for good orfor ill, the moment politicians take voters for granted and expect voters to jump through hoops for their own ends,

for the ends of the politician, people actually don't do what politicians expect. that is what i think, actually they could be some quite nasty surprises for the conservatives in this campaign. for the liberal democrats, let's be honest, things couldn't get much worse so you will hope for games. but ifjeremy corbyn and the labour party are not as strong as you are hinting they are not, she is going to win, isn't she? i don't think there is any point dissembling about this, i think it is highly unlikely u nless this, i think it is highly unlikely unless for another huge political earthquake, that theresa may won't be prime minister on june earthquake, that theresa may won't be prime minister onjune nine. the question is if she is, what kind of prime minister is chic, with what majority, what kind of mandate, and crucially is there an effective opposition who will reign her in, hold her to account and scrutinise her plans? when i was leader of the liberal democrats back in 2010, the big question for us was would be stepped up to the plate to provide

responsible government of the country at the time? actually the test for us now is be going to step up test for us now is be going to step up to the plate to provide effective opposition because that is lacking from the labour party. i think we will but we can only do that on behalf of the british people if we get more mps in the house of commons. let's talk the tv debate, cleggmania. short lived! who became deputy prime minister, it wasn't that short lived, is theresa may wrong to say she would not take part in the tv debates? she is right from her own selfish point of view because she is not a politician who performed particularly well outside her comfort zone, but i think she is fundamentally wrong when it comes to the interests of our democratic culture. people have welcomed the idea that every few years they get to see how the runners and riders in an election measure up to each other and how they argue with each other and how they argue with each other and put their case forward, and they wa nt to and put their case forward, and they want to see that for themselves. actually, the artificial bearpit of

westminster is now sorry but for a much more fluid, open, contemporary setting that you have in these tv debates. i think the broadcasters and the other leaders should go ahead anyway. empty chair her? yes, why should everybody else be deprived of the opportunity of setting out best all and having a debate just because she is not courageous enough to do it. i think it reveals something else, which i certainly think rings true with me, given that i worked with her for many years in government, which is that theresa may is an accomplished politician in an environment which controls of a thing. home secretary isa controls of a thing. home secretary is a classic part of whitehall where you just pull a lever and something happens, very much can command and control part of government, and she has run government like that with a very small clique around her in number ten. a general election campaign is different, it is more chaotic and spontaneous, you need to show agility, and ability to be spontaneous on your feet. i would like to think that the prime minister of the day who is now going

to go into this very conflicts negotiation with 27 other governments and parliaments should be properly put through their paces in this election campaign, so we all think actually they have got the right skills to do that negotiation, they have got the agility and the quicksilver skills necessary to com plete quicksilver skills necessary to complete that negotiation, and in failing to participate in those tv debates that think she is actually failing to put herself through a test that she should rightly be expected to enjoy all. nick clegg, thank you forjoining us, good to see you. our correspondent eleanor garnier is in the central lobby of the houses of parliament now. so we had the vote passed in parliament just so we had the vote passed in parliamentjust a so we had the vote passed in parliament just a few so we had the vote passed in parliamentjust a few hours ago. we will definitely have that early general election on thursday 8th of june. no real surprise was that there was a huge majority, 522 voted for it, just 13 voted against, mostly a handful of labour mps voting against. theresa may has set out her argument that she thinks it

is the right and responsible thing to do now to go to the electorate to get a mandate to strengthen her hand as she goes into those negotiations with the rest of the eu for brexit. jeremy corbyn on the other hand accused theresa may of changing her mind, that she couldn't be trusted because for so long she said there would not be a need for a snap election, but here we are with just a matter of weeks before voters will be going to the polls. in fact i have just learned in the last few minutes or so that if you want to vote in the general election of 2017, you will need to be registered by 22nd of may. i am just wondering after prime minister's questions, what was interesting was that the biggest cheer was not for their leader genomic organ but it was for yvette cooper. yes, yvette cooper pushed on that point she said how can we trust a word theresa may says, having had this huge u—turn on the need for a general election. it will be difficult for many labour

mps. we know many of them do not supportjeremy corbyn as their leader, they do not see him being the next prime minister. sol leader, they do not see him being the next prime minister. so i think we should expect to see very local campaign is being run faster when you push the labour mps, will we have jeremy corbyn you push the labour mps, will we havejeremy corbyn on your manifesto leaflets, will we see you welcoming him to your constituency, privately are saying no, we will not. i think it is going to be a difficult battle for some of these labour mps to fight. of course, jeremy corbyn wa nts to fight. of course, jeremy corbyn wants to talk about austerity, the nhs and education. we heard theresa may in the commons making it very clear and on the steps of downing street yesterday she wants this to be about brexit, and who can be the best leader when it comes to negotiating the best deal as she says for britain outside the eu. it will be interesting also to see which mps say on to fight this election. you have been talking to nick clegg who will stay on and

fight it but one other big—name where there were questions is george osborne, the former chancellor, tory mp. we now know he will be standing down. there had been lots of questions raised last month when he was announced as the new editor of the london evening standard newspaper. how could he possibly the job plus be a constituency mp and do a number of other roles that he also has? now we know he will be stepping down from his constituency in cheshire. so those questions for the moment will have gone away. political commentator and nicola sturgeon's biographer david torrance joins us from edinburgh. looking at nicola sturgeon in westminster this morning, she was doing a photocall with all of her other mps, she looks like she is ready for a fight. yes, i think this election did not take the first minister by surprise but the snp is a well oiled machine, and since

about 2007 for the past ten years it has been a formidable election and referendum fighting operation. sol think they are perfectly well prepared for it, although it looks like, to my eyes, that they will just rerun the campaign from 2015. they will stand up to the tories, they will be a strong voice for scotland, etc, etc. one of the intriguing aspects of politics in the last few months has been that relationship between theresa may and nicola sturgeon. two strong women in charge of parties with very strong backing in their own countries. what do we make of that behind closed doors, are these two women who get on? i think there is a certain business like quality to the relationship, nicola sturgeon said that herself after their first meeting last year. i think it is safe to say things have cooled since then, with brexit and the particular

sort of brexit the prime minister is pursuing. and you just had to hear nicola sturgeon's response to the general election yesterday, she was pretty caustic about that. but there are similarities intriguingly, both initially became first and prime minister without mandates of their own. that is about to change. and both are seen as quite cautious operators. i think nicola sturgeon threw caution to the wind when she went for a second independence referendum a few weeks ago, and now theresa may has done much the same with the snap general election. theresa may has done much the same with the snap general electionm there a sense that theresa may has perhaps stolen her thunder with the announcement of the snap general election? to an extent, it will distract attention away from edinburgh over the next couple of months. just next week nicola sturgeon is to set out how she plans to pursue that. that will now be

lost in the electoral mix. but it is possible to exaggerate the impact of this. at the end of this process, on 8th ofjune, the snp will still have the lion's share of scottish constituencies. sure, they might lose a view to the liberal democrats and scottish conservatives but the snp can still say we have a renewed mandate for not only nicola sturgeon snp, but for the second referendum. the conservative thinking, i assume, is that they will check that momentum to some degree. they make somewhat dust gains in certain constituencies they can argue, not terribly convincingly, it has to be said, that somehow this represent a loss of appetite for the snp and for that second independence referendum. thank you forjoining us. that is all from westminster for now. actor in it if the rest of today's news. that's all from westminster for now, let's go back to annita for the rest of today's news.

the french are going to the polls on sunday in the first round of the presidential election. polls suggest it's now a four—person race with the centrist candidate, emmanual macron, running neck and neck with front national leader marine le pen. the far right candidate has now said she will suspend all immigration if she's elected. the northern french town of amiens is where one of the candidates, emmanuel macron was born. the town is also within the european parliament constituency which marine le pen currently represents and where her support is the strongest. our correspondent, thomas fessy is there. really interesting place to test what the electorate is thinking ahead of sunday's vote with around a quarter of the electorate said to be undecided. exactly. we are here in the french rust belt, in a region where dozens of factories have shut down in the last ten or 15 years.

most of the working class vote has switched from the left and the far left to the right and the far right over the last few years. obviously marine le pen will be tapping into that for the vote on sunday. a very unpredictable election, so many people remain undecided, and four candidates could still make it to the second round in two weeks' time. but we can turn to the largest sphere, lou sea, who is 17, just missing out. —— lucie. you are not going to be able to vote, but you are supporting the socialist candidate then why on. his campaign never really picked up. he is now lagging behind the polls, under 10%. why do you think that people who can

vote should still vote for him?|j think vote should still vote for him?” think that he is very much carrying a strong project for the left. most think that the socialist party is righted, which is not wrong, but he is very much acting for future development for ecological growth, but also the the roodee strong work for the poorest class. even if it is not picking and it is complicated, the youthful vote is not a good idea. it has never been, especially for the first round. many figures said that they would back emmanuel macron. how does that make you feel? it is difficult for us to accept, considering they have decided to

dismiss their own candidate, but in the same time it isjust a fracture we have already seen for between the social democrats and the real left. benoit hamon is really closer to the left country, to macron, and some candidates for the primary round. very much closer to the centre. paul, you are 2a, studying political science, you are supporting francois fillon, the republican candidate. we have heard a lot about him during this campaign but probably not for the right reasons. they lot of it was because he has been placed under formal investigation for alleged corruption scandals. do you still trust him? yes, because i think he is the best candidate, he has the

best programme for me, he wants us to work more but to have better wages. he wants to fight unemployment and he wants to their countries costs and taxes to create jobs. i think people will vote for him and furthermore he is the best when the national relations. he has a lot of experience. so i think on sunday it will be his second term and to win in 15 days. if we look at the figures, the main parts of francois fillon's supporters are aged over 65, and if we look of the young voters like you, they are turning to marine le pen or the hard left candidate. what does it make him attractive to a young voter like you, francois fillon? for me he is attractive because he has pragmatic

messages. he wants to fight against unemployment. people like melenchon or let them have simplistic messages, maybe young people like this because for them it is easy it is the thought of strangers for bahrain event or the fault of heads of companies for jean—luc bahrain event or the fault of heads of companies forjean—luc melenchon. it isa of companies forjean—luc melenchon. it is a simplistic message that is maybe why they support these types of candidates. thank you, that is all we have time for now. four days to go before the sunday vote, and whoever wins, this is already an exceptional election. there is a real possibility that neither of the traditional right and left parties who have been governing france since the late 1950s will be represented

in the run—off. the late 1950s will be represented in the run-off. thomas, thank you very much. it is time now to take a look at the weather forecast. tomasz schafernaker. the weather is pretty good across southern parts of the uk for the rest of the afternoon into the evening, some sunshine here. clear skies or so after sunset but the rest of the uk will be overcast. even a few spots of rain around through the course of the night. a mild night overall for most of us. a little bit fresher across east anglia and the south—east. tomorrow sta rts anglia and the south—east. tomorrow starts off pretty bright and then the clouds will increase and overall i think tomorrow it will be a pretty cloudy dave stockton will be some sunshine around that more clout than blue sky on the way. into friday and saturday and indeed sunday, not a huge amount of change. temperatures might creep of a little bit on friday in the south but overall a lot of dry weather was just a few

spots of rain. if you are wondering about the weekend, high pressure will establish itself across the uk. not necessarily all that sony through this weekend. you are up—to—date. this is bbc news. the headlines: mps vote overwhelmingly in favour of an early general election on the 8th ofjune. theresa may said a conservative victory would give britain stability during and after brexit. people will have a real choice between a conservative government that have shown we can build a stronger economy and that labour party whose economic policy would bankrupt this country. but the labour leaderjeremy corbyn accused mrs may of "running scared" over her refusal to take part in any tv debates during the campaign. if she's so proud of her record, why

won't she debate it? former chancellor george osborne announces he's quitting as an mp — for now — to concentrate on his newjob as a newspaper editor. prince william speaks out about the effect on him of his mother princess diana's death, saying the shock is "still with him" 20 years on police say they want to speak police say they want to speak to arthur collins — the boyfriend of tv personality ferne mccann — about a suspected acid attack at an east london nightclub. it's time for sport. let's get the latest. sam warburton has been named captain of the british and irish lions squad that'll tour new zealand this summer. he's one of 41 selected today by coach warren gatland, and while that wasn't a surprise, there were still some at the announcement in london. our sports correspondent katie gornall was there. warren gatland said he only

finalised his team last night and there were lively debates but today he finalised the players he will take to new zealand. the majority were english, 16 players although not some names you might have expected. no room for dylan hartley despite leading england to their second successive six nations title but kyle sinckler and ben te'o are included, despite having only started for one test for england. there are 12 welsh players in there, six nations, but many scots, on scotland finished joint second, so some debate around

the composition of the squad, led by sam warburton who becomes the second man to lead successive tours. the quality of player to pick from was incredible so immensely strong, every one of those guys is a top—class player, it gives myself a massive amount of confidence. warburton is currently injured at the moment. he will need to be at his best because the challenge doesn't get much greater than playing new zealand on their home turf. let's have a look at that whole squad, then, starting with the forwards. wales number eight ross moriarty is a surprise inclusion. new zealand—born ireland centre jared payne is also selected. wasps have said they are gobsmacked that there's no place for england lock joe launchbury. as katie mentioned, no place for england skipper dylan hartley, with compatriot jamie george, ireland's rory best and wales' ken owens the three hookers selected. james haskell and chris warburton also miss out in the backs, england that —— chris robshaw, that should

be. england centre jonathan joseph is included. there's no place for fellow six nations winner george ford. the two scots in the squad are full back stuart hogg and wing tommy seymour. the tour runs from june the 3rd to the 8th ofjuly and features three tests against the all blacks, who are of course world champions. andy murray made a winning return to competitive tennis after a month out with an elbow injury. beating gilles muller at the monte carlo masters. the world number one was broken in the first game of the match but came back to take the opening set 7—5, much to the dismay of muller. we have to hand back? no, we'll carry on. getting some mixed messages. murray last played on the atp tour in indian wells in march. he was handed a first—round bye here and had to recover from another early break in the second to wrap up victory in just under two hours. fourth seed rafael nadal is taking on british number three kyle edmund as we speak as nadal goes for a tenth monte carlo title.

the defending champion breezed through the first set 6—0. but edmund bounced back in the second set to take it 7—5 and level the match. they exchanged breaks in the decider but nadal currently 5—3 up. bournemouth midfielderjack wilshere who's on loan from arsenal will not play again this season after breaking his leg. wilshere was injured in saturday's defeat against tottenham during a challenge with harry kane. scans have revealed a hairline crack in wilshere's left fibula. tournament favourite judd trump is just a frame away from a first—round world championship defeat against world number 5a rory mcleod, a 1000—1 outsider. trump resumed 5—4 behind after surrendering a 4—0 lead and seemed hindered by a shoulder problem. missing a series of simple chances, he managed to fight back to 6—6, before mcleod pulled away into a 9—7 lead when the match had to be stopped prior to the afternoon session. the pair will play to a finish later

with the first to ten heading into the second round. there's coverage on bbc two, the red button and the bbc sport website. that's all sport for now. i'll have more in the next hour. hugh ferris, thank you. welcome back to westminster where this afternoon parliament has approved the prime minister's call for a snap general election in seven weeks' time. mps voted overwhelmingly in favour of a general election which will take place on june the 8th. joining me is the snp's westminster leader, angus robertson. today you were fairly happy in pmqs with theresa may saying she would not take part in a tv debate —— fairly unhappy. a lot of people get their news through the media we are discussing, we have had them in scotla nd discussing, we have had them in scotland for longer than the uk but the last general election and

watched across the networks and at unsustainable that for one political leader she can somehow boycott that. i hope because there is a public interest in broadcasting that people should be able to hear from all political leaders, nicola sturgeon, theresa may, jeremy corbyn, and if the prime minister is not prepared to attend she should be empty chair at. she should not be able to boycott a n at. she should not be able to boycott an stop it. why do you think she won't do it? advisers may think she won't do it? advisers may think she can only lose by taking part because expectations are so low with jeremy corbyn, who was the main opposition candidate in england, that she thinks he might come out of it in an improved situation, but it's much more important than who was up it's much more important than who was up or it's much more important than who was up or down a little bit. it has

been at the centre of election campaigns and it's important the public, regardless who they vote for or whether they work or not, when should be able to hear from all the leaders and see how they measure up andi leaders and see how they measure up and i do not think it would be sustainable for the prime minister to boycott, given that broadcasters intend to carry on regardless and i hope they do. i think the public will draw their own conclusions quite a tory prime minister pursuing an austerity and anti immigration agenda that is not supportive of the nations and regions, why she isn't taking part. iwithdraw nations and regions, why she isn't taking part. i withdraw my conclusions. you've had 24 to consider what the election means for you. either two elections here, the one north and south of the border?

how different will they be? in england the main battle is between the tories and the labour party and in scotland it's between the 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 in scotland will have a simple choice, either a mainstream moderate political party or they will vote for a more extreme tory party and i don't think people will do that. yesterday, you seem more relaxed than i have been in the past. really? i like to think i am relaxed kind of person, although elections are kind of person, although elections a re pretty kind of person, although elections are pretty tiring experiences but it's a short campaign so we will

have to get on with it, it will be over before we know it but during that campaign we need televised debates and i think the public will look forward to seeing different leaders setting out their stall. the arguments we are hearing about why the prime minister is not doing it do not wash and this will be an early story of the campaign, so come on, theresa, take part in debates. angus robertson, didn't you. eleanor ghani is in central lobby. a huge majority that that was expected, 522 mps wizard four with just 18 voting against the election andi just 18 voting against the election and i amjoined just 18 voting against the election and i am joined by one who voted against. why did you vote against an early election? i have fought more

elections than most people here so i'm not afraid of them but i didn't think it was necessary. we had a fixed term parliament so we thought no elections until 2020. the only reason the prime minister has done it now is a cut and run tactics because brexit negotiations will be difficult, more difficult each day, and asa difficult, more difficult each day, and as a former mep i know how difficult they will become because the european parliament will not roll over with a handshake or a smile, they will be tough. as the election will happen. you have backed jeremy corbyn as leader. how much of an asset will he be in this campaign? i've worked with jeremy for over 35 years as a human rights activist and he has been reliable,

determined and very honest, and... but are you worried about opinion polls, the fact that many labour mps still do not support him as leader? people are entitled to their opinion but i've been chair of the parliamentary labour party when people tried to get rid of tony blairand people tried to get rid of tony blair and gordon brown, so this is not new. he is the elected leader and we should support him although -- until and we should support him although —— until there is a new leader, but we do owe our loyalty to him and many people in my constituency have signed up to join the labour many people in my constituency have signed up tojoin the labour party because jeremy corbyn signed up tojoin the labour party becausejeremy corbyn is the leader. so you will be putting his photo and name on your leaflets.” so you will be putting his photo and name on your leaflets. i don't see why not. how worried are you about the state party going into this election? nobody is ready for this.

i think it's an relevance considering what's happening in the world and as far as brexit is concerned, world and as far as brexit is concerned , resources world and as far as brexit is concerned, resources and large sums of money, expertise and so on will be diverted to deal with brexit, rather than concentrating on some of the main issues like health, education and the economy. thank you for joining education and the economy. thank you forjoining us. they voted for an early election just a few hours ago and the campaigning has already started. we had tim farron out this morning and i understand the prime minister will do her first bit of campaigning later this afternoon. it's not surprising that one of the subjects has been there should be a prime minister involved in any debate. itv says it will hold a televised election debate with or without the prime minister.

this morning theresa may said she wouldn't take part in a debate. it came up during prime minister's questions. a country need strong defence and strong leadership, that is what our plans for brexit will deliver and what the conservative party will offer at this election and we will be out there fighting for every road, where's the right honourable gentleman opposite would bankrupt or economy, we can our defences and is simply not fit to lead. would you welcome the general election. but this is a prime minister who promised there wouldn't be one. a prime minister who cannot be one. a prime minister who cannot be trusted. she says it's about

leadership yet is refusing to defend her record in televised debates. the bbc has said it will set out its election coverage plans in due course. the head of news gathering said the bbc does not want to get in a position where a party leader stops us acting in the public interest. with me is sebastian payne, the political leader writer and digital comment editor at the financial times. i think tv debates are generally a good thing. the precedent has been set, there should be tv debate but if you look at that from theresa may's perspective, you were 36

points ahead from your nearest rival, even don't know is ahead of jeremy corbyn and her danger is if she had a tv debate with third, jeremy corbyn and tim farron, she could make tim farron look quite prime minister real. in terms of democracy it is something she should look at and i think this is her opening position, once other politicians going up around her the pressure will grow. the balance is the risk of not appearing, which one broadcaster is threatening. it's quite a tough position for itv to say they will go ahead that the debate of people realistically be prime minister. even jeremy debate of people realistically be prime minister. evenjeremy corbyn cannot believe he will go into

downing street, so that debate becomes a bit pointless, so the broadcasters should focus on how to word down downing street and say you wa nt to word down downing street and say you want to have these debates because it's good for brokers to hear the argument and hear different brexit positions because at the moment all we have heard is the hard brexit plan, we have not heard a soft brexit plant and that is what voters need to hear. just looking at the vote today, does that make a mockery ofa vote today, does that make a mockery of a fixed—term parliaments act? this was brought in to smooth over the conservative lib dem coalition of 2010 but we always knew if a prime minister wanted a general election they could have won, and theresa may has proved that. it would be mad for labour to vote to keep the tories in power for three more years, so there was never much

question the fixed term parliament that could be gotten around. how will they be deciding who stands for parliament in the conservative party? we heard reports that cchq would be choosing the three candidates for the seat because we have not got long, only six weeks until the election campaign, a lot of constituencies will need to choose candidates quickly. we heard from the edo fawkes website that they will impose a i election rules, so only three candidates will go through and theresa may's team will have a big say onto the candidates are, so they will decide what the tory party will look like. there will be a lot of grateful mps to theresa may afterjune the 8th. all from westminster for now. the duke of cambridge has revealed

that the shock of his mother's death is still with him 20 years after she was killed in a car crash. prince william was speaking in a bbc one documentary, mind over marathon, which follows a group of runners who have mental health problems and are training for this sunday's london marathon. earlier this week, prince harry revealed he'd sought counselling to come to terms with princess diana's death. our royal correspondent, peter hunt reports. exercise can help with mental health issues... ten runners pursuing a shared goal, a marathon for their minds as much as their bodies. all of them have suffered and continue to suffer from turmoil on the inside. and you're convinced it can help mental health? most definitely, from personal experience. rhian is one of the marathon novices. her one—year—old son, george, died five years ago. five days later, her husband paul, who blamed himself, took his own life. my life as i knew it was over. me, as a person, changed forever.

ptsd has been a huge thing that i've had to carry. the runners are being supported by william, kate, and harry. their heads together campaign aims to encourage people to talk about their mental health. can i ask you one question? when your mum passed away, you were older than my children, but i am worried about them growing up. will they be ok? they'll be fine. with a mum like you, they will be fine. don't say that. try and understand, you can understand emotions more than someone who hasn't had any issues in their lives. that is quite critical, because it is explaining to them what those emotions mean and why they feel like they do. you have to rationalise this. if you are angry or down or upset, you can kind of relativise it and deal with it. the shock is the biggest thing.

i still feel 20 years later, about my mother, that i still have shock within me, 20 years later. you think, no, it can't last that long. but it does. you never get over it. it is such an unbelievably big moment in your life. it never leaves you. you just learn to deal with it. how was it, then? it was amazing! yeah. did you get to ask your question? idid. he was so honest. he just said straight up they will be all right if they are brought up in a loving and caring environment. which they are? which they are. because they have a great mum? first, prince harry, and now prince william — two royal brothers who provided an insight into the detrimental impact of their bereavement. diana's death is one of the reasons william is passionate about this cause. from my personal point of view, it's the emotional side. i hate seeing people in emotional or mental torment. you can really see it sometimes

and it's really sad, because it takes you down a very, very different path in life. the point of the campaign, with the marathon, is we want to reduce the stigma. we want people to talk about mental health like it's perfectly normal. the runners will face physical and mental challenges when they compete on sunday in the london marathon. police have named a man they're searching for in connection with an acid attack at an east london nightclub on monday in which 20 people were injured. arthur collins, who's 25 and from hertfordshire, is the boyfriend of the reality tv star, ferne mccann. jane frances kelly reports: the metropolitan police have released two pictures of arthur collins. this image was taken of him at the mangle e8 club in dalston in east london, where an acidic substance was sprayed early on monday morning. 20 people suffered burns. 12 needed hospital treatment. two men, aged 24 and 29, have been transferred

to a specialist burns hospital in essex where they remain in a serious but stable condition. mr collins can be seen here with reality tv star ferne mccann, who was not with him at the time of the incident. a spokeswoman for the star, who is best known for her appearances on the only way is essex and i'm a celebrity get me out of here, said in a statement... "ferne wants to know the truth and urges arthur to co—operate fully with the police and attend a police station immediately." isabella fraser, whose injuries can be seen here, was in the club with her sister prue at the time. they are from australia and spoke to a channel there. someonejust ran into me and had acid on theirface. i felt my back, and it felt as if someone had scratched me. it was stinging and i realised my shirt was stuck to my skin. i could not find isabella anywhere and i could feel my arm burning. that is when people said asset had

been thrown. police say they have also visited an address in hertfordshire where they arrested a 54—year—old man and 52—year—old woman on suspicion of cultivating cannabis. victims who were enjoying a bank holiday night out say they have been left shaken by the nightclub incident and deeply shocked that so many people have been hurt. let's return to preparations for the 2017 general election campaign and we can speak to the scottish conservative leader ruth davidson. you have been praised for your performance in tv debates. you think theresa may should take part in such debates? i think that is up to the prime minister. in the rest of the uk, even though scotland had done for many a year they are quite a new

invention, david cameron is the only conservative leader who has done one. but the broadcasters decide to empty chair her and go ahead, it will look bad. it will be a boss man's choice for the viewer on who will come along in second because i think theresa may is the right person to carry out brexit negotiations, it is either theresa may who will be sitting across from angela merkel or it will bejeremy corbyn. but it will give a message of white with and she want to debate the topics with other party leaders. i think the only people getting excited about this our media and broadcasters, who know if the prime minister chooses to take the message to the country rather than sit in tv studios they will lose viewers, so i don't think this is a big issue. do

you think this election will be a chance for scotland's conservatives to ta ke chance for scotland's conservatives to take seats from the snp based on voters who want to focus on brexit? i think this is a huge chance for scottish conservatives and other parties to take seats from the snp. nicola sturgeon has said she wants to prop up jeremy nicola sturgeon has said she wants to prop upjeremy corbyn, who has said he would be fine waving through another independence referendum and people in scotland don't want that, they made a decision, they were told it would be respected and they have a first minister who want to plough ahead regardless because she has tunnel vision and people want politicians to focus on falling education standards, difficulties in our nhs and an economy that is one quarter are away from recession while the rest of the uk is doing

well. there was a small majority in the last end up london's referendum for those who wanted to stay in the uk. i think that to call ten or 11 point small comic given the brexit debate, is stretching it. but how is this going to affect any timetable given another independence referendum? the prime minister has made it clear that she believes the people of scotland cannot be side deck constitutional future until they know what brexit looks like, their powers are coming back here, nor should they be asked to make another decision when they were told that last one was for a generation, u nless that last one was for a generation, unless a majority of people in scotla nd unless a majority of people in scotland wanted, so this general election may have many things about

it but in terms of the response of the prime minister to nicola sturgeon, it doesn't impact at all. ruth davidson, thank you for your time this afternoon. it's been another busy day at westminster with mps voting overwhelmingly in favour ofan mps voting overwhelmingly in favour of an early general election, more than 500 voting in favour, just 13 against, theresa may saint a conservative victory would give britain stability during and after brexit. the other issue has been whether the prime minister would ta ke whether the prime minister would take part in any tv debates. more on all of that coming up next. simon mccoy will have the latest from westminster. today at five.

mps vote overwhelming in support of a snap general election on june 8th. the ayes to the right 522. the noes to the left 13. the prime minister said a conservative victory would give britain stability during and after brexit. people will have a real choice at this election — they will have a choice between a conservative government that has shown we can build a stronger economy and a labour party whose economic policy would bankrupt this country. her decision not to take part in any tv debates during the campaign is criticised by opponents including labour leaderjeremy corbyn. mr speaker, if she's so proud of her record, then why won't she debate it? we're expecting to hear from both the prime minister