this is bbc news. i'm nicholas owen. the headlines at nine. no increase in income tax, national insurance or vat — labour's pledge to 95% of workers who pay it, if it wins the election. the conservatives promise more mental health staffing in the nhs — and ensure fewer people are detained against their will. the liberal democrats commit to keeping the "triple lock" on pensions — but those on higher incomes would lose the winter fuel payment. the people of france are choosing between emmanuel macron and marine le pen to be their next president. finally freed — the 82 nigerian schoolgirls kidnapped by islamist militants three years ago. also in the next hour... more billionaires are based in the uk than ever before. brothers sri and gopi hinduja top the annual sunday times rich list — only one person in the top ten was born in britain. and our sunday morning edition of the papers is at 9.35 — this mornings reviewers

are yasmin alibhai brown and david wooding from the sun on sunday. good morning and welcome to bbc news. parties campaigning in the general election have made a series of policy announcements this morning. labour have pledged not to raise tax on people earning less that eighty thousand pounds a year, the conservatives say they'll labour have pledged not to raise tax on people earning less than eighty thousand pounds a year, the conservatives say they'll replace current mental health legislation in england and wales, and the liberal democrats commit to maintaining the so—called triple lock on pensions, meaning they would rise by as much as wages, inflation or 2.5% — whichever is highest. to get more on this, i'm joined by our political correspondent ellie price.

let's start with the labour party, pledges all over the place. absolutely. there will be placed after the last couple of days, that after the last couple of days, that a number of the front pages today are focusing on their policy. and their pitch they say is designed to appeal to low and middle income earners. they have players that they will not raise the standard rate of vat, they would raise national insurance contributions and they would raise income tax for those earning up to £80,000. they reckon it will benefit 95% of all taxpayers in the country. and it will be paid for in part for by those on high incomes, the 5% will pay that extra bit. of course, no details yet on how much more they would be paid. if this sounds familiar, it's because the conservatives made similar promises in the last election. they have not done so in so many watch

it, so that is pressure on theresa may to see her she would match theirs. the tories criticising labour, suggesting there are holes, a big black hole in the funding for some of their pledges and that some simply don't add up. the summary of the labour party position. what have the labour party position. what have the liberal democrats been saying? talking about pensions, yesterday was about raising income tax by 1p in the pound to save the nhs. the winter fuel allowance would go for the higher earning pensioners, that's people earning more than £45,000 a year. they reckon it would bea £45,000 a year. they reckon it would be a saving of about 105 million, is not a huge amount of money, but seeing an intention of stealing with the problem of an ageing population. the triple lock is where pensions

rise by average income, information 01’ rise by average income, information or2.5%, rise by average income, information or 2.5%, whichever is highest. that was the pledge made in 2010 when the coalition came together. theresa may has not committed to that yet in this election campaign. the conservatives have a different tack. we have heard so much about brexit so we have heard so much about brexit so far. today, one of the first big policy pushes on mental health. we know that theresa may said on the steps of downing street that one of her big priorities was on mental health. the tories say pledge today would be one of the biggest shake—ups in 30 years in mental health legislation. they. they say they want to reform legislation to help prevent discrimination in the workplace and prevent unnecessary detention, as well as employing more mental health staff for the nhs. you can hear more 110w mental health staff for the nhs. you can hear more now from a health editor. injanuary, theresa may made a speech outlining plans to transform attitudes to mental health, with extra support

for schools and employers. now, in what is billed as the conservatives' first major domestic policy announcement of this campaign, the prime minister has unveiled plans for new legislation if returned to downing street. she says she wants to scrap the mental health act, which is more than 30 years old. she says it's brought discrimination and injustice, with concerns that individuals are being held unnecessarily in hospitals and police cells, with black people significantly more likely to be detained in secure mental health wards. the party has also pledged to increase by 10,000 the number of staff working in mental health in england, currently around 200,000. but labour said the number of mental health nurses had fallen by 6,000 since 2010, and it was unclear where the funding was coming from. the liberal democrats said the promise of thousands of additional staff was based on thin air, and reforms to the mental health act had been proposed two years ago, but delayed by the conservatives. hugh pym, bbc news. all this in the aftermath of those

local elections, but now we're back to the general election campaign. the focus today is policy, policy, policy. we have heard plenty from the prime minister over the weekend about brexit. i think labour and the lib dems are quite keen to steal it back towards policy. crucially, we haven't had manifestos yet. we would expect them at the beginning of next week, so still another week to speculate wildly, so suggestions of what might be in a manifestos from the policy announcements today. people in france are voting in the final round of their presidential election. they're choosing between the centrist, emmanuel macron, and the far—right leader, marine le pen. both have promised change,

but their policies on europe, tackling terrorism and managing the economy are radically different. karin gianonne is in paris. good morning. good morning and welcome to a polling station in a school here. the turnout could be affected by the weather, it has been pouring here in paris. there is a mixed picture across france today. turnouts traditionally very high in france, something that british politicians can only dream of. 80% is the norm and anything less is unusual. but they're wondering how the weather might affect today. there has also been a concern given the unusual nature of the candidates, because the main political parties are out of the picture completely in this second round. that is not the party

structure, armies of volunteers going out to help in the polling stations, and it has been something that's scramble to get agents and helpers into place and time so that this can run smoothly. let's get this can run smoothly. let's get this report from richard first. today's vote is being seen as the most important in france for decades. the two candidates have very opposite views of europe and the future of france in the wider world. the national front‘s marine le pen would close the borders and quit the euro currency. emmanuel macron wants closer european cooperation and an open economy. he is a former economy minister who last year quit the current socialist government to concentrate on his new independent political movement. his campaign was the last—minute victim of a hacking attack, which saw an online leak of thousands of emails and documents. the french election watchdog has advised the media not to publish details from the documents, warning it could lead to criminal charges and that some of the documents are probably fake. polls are open today until early evening, but some french nationals living abroad were able to cast their vote from yesterday, including

about 100,000 people who live in the uk. the winner is expected to be announced later tonight. in the next hour, we expect to see both emmanuel macron and marine le pen casting their votes in their polling stations. to give you a flavour of how the newspapers are reporting this, although there has been a blackout of coverage, they're not allowed to see very much. the catholic newspaper gives a spiritual message, to think of the common good when you cast your vote. not very political. be very symbolically put to voters standing in front of election posters of emmanuel macron

and marine le pen, talking about the decisive high stakes for france as it goes to vote. as if emmanuel macron were already the winner, this paper talks about what he has in his head where he to become president. and then reports of people abstaining and pitting blank forms and ballot boxes and even one report you are seeing families and friendships have been torn apart by this particularly heated presidential election campaign. 0ne note about security, of course, we haven't forgotten that france is still under the state of emergency. they are checking bags as you go into polling stations. there are tens of thousands of extra police and soldiers on the streets. while people may be thinking about politics, the focus of the authorities is very much on keeping france save today. french nationals who live in the uk are able to cast their votes at special polling stations

which have been set up today. 0ur correspondent, andy moore, is at one of them in central london for us. good morning to you. good morning. about 300,000 french people live in the uk. it's estimated about 100,000 of those are registered to vote, and we have seen hundreds of them here at this polling station in south kensington. the station opened at eight o'clock this morning, but people were queueing from six a.m.. the process is going on, you can see people turning up. there is no postal voting in france, so if people want to vote, they have to turn up in person or send a proxy. when they get inside, they produce identification, the pick up two pieces of paper, each with the name of the candidate on. they go into the privacy of the booth and they put one of those pieces of paper inside a brown envelope. they then

put that in a transparent box and cast the vote. we have seen the french ambassador do that this morning. we have heard about security in france. the met police are keeping an eye on things here. voting has been pretty brisk. last time around, there was about a 47% turnout, which for an overseas territory was pretty high. putting here closes at seven p.m.. there are voting stations like this at other locations around the uk. voting closes at seven p.m., we should get an exit poll soon after that. the votes are counted both here in london and in france within a few hours. by the end of the evening, we should know who will be the next president of france. and you can see coverage of the election result here on bbc news today. 0ur coverage begins at 6.30 on the bbc news channel — that's in france decides: the presidential election 2017. the headlines on bbc news: labour is promising not to raise

income tax for anyone earning less than £80,000 a year, as it declares itself the party of low taxes for middle and low earners. the prime minister has announced plans to replace mental health legislation with the new law tackling discrimination and the unnecessary detention of vulnerable people. the lib dems say their manifesto will include a commitment to keep the triple lock on pensions, but those with incomes above £45,000 would lose the winter fuel payment. 82 nigerian schoolgirls who were abducted by islamist militants in 2014 have been freed. they were among more than 270 girls seized from a boarding school in the town of chibok in a night time attack. stephanie hegarty reports: they were taken over three years ago as schoolgirls, but they will be coming back soon

as young women. after lengthy negotiations between the government and militants, 82 of the kidnapped chibok girls have been released. it was essentially a prisoner swap. the presidency said in a statement that some boko haram suspects were freed in exchange for the girls. the young women are now in the care of the nigerian army and are expected to be brought to the capital abuja today. it is the second time that the government has successfully recovered a group of chibok girls. last 0ctober, these 21 young women were returned to their families. the chibok girls were taken from their school by islamist militants in 2014, just as they were about to sit theirfinal exams. their kidnapping inspired a global campaign calling for their release. many families in chibok will be rejoicing today, but of the 276 girls taken that

night, over 100 are yet to be returned. chibok is by far the most high—profile case, but thousands of people have been kidnapped by boko haram in the eight years of this insurgency. stephanie hegarty, bbc news, lagos. there are still a lot of girls still to be rescued. yes, and we have very little information about where they might be, even if they are still alive, because it is assumed some of the girls might not have survived

over three years with boko haram. and those who have come back before, what sort of condition at the end, what sort of condition at the end, what sort of experiences do they tell of? have they had a terrible time or been reasonably well treated? the girls came back in 0ctober have since been helped by the nigerian government. we have had very little access to them to hear the stories and what they have been through. but it is assumed often that a lot of these girls that are taken by boko haram become boko haram wives, that they are married off to soldiers, to militants. but in the case of those 21, that doesn't seem to be the case. this is a much bigger group today, 82 girls, so a much bigger group today, 82 girls, so it remains to be seen over the next few weeks and months, it remains for us to hear their stories. if we think of other perils that we have met, many of them,

thousands of people have been kidnapped by boko haram. and we have met them over the past few years. they do tell very, very horrifying stories of forced marriage, of forced rape, some even forced into being suicide bombers. whether the chibok girls had the same experience, we don't know. what about hopes for releasing others that are known to have been taken? well, the presidency last night in their statement said that they are still pursuing negotiations for the release not only of more chibok girls but also others who have been taken. we spoke to the president's spokesman today and he suggested that lines of communication were now open with boko haram. he made intimations that they may be peace talks even one day. he delicately addressed that issue. so it is clear

from this negotiation that at least the presidency is talking with the militants and we may see more progress in the future. thank you very much. the italian coastguard says about 6,000 migrants trying to reach europe have been rescued in the mediterranean over the past 48 hours. officials said they coordinated around 40 separate emergency missions on friday and saturday. many of the migrants were trying to make the crossing from libya in makeshift vessels. sarah corker reports. 0n the italian coast, this has become an all too familiar scene. rescued at sea, 400 migrants arrive in an italian seaport. many need medical help. this is a stark reminder of the dangers they face. the body of a gambian teenager allegedly shot by human traffickers because they wanted his baseball hat, is taken off the boat. bat, is taken off the boat.

human rights groups have criticised eu's response to this crisis. i'm sad that europe is failing and is not taking the responsibility of these humanitarian catastrophe that is unfolding in front of our eyes. people continue to die. people are desperate. there had been a pause of migrant boats leaving libya since easter because of bad weather and rough seas but in the past 48 hours, the italian coast guard has rescued around 6000 migrants. others were intercepted by lybian officials and turned back. translation: i reckon our patrol left this morning to north—east tripoli. a migrant boat with 162 migrants on was rescued. they were being held at the naval base and had been given medical care. most of those attempting to make the perilous journey come from african countries. many seeking a better life and fleeing persecution. i am from gambia.

today we entered the sea at 4:00am towards italia. we went until we entered international seas. we were captured by these people. just this weekend, italy's foreign minister visited libya to discuss how to stop human traffickers. according to official figures, so far this year more than a thousand people have died or are missing trying to cross the mediterranean. sarah corker, bbc news. an 85—year—old nepalese man, who was attempting to become the oldest person to climb everest, has died at everest base camp. the death of min bahadur sherchan was confirmed by nepal's tourism department. the former british army gurkha soldier was trying to reclaim the record from japan's yuichiro miura, who climbed the peak aged 80 in 2013. around 50,000 people will be evacuated from the german city

of hanover later so experts can remove five unexploded wartime bombs. the bombs were found during work at a building site. some 2,500 firefighters, rescuers, and police officers are being deployed to help with the operation which affects around a tenth of the city's population. 75 years ago, during the height of the second world war, the isle of wight came under a ferocious aerial attack from the luftwaffe. 70 people lost their lives in the air raid. but the destruction would have been much worse had it not been for the actions of the crew of a polish warship. this weekend their heroism is being remembered. kasha madeira reports: archive: polish destroyers, co—operating with the british navy, are visited by the polish president... the blyskawica, one of two grom destroyers built in cowes, was the pride of poland. during a refit, back on the island, the crew could not have foreseen the role they would play in defending cowes against that devastating air raid.

..you are not only serving the cause of poland but the cause of mankind. josef wlodarczak is the last surviving crew member. he recalls how all on board had a critical role to play. translation: when it comes to the isle of wight, our guns were blazing. i was down in the engine rooms ensuring the motors were running so the gunner could keep firing. whilejosef was in the engine room, tom guy was next to the ship, on dry land. it was dangerous. the guns were so red hot, and i could prove it, i could actually see them, they was red hot, they was. they put water on them all the time. that decision to fire was controversial. while in dry dock, the blyskawica should not have had any live ammunition on board, yet her captain, wojciech francki, was convinced an attack

was imminent, after seeing german reconnaissance flights. june week's father saw the same planes. june weeks's father saw the same planes. he was looking out of his bedroom window, and these german reconnaissance planes were so low, he could actually see the swastikas on them — they were really, really low. he said to my mother, we are going to get it soon. the isle of wight was used to coming under attack. the luftwaffe used the light reflected off the medina as a guide to fly further north to attack cities on the mainland but that night the attack was unprecedented because they were aiming directly at cowes itself. captain francki was denied permission from the admiralty to arm the blyskawica and in doing so he risked court—martial. playing at his commemorations, his granddaughter said he took the initiative. when the bombing started, he sent smoke screens out.

which actually they did afterwards praised him afterwards praise him for his initiative in that. it was quite unheatd thing to do, to disguised the ship, to disguise the ship, to kind of create a fog. his action and that of the blyskawica's crew saved countless lives. today, a modern polish navy destroyer is anchored off the coast of isle of wight, not to defend but to honour the blyskawica's memory. more billionaires are based in the uk than ever before, according to the annual sunday times rich list published today. the hinduja brothers, who made their money from banking and manufacturing, top the table and are said to be worth more than £16 billion asjoe lynam reports. sri and and gopi hinduja have been associated with the labour party since the mid—1990s, and acquired british passports in 1997. their investments in oil, it, energy and the media have made them worth £16.2 billion, according to the sunday times rich list, up by a quarter in a single year. not far behind on £16 billion

is the ukrainian music mogul len blavatnik. he owns warner music as well as stakes in a number of other companies. at number nine, the duke of westminster, worth £9.5 billion, is the highest—ranking british born person on the list. he owns property in large parts of central london. there are a record 134 billionaires in this year's top 1000 on the list, with a cumulative wealth of £658 billion. in order to get on the list, you need to be worth at least £110 million. although there are no women in the top 20 who became billionaires in their own right, the sunday times says this year's list is more diverse than ever. it says that many have benefited over the past yearfrom booming stock markets in europe and north america. joe lynam, bbc news. we will be looking out at that rich

list is some detail when we review the papers. that will be in about ten minutes here and bbc news. among other stories making to model's front pages. in the meantime, he's a very important story. what is whether going to be doing. let's get the latest forecast from louise. another day that will be warm and sunny for some, but not for all. look at this picture from whitley bay earlier, a lot of low cloud and drizzle. different story for the west, chilly but lots of sunshine. that'll be the story as we go through the rest of the day. the waste will be the best for the sunshine, always with the breeze coming off the sea. the winners will start to pick up. close to deal force in the northern isles. big

cause the wind direction is changing toa cause the wind direction is changing to a northerly, it means we might see temperatures not quite as high as they have been across the highlands of scotland, where it has been lovely in recent days. still pleasant. calder with the strong wind and clyde, eight to ten in the north—east. northern ireland will have the warmest day of the year so farfor have the warmest day of the year so far for them. have the warmest day of the year so farfor them. and with have the warmest day of the year so far for them. and with the sunshine across parts of wales and the western half of england, we will see temperatures respond. it will feel pleasant, 18 or 19 degrees. along the east coast, equal, disappointing field. that will continue through the night. where we have seen clear skies by day, temperatures will fall away, so we're not out of the woods yet, and growers, because there is a potential for a light frost bursting on monday morning. but there will be sunshine again, must repeat

performance of today's weather story. east coast or close to the north sea, will be cool, cloudy and breezy. western areas see warmth coming through. as we pulled into tuesday and wednesday, high pressure still very much in the driving seat, but i just want to draw your attention to this area of low pressure moving in from the atlantic. there is the potentialfor that to bring some rain towards the end of the working week. but to start off with, it largely quiet story, staying dry, with hopefully, some sunny spells. enjoy your week. hello, this is bbc news. the headlines: labour promise not to raise income tax for those earning less than £80,000 a year, as part of an election "personal tax guarantee".

theresa may has announced plans to replace the mental health act in england and wales with a new law tackling discrimination and the unnecessary detention of vulnerable people. the liberal democrats say their manifesto will include a commitment to keep the "triple lock" on pensions, which guarantees they rise by as much as wages, inflation, or 2.5%, whichever is highest. france is going to the polls today in the final round of its presidential election. voters are choosing between the centrist, emmanuel macron, and the far—right leader, marine le pen. the islamist militant group, boko haram, has freed 82 schoolgirls in nigeria in exchange for a number of its fighters held by the government. coming up in a few minutes our sunday morning edition of the papers, this morning's reviewers are journalist yasmin alibhai—brown, and david wooding, the political