this is bbc news. the headlines at ten. no increase in income tax, national insurance or vat — labour's pledge to 95% of workers, if it wins the election. nurses, 11% cut in wages in the past seven years. some of them having to go to food banks? our nurses? that cannot be right. so we are going to ask those higher earners just to pay a bit more. the conservatives promise more mental health staffing in the nhs — and say fewer people will be detained against their will. you going into the nhs, that's going into mental health. and it's not just about money, it's the people who deliver these jobs, which is why we need the 10,000 extra. the liberal democrats commit to keeping the "triple lock" on pensions — but those on higher incomes would lose the winter fuel payment. the french 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. 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 than £80,000 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. to get more on this, i'm joined by our political

correspondent ellie price. for the labour party this morning, it's all about tax and who is going to pay more or not pay more. yes, this is a pitch to low and middle income earners and one that has ca ptu red income earners and one that has captured headlines in the papers. those are the policies capturing the imagination, if you like. their pledges that national insurance contributions and the standard rate of vat will not go up. neither will income tax for those earning up to a -§ the last a it" 7 n n 7 taxes. “a have .,.- , — , taxes. “a have ., to — , -?e= pledge that thisrtimerareund asef pledge that thisrtimerareune asef ” say " --- pledge that thisrtimerarednd asef tfj’ say this will' " ' pledge that thisrtimerarednd asef 7% say this will benefit = pledge that thisrtimerarednd asef of % say this will benefit = but the but il‘il: its??? ll: it it i— ill l peel ll:ll llll llll peel ll 95% of taxpayers, but the top 5% may have to pay a little more, they politely ask that. the shadow

chancellor has been on the andrew marr programme this morning. anyone earning below £80,000 will be guaranteed not to have increased income tax or vat or national insurance contributions. for those above 80,000, we're asking them to bea above 80,000, we're asking them to be a modest bit more to fund our public services. you had a theresa may on last week. you put that very good question to her about nurses, an 11% cut good question to her about nurses, an11% cut in good question to her about nurses, an 11% cut in wages over the past seven years. some of them having to go to food banks? 0ur nurses? that cannot be right. so we're going to ask the higher earners to pay a bit more. the conservatives on a rather different tack this morning. yes, not talking about brexit, this is a policy announcement. this is about mental health issues, they want to have a shake—up of mental health legislation, which would involve changing the rules governing

treatment, like the mental health act, as well as changing the equalities act, which would prevent discrimination in the workplace. they also say they want to add an extra 10,000 staff in the nhs to deal with mental health issues. the health secretary has been on the morning programmes as well.m health secretary has been on the morning programmes as well. if you have a child that has severe mental health problems and you find that the tiles, instead of being cheated by the nhs, instead ends up in a police cell, that is terrible for the child and will probably make the condition worse. but it's also very bad for the police, and we want to stop it. we also want to stop the fa ct stop it. we also want to stop the fact that one in six of us have a mental disorder. we want to stop the fa ct mental disorder. we want to stop the fact that you can lose yourjob for that and suffer discrimination, in a way that you would not be able to suffer now if you were disabled or other conditions, and we want to address this. jeremy hunt for the

conservatives. the liberal democrats are going back they suggest higher pensioners. they suggest higher earning pensioners, those earning more than £45,000 a year, would lose their winter fuel allowance, but they do say they would keep the triple lock on pensions, that's when pensions rise in line with inflation or average earnings or 2.5%, whichever is higher. that was a policy introduced by the coalition government. interestingly, the conservatives have not committed to that yet. we don't know if theresa may will follow suit, because we don't have the manifestos yet. we're expecting them in the next couple of weeks. people in france are voting in the final round of their presidential election. they're choosing between the centrist, emmanuel macron, and the right—wing leader, marine le pen. both have promised change, but their policies on europe, tackling terrorism and managing the economy are radically different. karin giannone is in paris for us, and has been giving us the latest.

we outside a polling station a school here, and the turnout could be affected by the weather. you can see it has been pouring here in paradise. there was a very mixed picture across france today. turn is traditionally very high in france, something british politicians can only dream of. 80% is the norm, anything less is unusual. if they are wondering how the weather might affect today. there's also been concern given the unusual nature of the candidates, because the main political parties and out of the picture in the second round, so that isn't the party structure, armies of volunteers going out to help in the polling stations. it has been somewhat of a scramble to get all the agents, all those people helping the vote run smoothly, into place in time, so

this can run smoothly today. 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. just giving you a flavour of how the

newspapers are reporting this, obviously there has been a blackout of election coverage, they're not allowed to say much at all. the catholic newspaper puts a very spiritual message, it'sjust catholic newspaper puts a very spiritual message, it's just says to think of the common good when you cast your vote. so very unpolitical, not saying much at all. this one puts to voters standing in front of posters of emmanuel macron and marine le pen, talking about the high stakes for france as it goes to vote. as if emmanuel macron wed already the winner, this paper talks about what he has in his head, what his plans are if he becomes president. finally, reports of people abstaining, people bidding blindfolds and ballot boxes. and

even one report using families and friendships have been torn apart by this particularly heated presidential election campaign. just one note about security, of course, we haven't forgotten 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, 12,000 alone in paris. while people might be thinking about politics, the focus of the authorities is on keeping france safe today. we can be new pictures are of the two main candidates voting. there could be flash photography on these sequences, flash photography on these sequences, just to warn you of that. now we have emmanuel macron and his wife beside him, casting their votes. that's a very nice place, not too far from the channel. he is the centrist candidate, a former

minister in the present government. a very young candidates, 39 years old, promising changes, but very much pro—european. we can also see pictures of marine le pen, who is voting not that far away in northern france. she is doing the very french thing, welcoming people in a polite manner. and she is about to cast her vote there. i suppose you have to say, can you prove who you are, madam? but i don't suppose she will have to. those are the two candidates standing in the french presidential election, results expected later today. french nationals who live in the uk are able to cast their votes at special polling stations which have been set up today. our correspondent, andy moore,

is at one of them in central london for us. the actual polling process is interesting. you go in, you produce your identification and then you pick up two pieces of paper with the names of their candidates on them. you go into the privacy of the voting booth and you put one of those names in a brown paper envelope, a small envelope, and you put it in the transparent box. that is another option, of course, which is another option, of course, which is to cast your vote, to put that envelope in the box, but there is no name inside. that is called a black vote. so you showing you support democratic process, but you don't like either of the candidates. voting in the uk in the first round was about 47% turnout here in the uk, which is pretty high for an overseas territory, and it looks as

ifa overseas territory, and it looks as if a lot of people are coming along here to vote. i was told by an embassy bill you that, certainly for overseas voting in a french presidential election, you have to turn up in person or send a proxy. that is no postal voting for this election. this station and others like it around the country are due to stay open until seven o'clock this evening. you will have an exit poll that is normally pretty reliable after that. also be counted rapidly, within a few hours of the polls closing, so we should a result later on this evening. and you can see live coverage of the election result here on bbc news today. coverage begins at 6.30 on the bbc news channel — that's in france decides: the presidential election 2017. 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 october, 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. stephanie hegarty has been telling us that, despite this deal, many girls are still missing or being held. if we do the maths, there are at least 115 girls that are yet to be returned. and we have very little information about where they might be, if indeed, they are still alive, because it is assumed some of the girls might not have survived

over three years now with boko haram. and those who have come back before, what sort of condition are they in? what sort of experiences do they tell of? have they had a terrible time or have they been reasonably well treated ? well, the girls who came back in october, 21 in that group, they have since been held by the nigerian government. so 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 of course today 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 girls 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 nigerian 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 there may be peace talks even one day. he delicately addressed that issue. the headlines on bbc news:

labour promises not to raise income tax will anyone earning less than £80,000 a year. 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. sport now...and a full round—up from the bbc sport centre. swansea city's premier league future is in their own hands after they beat everton to climb out of the bottom three. a couple of the other sides fighting relegation , hull city and and crystal palace lost. fernando llorente was the hero for the swansea. he scored the only goal of the game to give the welsh side a crucial three points.

it means they will stay in the top flight if they win their last two matches. they are away at already relegated sunderland next and then face west brom on the final day of the season. but the swans boss says his team must not get ahead of themselves... absolutely, it shows what happened this weekend. this swing can go one way for you one week and then the next week, it goes against you. we've got to make sure we perform really well, do the very best we can against sunderland, try and pick up all three points. today is all about the chase for european football. it's fifth versus sixth as arsenal host manchester united in the late kick off. before that liverpool take on southampton, asjurgen klopp's side chase a place in next season's champions league. there is absolutely no club in the top spot who can waste points right now. that's how it is. not chelsea, not tottenham, not liverpool, city, or united, arsenal, no club has the opportunity to rest. we all have to fight with all we have and that makes the league so exciting. wasps have finished top

of rugby union's premiership for the first time in 20 years. victory against saracens secured first place in the ‘regular‘ season, just ahead of exeter. saracens finished third overall, while leicester got the last of the four play—off spots. tim hague has the details. eight months, 126 matches, and the search was still on to find first place in the english premiership, as well as a home tie in the play—offs. wasps and an understrength saracens had a chance of both, fitting that they played each other then. even more fitting that christian wade scored for wasps, his 17th try of the season, equalling the league record. it helped the home side dominate the second half. their only lion, elliot daly, will hope to feast against the all blacks next month. he got in some practice here, before his team—mate thomas young, son of the coach dai, rounded off the win with his hat—trick. 35—15 the score, wasps top, saracens third.

in between them are exeter, they beat gloucester to secure second for the second successive season, while the fourth and final play—off spot went the way of leicester. 23 points from departing fly—half freddie burns got them over the line at worcester, but the celebrations can't last long. it's the play—offs next, and the search for england's top team continues. tim hague, bbc news. in the pro12, munsterfinished the season top of the table to secure themselves a home semifinal. they pipped leinster on the final day, who lost to ulster in belfast 17—13. roger wilson, ulster‘s most capped player who retired after the game, scored their first try with andrew trimble adding another in the second half. but gregor townsend lost his final match in charge at glasgow before he takes charge of the scotland national side, they lost 29—18 to edinburgh. scrum half ben youngs has withdrawn from the british and irish lions

tour to new zealand he's staying in england to be with his family after his brother's wife was diagnosed with terminal cancer. scotland's greg laidlaw will replace him. britain's number one yohanna konta has lost in the first round of the madrid open. she was beaten in three sets by the germany's world number 30 laura siegemund. konta, lost five games in a row to lose the deciding set. the match finished around quarter past two local time. olympic gold medallist bobsledder steven holcomb has died, aged 37. he competed in three winter olympics and piloted the us four—man bobsleigh team to gold at vancouver 2010 — the country's first olympic title in the event in 62 years. he won bronze in both the two—man and four—man bobsled in sochi in 2014. that's all sport for now. i'll have more in the next hour.

more now on the conservative pledge today of making reforming mental health legislation a priority in england and wales if they win the general election. theresa may said the new law would end discrimination of vulnerable people and a boost to the number of mental health professionals by 2020. with me now is simon wesserly, president of the royal college of psychiatrists. i think most of us, mental health has been the privation of the nhs. we don't hear much about it, we didn't until and now suddenly people are talking about it all over, even members of the royal family and no politicians. first of all, that is great. i wish to tap into 30 years ago. i never imagined we'd have in an election campaign, politicians arguing and being worried about the state of mental health system. what

is the state in your view of the mental health state provision? in a global sense, we are very good in this country, and we should never lose sight of that. we should be quite proud of our mental health services, but equally, we know they're nothing like as good as it could be. so when we're talking about discrimination and vulnerability, one reason we know thatis vulnerability, one reason we know that is because we are not funding adequately our early intervention services, are alternatives to hospitalisation, so some people are getting sicker and when they finally come to attention, unfortunately become to the attention of the police and not us. we would much rather they came to the nhs than the police. intervention by the police leads to unnecessary detention, as politicians talking about. the word unnecessary is not quite right, because when we do detain someone, this is a very seasonal thing to do,

and in those clinical situations, i would say it is necessary. it might be avoidable, that would be a better way of putting it. certainly, we know that some ethnic minorities and more vulnerable people are less likely to engage with our good early intervention services. we don't do sufficient outreach. and also, we have seen big problems in an alternative to hospitalisation. like supported housing, if we lose that, we have no alternative. there is also a generalfeeling we have no alternative. there is also a general feeling that schools should be embraced in this, that there should be mental health professionals in every school. is this something you support? is this something we need ? this something you support? is this something we need? everybody agrees is important to look at mental health in schools, everyone agrees that. i do think that any dispute. there is a dispute over how we do it. i don't think the front line should be people that means schools.

we have teachers and schools, and i certainly think we could support teachers better and then we can have better services the background. we have asked to have collections of schools together working with tiled services in an integrated service. that can only be good. i don't think many people would argue the contrary. the question of how we do it and one of the best evidence —based ways that we can show how this actually works. the conservatives are talking about 10,000 extra people working in mental health. labour saver has a reduction in numbers. presumably, more people would be useful. i'm not going to get into a numbers game, but what i can say is that if we're going to achieve the goals of any of the parties, we clearly and obviously need more staff. the point about mental health services is we don't have expensive kit like our collea g u es don't have expensive kit like our colleagues in medicine and surgery, but what we have is very good, well

trained people, and we do not have enough of them in nursing, in social work, in psychiatry. it's not something you can go down to the labour exchange and ask for social workers and psychiatrists. we need ten yea rs workers and psychiatrists. we need ten years to train these people. it's a long—term game, this one. thank you very much indeed. 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. on the italian coast, this has become an all too familiar scene. rescued at sea, 400 migrants arrive in the sicilian port of catania.

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. 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 coastguard 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 some fleeing persecution. i am from gambia. today we entered the sea at 4:00am to go to 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 gurkha was trying to reclaim the record from a japanese climber, who reached the peak aged 80 in 2013. 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. the number of people ripped off by holiday booking scams rose by almost a fifth last year, new figures have revealed. actionfraud, the uk's fraud and cyber—crime reporting centre, says there were almost 6,000 reported cases in 2016,