the this is bbc news. the the headlines at two. the liberal democrats put the united kingdom's place in europe at the heart of their manifesto, promising a referendum on any brexit deal. notes the hurt of our manifesto, we don'tjust notes the hurt of our manifesto, we don't just have notes the hurt of our manifesto, we don'tjust have to accept any deal we get back from the brexit negotiations. but you should have the final say. more pressure on donald trump — as he's accused of asking the head of the fbi to drop an inquiry into his former security chief's links with russia. ina week in a week full of revelation after revelation, on a day we thought things could not get any worse, they have. i think it is reaching the

point where it is of watergate size and scale. unemployment falls again — it's now at its lowest level since 1975. but for the first time in three years — pay is lagging behind inflation. also coming up — the sexist world of horse—racing. it's a sport worth more than three billion, but why do women looking for a career, rarely get to the finishing line? and she was famous for her trademark headscarf and pinny — now coronation street's hilda ogden's trademark possessions are going under the hammer. the liberal democrats are putting another eu referendum — this time on the actual deal that has been struck , at the heart of their general election manifesto.

the party said it would "let the people decide" whether brexit happens, once negotiations have finished. the party's leader, tim farron, says the decision to leave the eu could "wreck" the lives of future generations. here's our political correspondent chris mason. tim farron went back to school this morning. the lesson? how the liberal democrats think the country should be run. front and centre was brexit, and how it should be handled. at the heart of our manifesto is an offer to all of the people in our country that no other party is making, which is that we do not have to accept whatever deal we get back from the brexit negotiations, but the british people, you, should have the final say. if you do not like what theresa may comes back with, you should have the right to vote to remain. the lib democrats say they would spend more money on health and education paid for by higher corporation tax and a penny on income tax. on housing, they want to introduce a rent to own scheme for tenants,

and promised to legalise and regulate cannabis. they claim this could generate £1 billion per year in tax. it's about keeping the availability of hard drugs away from cannabis, and regulating cannabis so the most dangerous strands like skunk are outside of the regulated system. it is about helping those people who are of vulnerable and hitting those people the criminals take advantage of. the manifesto launch event is not until this evening. but the document itself is online. tim farron says it is not a programme for governments, he expects the conservatives to win the election and thinks it could be a landslide. he wants to be a strong voice in opposition. it is telling what is not in the manifesto. the lib dems are not promising to scrap university tuition fees in england. the very promise that they broke in government. what you need to do is make promises you can keep. what we've laid out in the manifesto

is fully costed on the basis of the government's current figures, even with us heading out of the eu, is a plan that will boost education and further education, and schools, by £7 billion. at the last election, the lib dems faceed the ghoulish nightmare of near oblivion. they are all smiles now but have a huge amount of ground to make up to get even close to where they used to be. how will they afford this? they estimate it will raise £6.3 billion per year, money they would spend exclusively on the nhs care services and public health. then, reverse cuts in corporation tax, not by as

much as labour propose, but back up to 20%, raising, they say, 5.6 billion annually. and an eye—catching proposal to tax cannabis. overall, a manifesto that will cost the country more. by 2020, the lib dems would spend 14.1 billion more in new day—to—day spending than they would raise in taxes. that would mean a small rise in the budget deficit. but if you strip out the money into longer—term investments in hospitals and roads, they say they would still balance they say they would still balance the books. and they want a balanced package of infrastructure investment worth £100 billion. including plans to build 300,000 new homes a year. but the biggest thing in the ma nifesto, but the biggest thing in the manifesto, setting the lib dems apart from the other parties, they

wa nt to apart from the other parties, they want to hold another referendum on a brexit. this time, notjust in or out, but whether to accept the terms of the deal at the end of the 2019 brexit negotiations end. and putting staying in the eu on the ballot paper. in terms of the british economy and spending, it will be the outcome of the brexit negotiations, and the lib dems say they oppose a ha rd and the lib dems say they oppose a hard brexit. in this manifesto, the liberal democrats argue the british people should have the final say. those who wants britain to stay in the eu, let's make the negotiations as hard as possible and give an option where they voters will say,

this is not worth doing. only two groups can decide, parliament or the people. the argument you have just made applies as well to mps as to the people at large. our basic contention is that having entrusted the people with the decision about whether to start the brexit negotiations, we should trust the people to take a decision on the final outcome. shouldn't the people trust the parliament? it is quite interesting. before the last referendum, a very big majority in the house of commons to remain in the house of commons to remain in the eu. mps did not reflect public opinion. it seems, therefore, public opinion, having started this, should finish this. looking at the wider ma nifesto, finish this. looking at the wider manifesto, are you confident of raising enough to fulfil the promises? yes. the biggest change we are suggesting is in relation to income tax. 1p on every rates of

income tax. 1p on every rates of income tax. 1p on every rates of income tax. very little scope for thatis income tax. very little scope for that is being invaded or avoided by people. we are confident there. the other tax changes are almost exclusively returning tax levels to what they were before the current conservative government cuts them. you are keen to all younger voters. cut tuition fees, i promise you renege on, why should theyjudge this this time? for young people, the big thing to affect their lives more than anything else is our relationship to the eu. opportunities for studying, working, forming relationships, travelling, all affected by that. young people are looking to the future. what kind of country do we want? to be part of europe, oran of country do we want? to be part of europe, or an isolationist country and an intolerant country. why

should they trust you because you did not deliver on the previous pledge to cut tuition fees? we were not the majority government. we were a minority partner in the government. tim farron did not support the decision that was taken at that point. his track record as leader of the party on this is you is straightforward. he is very committed, i think you said earlier on, only to have in the manifesto promises we are sure we could keep. what would you consider a success at this general election? getting into double figures? we want to get a lot more votes, a lot more seats. giving our electoral system, a bit of a lottery, only an idiot says we are going to get letter x or y. we are fighting hard for every vote we can get in every constituency. it is from a low base is my point. it is

from a low base is my point. it is from a low base. we are confident of doing better than that. it is very difficult to say at this stage, still over three weeks away, quite how well any party is going to do. what i am finding as i go around the country knocking on doors, the mood towards the lib dems is much more favourable than it was two years ago as the last election. i am sure that will be reflected in the votes that we get and the seats that we win on the 8th ofjune. we get and the seats that we win on the 8th ofjune. thank you very much. and today at 5.30 on bbc news we will be putting your questions about the liberal democrat manifesto to the party's former leader nick clegg. the head of one of labour's biggest union backers has said the party

is on course to lose the general election. len mccluskey of unite claimed it would be a successful campaign if labour lost about 30 seats. he was quoted in an interview for politico — but this morning he said he'd changed his mind. the interview i did with politico was a conversational piece, against the backdrop of if the opinion polls are to be believed, that i made those comments. since then, labour launched their manifesto and it is fantastic. a manifesto for workers and ordinary working people. a manifesto that will change britain for the good. and the response that we have had from unite members has been incredible. that's why i was checking our polls that we do, constant rolling polls, and the response has been like something we've never seen before. so i am now full of optimism — if i was having that interview today, i would not be making those comments. the document are at the centre of

claims that donald trump asked for the michael flynn and russia communications to be dropped. donald] trump, the 45th president of the united states, is barely four months into office — yet he is dealing with an almost daily drip of allegations. the latest — that he tried to influence an fbi enquiry. in february, one of the president's closest allies was forced to resign, when it emerged that mike flynn, then the national security advisor, misled the administration over his contact with russian officials before mr trump took office. now an explosive accusation from the new york times — that the day after mr flynn's dismissal, donald trump asked the fbi director, james comey, to drop the flynn investigation.

those were the president's words, according to a note, which the paper says mr comey wrote directly after the meeting. and there is james! despite public shows of support, relations between donald trump and mr comey were strained over the fbi investigations into mr flynn — and alleged russian interference in the us election. investigations mr comey insisted would continue. the fbi, as part of our counterintelligence mission, is investigating the russian government's efforts to interfere in the 2016 presidential election. mr comey was fired by the president last week, but washington has been astounded by the existence of the note he apparently made after their earlier meeting. a meeting which vice president mike pence was reportedly asked to leave. in a week full of revelation after revelation, on a day

when we thought things couldn't get any worse — they have. only 24 hours ago, president trump justified sharing sensitive intelligence information with russia's foreign minister, a decision which observers say could have compromised american allies and their sources. for some senior lawmakers, republicans included, this is all too reminiscent of an earlier and dark era. i think we have seen this before. i think it is reaching a point where it is of watergate size and scale, and a couple of other scandals that you and i have seen. days after sacking the fbi directir, donald trump issued his own warning to mr comey over social media, appearing to suggest he may have recorded their meetings. the white house has emphatically denied that mr trump asked the fbi to stop any investigation. the president still has plenty

of support in congress, and especially outside of washington. backing today from the most unlikely source, from vladimir putin, saying that donald trump was not being allowed to govern. let's speak to jane o'brien in washington. how much potential trouble is the president in? it all depends on senior republicans. a growing sense that they are becoming highly troubled by yet another allegation. because it distracts from their agenda. they want to get things done and just can't because of the co nsta nt and just can't because of the constant distraction. this goes beyond simply distraction. i was chatting to a republican from maine, a senator, who said this goes beyond partisan ship and party lines. this is about what is good for america.

there is a feeling that congress has to get to the bottom of what the president said because, yes, these are potentially very serious allegations that could lead to charges of obstruction ofjustice. we had a very long way to go before thatis we had a very long way to go before that is even thought about, but the spectre is there. democrats smell blood in the water, they are circling, and now we hear a increasing number of republicans saying they want to know what the president said. we heard john mccain. no fan of the president, but using terms comparing this to watergate. is that something that has currency in washington? we are hearing watergate, nixonian, and even an unfortunate comparison

between his presidency and his dream youtube recording a meeting allegedly. a lot of these phrases are being banded about. but in context, you have a sitting president who is, by definition, largely immune from prosecution. you had a congress where you have the senate and the house both controlled by republicans. and a department of justice which is headed by a political appointee, a strong supporter of donald trump, jeff sessions, who... to talk about impeachment and criminal charges is very premature. what has to happen first and what's people are calling for, is an investigation into the fa cts . for, is an investigation into the facts. what is this memo? are there others? what are the conversations that the ousted fbi director had with the president and what did they

say? that is why we are seeing demand for all this paperwork as fast as possible. the headlines on bbc news: the liberal democrats are promising a referendum on the final brexit deal — and housing help for young people in their election manifesto. president trump faces claims he asked fbi chiefjames comey to drop an inquiry into links between his former national security adviser and russia. unemployment is at the lowest rate since 1975 but wages .. 7. . unemployment is at the lowest rate since 1975 but wages - not.