that as labour plasma _ borisjohnson light. that as labour plasma joh — borisjohnson light.s labour plasma job. he has the challenge of trying _ plasma job. he has the challenge of trying to— plasma job. he has the challenge of trying to win a real action for a fifth _ trying to win a real action for a fifth time _ trying to win a real action for a fifth time as the conservative party and he's _ fifth time as the conservative party and he's trying to run has himself because _ and he's trying to run has himself because he's only been in office for less than— because he's only been in office for less than two years and is hoping he can present — less than two years and is hoping he can present himself as a product that doesn't carry some of that baggage — that doesn't carry some of that baggage. no wonder it's baffling. when _ baggage. no wonder it's baffling. when he — baggage. no wonder it's baffling. when he announced the election one of the _ when he announced the election one of the things that was to me was either— of the things that was to me was either the — of the thi

borisjohnson delivered breakfasts and brought out the levelling up.to government when i believed my ministerial career had ended, enabling me to deepen and intensify the levelling out programme. his support has ensured we can deliver projects that are benefiting all parts of the country. having seen up close to the demands of the role, i know we owe them all so much. i also know we owe them all so much. i also know the toil office can take as to those closest to me. no—one in politics is a conscript. we are volunteers who willingly choose our fate, and the chance to serve is wonderful. but there comes a moment when you know that it is time to leave. that a new generation should lead. the next conservative mp for surrey heath will inherit the best constituency in the country. 0ver constituency in the country. over the past 90 years and working with our brilliant counsellors we have saved local a&e services and protected our green spaces. he goes on to list a number of other things he's done in surrey heath. "reflecting on my terms and government, i hav

he is not a superstar, not a tony blair or a borisjohnson. but in some ways, thatis borisjohnson. in some ways, that is actually better. people who rise me directly also for in a meteoric way. that calm, steady quality of sir keir starmer might be his greatest strength, even though it does open up these, no one knows what he stands for attacks from the tories. but they don't seem to be getting anywhere with that. he is in west sussex _ getting anywhere with that. he is in west sussex at _ getting anywhere with that. he is in west sussex at the _ getting anywhere with that. he is in west sussex at the moment. - getting anywhere with that. he is in west sussex at the moment. we i getting anywhere with that. he is in| west sussex at the moment. we are expecting him to speak imminently. we arejust monitoring expecting him to speak imminently. we are just monitoring the podium with the word change on it. he is in west sussex, and this is an area

you were borisjohnson�*s supporter. is there any resonance of that for you?y party clearly as a majority, wanted rid of borisjohnson at that point. but the reality is he's no longer a member of parliament. i'd love if borisjohnson were still here and could look forward to a potential future, but in the short term that's not going to happen. he's not a member of parliament and we can't think about the past and lament the past. we've got to look at what the public want us to do. this is the problem that the conservative party has had previously is they're too busy navel gazing and thinking about what they want and what's best for them as individuals. myjob as members of parliament's job is to actually do what the public want. so all of this other periphery discussion going on isn't important. what's important is having a country that is fit for the future, for our children, for our grandchildren. i don't believe labour is going to do that. that's why they're not telling anybody what their policies are, because the public hear about it. they won't like it. desig

, boris johnson, fell out and fell back borisjohnson, fell out and fell back in.n on foreign policy, loved bashing lefties and bureaucrats and experts in terms of domestic policy and of course he led the leap campaign, was one of the architects, with borisjohnson, so an extraordinarily colourful character and rather popular even with those who foully disagree with him politically but he's going and i think many will see that as a sign, along with the other mps you mentioned, as a sign that they think maybe it's a sinking ship. it’s mentioned, as a sign that they think maybe it's a sinking ship.— maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not 'ust maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not just about _ maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not just about 70 _ maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not just about 70 conservative - maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not just about 70 conservative mps l maybe it's a sinking ship. it's not l just about 70 conservative mps but about 20 or so from the labour side including harriet harman, another long—standing member of the labour party. long-standing me

_ borisjohnson and nigel farage in some sort— borisjohnson and nigel farage in some sort of— borisjohnsonout _ was talking about today. i'd rather not think about that! _ was talking about today. i'd rather not think about that! let's - was talking about today. i'd rather not think about that! let's hear i not think about that! let's hear from you- _ whatever happens it will be an eventful few weeks and months ahead. thank you to my trio at the desk. thank you for your company on a really important weekend when we've been working out what the thousands of winners and losers across the country mean for what comes next and sketching out the nightmare facing rishi runak and the chance in front of keir starmer. these results do not prove that labour will get a majority and we cannot say it often enough that in political time the general election is centuries away, but there is no question that the tories are in deep trouble, however much they will want to acknowledge that in public. i'll be on newscast shortly with paddy o'connell, and you can catch up with the show on the bbc iplayer. i look

he had a close relationship with borisjohnson during the days of vote leave and the brexit campaign,ut then ran against him

through the brexit campaign, borisjohnson�*s friend, but at times his greatest foe, michael gove wasn'taid to make enemies, pushing through education reforms and serving under four prime ministers over nearly 20 years in parliament. but he says he has now concluded, "there comes a moment when you know it's time to leave, that a new generation should lead. rishi has the plan our country needs," he added. "i will do everything i can to support him." but as rishi sunak toured the titanic quarter in belfast,

people might remember there was a moment where he supported brexit, where he said he didn't think borisjohnson was fit to be prime minister after the eu referendum. we've been hearing for quite a lot of tories were standing down at election. no doubt that will be waiting on the mind of the prime minister. , . . ~ be waiting on the mind of the prime minister. , ., . ~ ., ~ , ., be waiting on the mind of the prime minister. , . . ~ . ~' , ., , be waiting on the mind of the prime minister. , ., . ~ ., ~ i. , . minister. jack, thank you very much indeed. let's speak to pauljohnson, director of the institute for fiscal studies. thanks for not don't ask much for being with us. conservatives said they would be making tax cuts. what would be needed if they wanted to do that? that what would be needed if they wanted to do that? ., ., , , to do that? that would be extremely difficult to do to _ to do that? that would be extremely difficult to do to get _ to do that? that would be extremely difficult to do to get in _ to do that? that would be extremely difficult to do to get in the _ to do that? that wo

i think you remember borisjohnson forgot _ i think you remember borisjohnson forgot is _ i think youn. we will look at this but we haven't got great plans. i think there is a review that has gone through in relation to voter id but at the moment my priorities are the economy, the nhs in the first steps i have set out. thank you. can i go to amy at the telegraph. just coming back to those — to amy at the telegraph. just coming back to those tourney _ to amy at the telegraph. just coming back to those tourney briefings, - back to those tourney briefings, they called you weary and sleepy. how do _ they called you weary and sleepy. how do you respond to those charges specifically? how would you characterise your energy? very tiriefly. — characterise your energy? very briefly, we had things can only get lfetter— briefly, we had things can only get better blasting out in downing street — better blasting out in downing street as richey and aunty m, but most _ street as richey and aunty m, but most people associate that with tony blair's _ most people associate that with tony blair's labour.

tony blair, david cameron, borisjohnson, rishi sunak. bury north matters, then, doesn't it?the keys to number 10. i literally, really, really am unsure who to vote for. feeling a bit forgotten in the north at the moment. yeah, i just want the country to get in a better place than what it is at the moment. election time is coming and in bury north, it is all to play for. ed thomas, bbc news. let's look then in more detail at how the day unfolded. the election announcement was a surprise to most of the prime minister's own mps, and it came after hours here's our deputy political editor vicki young. westminster awoke to what had become familiar speculation about the date of the general election. i’m familiar speculation about the date of the general election.— of the general election. i'm not normally excitable _ of the general election. i'm not normally excitable about - of the general election. i'm not normally excitable about these | normally excitable about these things but that leaves me a little more twitchy this morning than normal at 30 seconds to nine o'clock! fist norm

after boris johnson, liz truss, having rishi after borisjohnson, liz truss, having rishi sunak, after them from potential electoral catastrophe at the general election. i think it could look ridiculous to a lot of voters and i think that is the prevailing mood among most tory mps. prevailing mood among most tory mp5. the more immediate future, what are we expecting this afternoon and into tomorrow in terms of results? we have a very _ tomorrow in terms of results? 2 have a very busy 48 hours, as i said, coming up, lots of councils declaring in the course of late morning, include the afternoon. i think the next big thing to watch out for is the result of the tees valley mayoral contest, the conservative incumbent, ben houchen, seeking real action. conservative incumbent, ben houchen, seeking realaction. in conservative incumbent, ben houchen, seeking real action. in 2021, conservative incumbent, ben houchen, seeking realaction. in 2021, he conservative incumbent, ben houchen, seeking real action. in 2021, he won on a vast chair of the vote, about 72%. he is a big character, hoping he c

the last election was two different people, borisjohnson versus_ two different people, borisjohnson versusjeremyative landslide, — versusjeremy corbyn, a conservative landslide, 80 seat majority, barney—smith —— borisjohnson then delivered _ barney—smith —— borisjohnson then delivered brexit, a huge if you act i don't _ delivered brexit, a huge if you act i don't think will be mentioned much in the _ i don't think will be mentioned much in the campaign, and we are noticing this huge _ in the campaign, and we are noticing this huge change in our trading relationship with our biggest neighbour, but following that, boris johnson _ neighbour, but following that, boris johnson 90 scandals, his downfall, liz truss_ johnson 90 scandals, his downfall, liz truss and her downfall, rishi sunak. — liz truss and her downfall, rishi sunak, during during the pandemic, vladimir— sunak, during during the pandemic, vladimir putin and the war in the ukraine, — vladimir putin and the war in the ukraine, on— vladimir putin and the war in the ukraine, on the big events we have had, _ ukraine, on the big events we hav

decision to back the lead campaign, and he will be remembered for that decision when he kibosh borisjohnson'se and he would become the conservative leader, the first time he wanted to with the prime minister borrowing that referendum and campaign, but michael gove, of course, turned around, well actually he didn't think, and chris said that a news report, he didn't think boris johnson had the capacity to bring a team together, and that sense of that decision, only added to that amongst his detractors who was somebody who is fairly ruthless when it came down to it and would act against what he'd previously agreed with somebody like borisjohnson or the case of david cameron and george osborne. but away from the real politics of those decisions, he was, as i said, very respected minister when he served in cabinet. he was loyal up to, when he was certainly in front of the cameras, he was very effective at communicating come very effective at communicating come very effective at communicating come very effective at making his points and he was seen as somebody thatjonas could talk to and did talk

everything that began with borisjohnson, drifting on to i with borisjohnson, drifting on to liz trussuss and then here we are now, there's a real mood and _ liz truss and then here we are now, there's a real mood and a _ liz truss and then here we are now, there's a real mood and a real- there's a real mood and a real appetite — there's a real mood and a real appetite for— there's a real mood and a real appetite for change. - there's a real mood and a real appetite for change. you - there's a real mood and a real appetite for change.— there's a real mood and a real appetite for change. you have said the 're appetite for change. you have said they're coming _ appetite for change. you have said they're coming directly _ appetite for change. you have said they're coming directly to - appetite for change. you have said they're coming directly to labour l they're coming directly to labour but in your home city, swathes of them are going to reform. you will see different _ them are going to reform. you will see different kinds _ them are going to reform. you will see different kinds of _ th

he also said messages criticising borisjohnson and downing street colleagues were "raw, in the momentd not the reality of the government's pandemic response. mr case sent whatsapps saying mrjohnson "cannot lead" and calling officials "pygmies" at the height of the pandemic. he told the inquiry he "deeply regretted" the messages. ellie price reports: he didn't give evidence along with the more familiarfaces he didn't give evidence along with the more familiar faces at the end of last year because he was off sick but he was right at the centre of decision—making during the pandemic becoming his most senior official adviser in september 2020. today he was asked about what's are present during that time and the personalities involved. crisis and - amies personalities involved. crisis and pygmies equals _ personalities involved. crisis and pygmies equals toxic _ personalities involved. crisis and| pygmies equals toxic behaviours. personalities involved. crisis and - pygmies equals toxic behaviours. the crisis is _ pygmies equals toxic behaviours. the crisis is a _ pygmies equals toxic beha

the tories�* lead over labour peaked just here less than a week after borisjohnson announced a firstwns came and went again. but if you remember, on the 8th of december, margaret keenan got the first covid vaccine in the in the uk. vaccine in the, in the uk. and as the roll—out really got under way, the conservatives opened up a lead over labour again. they even took a by—election seat from labour that may. from labour that may. now, here is the last point that you could really say that the conservatives or their polling average was at or above labour's. 0n the 30th of november 2021, stories of lockdown parties in downing street first hit the papers and for much of the year after, labour look a bit ahead of the tories. but a cautious statistician would say that either party could be a bit higher or a bit lower. remember all those dots? so they're still actually pretty close. and there was a big kick in the polls around the time of the mini budget in september. the conservatives fell sharply until the day before rishi sunak took over when there was a quick partial rebound, and then th

put up who took over for borisjohnson put up neither elected by the british public.ter will want to mention his record. but labour party sake this is ia years of government look at the state of the national health service, the economy with a huge cost of living crisis, people feeling poorer. inflation is fallen, prices are still high or food and essentials and people are struggling in many parts of the uk. what about basic public services, can we get clean drinking water? there's been a scandal in the southwest of denver with parasites and water. scandal and upset, water the rivers and you can't swim in the uk because it is so polluted. how are utilities being run? for heart doing that perhaps it's one party in government for ia years you go through a lot of difficulty. in the end the public looking for, and my better off or worse off when you first came in over a decade ago? is been unbelievably turbulent with covid, brexit, ukraine. well the public bejudging the covid, brexit, ukraine. well the public be judging the conservatives and rishi sunakfor the public be ju

through the brexit campaign, borisjohnson�*s friend, but at times his greatest foe, michael gove wasn'taid to make enemies, pushing through education reforms and serving under four prime ministers over nearly 20 years in parliament. but he says he's now concluded, "there comes a moment when you know "it's time to leave, that a new generation should lead. "rishi has the plan our country needs," he added, "i will do everything i can to support him." but as rishi sunak toured the titanic quarter in belfast, the list of mps jumping ship continued to grow. among more than 100 other mps standing down, the former prime minister theresa may, the former leader of the house of commons, andrea leadsom, and former defence secretary ben wallace. while the conservatives are now seeing more mps walk away than in 1997, labour's losses are less substantial. keir starmer took his campaign to glasgow, hoping scotland will pave his way to a win. after mps lined up to mark the close of parliament last night, the campaign is well and truly under way, with both potential prime ministers constructing their arg

, prime minister then, boris johnson, was prime minister then, borisjohnson, was very unpopular and christian same journey to the house of commons as well. but you have to go back 27 years to the last time the governing party saw a defection to the main opposition. so we are getting used to happening in the last few weeks, but it certainly hasn't been happening a lot the last few decades, which just adds to the drama of what's been happening at westminister. a, drama of what's been happening at westminister.— westminister. a bit of interesting history and _ westminister. a bit of interesting history and context _ westminister. a bit of interesting history and context they - westminister. a bit of interesting history and context they are, - westminister. a bit of interesting i history and context they are, adam. tell me more about the reaction among labour and conservative backbenchers. i'm sure the whatsapp groups have been firing up. you backbenchers. i'm sure the whatsapp groups have been firing up.— groups have been firing up. you can see in chris — groups have been firing up. you can see

borisjohnson is trying to make that case today, trying to suggest in his first intervention in the campaignmn in the daily mail, that going back to keir starmer and going back to labour would be like going back in time. but which time are you going back to? are you going back to cool britannia, where labour would want you to think that you turn the taps on and milk and honey came out, or are you going back to what borisjohnson would want you to believe is sort of the winter of discontent version of the 1970s? and here's another go back. rishi sunak�*s only been the prime minister since october 2022. and i wonder i wonder why. i wonder what happened, what happened? what could have happened? i mean, if i'm going back, i can stop just two years ago. and keir starmer is also trying to say and the chaos his word is for what the tories have been doing with changing their leader as much as they changed their socks is tory chaos. so that's one of the themes that's emerged within just a day. absolutely. and i'm a bit worried that somebody in labour hq watched our documentary from about 18 months ago

, abandoning against boris johnson, abandoning the against borisjohnson, abandoning the 2019 manifestoed and criticising his record on borders, his flagship policy of stopping small boat crossings. remember, she is the mp for dover, which is on the front line of that issue. here she is explaining why she made her decision. in 2019, the conservative stood on a manifesto that was very much centre ground, but under rishi sunak, they've abandoned the centre ground and broken many election promises. meanwhile, under keir starmer, labour have changed and i think that change is going to bring a much better future for our country and that's why i was so keen tojoin the labour party and play my part in bringing that important future forward. i have to say, after the previous defection about ten days ago, natalie elphicke was not really top of the list of possible mps to follow. she is to the right of the conservative party and doesn't really seem on the surface a natural fit in keir starmer�*s labour party. i have to say, tory mps i have been speaking to this afternoon have been pretty incredul

so much of politics has been about those 2019 tory—labour switchers, post—brexit, borisjohnson sort of*s arguments and having and trying to win those back. can labour win all those voters or most of those voters back, keep its coalition in metropolitan britain? another thing i throw open — there's different arguments about this in terms of the timing — the student vote. they're not going to be in their universities in their universities onjuly the 4th. is that part of the strategic thinking? cos i remember injune 2017, that did have a material impact, certainly in a dozen or a few dozen constituencies. canterbury was the famous one, wasn't it? so we're not going to have that impact. but is it good or bad for the conservatives that those students will be back at home or on holiday or when�*s glastonbury? i don't know. you know, that is an interesting thing. faisal, a date that i know you will know is all the england matches in. oh, yeah! what do you think the football factor could be in this? well, i think, firstly, there's an attention factor. tens of millions of people in england and

whatsapp messages he sent were highly critical of then prime minister borisjohnson, saying he "cannotgate after he'd attended at one of the downing street events that breached lockdown rules. with more, here's our health editor, hugh pym. neverfar behind borisjohnson, simon case was a man with a front seat atjohnson's number ten during the pandemic. and today, later than originally planned because of ill—health, the cabinet secretary gave evidence to the uk covid inquiry. i swear by almighty god... that the evidence i shall give... whatsapp messages from the time were quoted back at him. you yourself said _ good people were being put off because it's such a rat's nest. yeah, that's all correct. at times he showed his emotions... good people were working incredibly hard in impossible circumstances with choices where it seems there was never right, never a right answer. but that lack of sort of team spirit, the difficult atmosphere, you're trying to run everything from the centre of government, despite trying to run the response to a global pandemic. good people were just being smashed

all here for a general election went announcement, there's been a list of turbines in the uk, borisjohnsont and camping for him-— camping for him. the big thing to take over from _ camping for him. the big thing to take over from that _ camping for him. the big thing to take over from that is _ camping for him. the big thing to take over from that is if - camping for him. the big thing to take over from that is if you - camping for him. the big thing to take over from that is if you chart the trajectory of the conservative fortunes in the opinion polls, boris johnson had that big victory, unexpectedly big, back in 2019, what turned the dial for the tories and turned the dial for the tories and turned their fortunes down to the parties that borisjohnson attended in the pandemic times, followed by the scandal, and then liz truss and her many budget, debauched many budget, and the chaos that followed that and her short—lived premiership month since those days, conservative fortunes plummeted and rishi sunak has tried many things to try to turn things around which is not really happened and it

borisjohnson was prime minister, the tory party was doing well, the vaccine had just been rolled out,ohnson limp over the harbour. keir starmer is contemplating resigning and the talk was of the tories being in powerfor a decade. today feels a very long way away from that and the early results seem to mirror the opinion polls, that the tories are in a dl et al. hole. some of the councils that stand out, hartlepool. —— are in a very deep electoral hole. there are good wins for the labour party and will cause further despondency in tory ho. what the conservatives are hoping for is some of those big male contests, two in particular, the conservative mayor in the tees valley and the tory mayor in the west midlands are hoping desperately for one or both of them to be real elected. if that happens, that could shift the narrative quite a lot. let's treat the elections in their own right for a second. broadly underline the significance of local elections, democratic exercises, but day—to—day impact on people's lives. councils are responsible for large budgets and deliver the services people m

if you cast your mind back to the last general election in 2019 it was called by borisjohnson in a bidal through parliament. after all the votes had been counted this was the picture. the conservatives won 365 seats in the house of commons. that gave them a majority of 80 and the time since then there have been by—elections and of course defections. things are looking different for and a half years later. let's take a look at the current picture on the conservatives are down to 344 mp5, reducing their majority to 38 seats. what are the polls are saying about what could happen next? 0ur polling guru john curtice has been taking a look. as things stand at the moment, on average in the polls, and there are differences between the pollsters, but on average, they put the conservatives 21 points behind at the moment. even the best of them put them at least around 16 points behind. and however you look at it, that is an outcome that would result in labour being elected with an overall majority. so the challenge facing rishi sunak is to try to overturn that very, very substantial labour lead.

get to the next election it is invariably about the last election and in 2019 it was all about borisjohnsone down essentially individual fights. there is a reason why rishi sunak would want to make that the case here. what is the problem for the public is they don't really have a view about keir starmer. but when you remind them this is the man that chose to sit besidejeremy corbyn when all of that was going on, anti—semitism, and many decent people in the labour party walked away and would not take jobs for him, he stayed there and fought to get the second referendum to put us back into the european union. this is a man who now says he has accepted the results. but the battle is about rishi sunak versus keir starmer. who do you think has the moralfibre to be starmer. who do you think has the moral fibre to be able to take those difficult decisions? who has not squared away with one group on the far left and then has come across to do something with people in the opposite direction? whose does the course and sees it through? that will be the real battleground. who is keir starmer? he seems

this is a key area, an area where borisjohnson did very well in 2019 and again, the hartlepool by—election and keir starmer considered resigning after that but things were looking so bad so labour have turned things around and they have turned things around and they have got a lot closer this time but they will say it's a very personal vote for the incumbent and up but not much solace to rishi sunak or the conservative mps who want to hold onto their seats in this part of the world. i hold onto their seats in this part of the world.— of the world. i know you keep it un-to-date- — cannock chase council. live now to our correspondent joanne writtle in cannock chase. we are here at the cannock leisure centre and counting is under way and the reason the focus of attention here is because the council has historically been a labour stronghold but in more recent years it changed hands a number of times so back in 2021, the conservatives took control of the cannock chase council for the very first time and then last year labour gained some ground but they didn't gain enough seats to take overall c

in the first place, i borisjohnson in the first place, and we — borisjohnson in the first place, andldon. — unemployment low. it has not risen in basildon, though. _ unemployment low. it has not risen in basildon, though. where - unemployment low. it has not risen in basildon, though. where andrewi in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what — in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we _ in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we need _ in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we need to _ in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we need to do _ in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we need to do as - in basildon, though. where andrew is right is what we need to do as a - right is what we need to do as a party, is to look outward, and as the general election comes into view, and interesting, the interview with carla denyer, she mentioned the £28 billion u—turn. let’s with carla denyer, she mentioned the £28 billion u-turn._ £28 billion u-turn. let's focus on the conservatives _ £28 billion u-turn. let's focus on the conser

borisjohnson did that, i contended that.whether it was thanks, long range weapons, the first to provide bilateral security assurances, the first to train ukrainian soldiers. we have had a track level of leadership which i'm very proud of. that is the right thing to do. if you want to strengthen this country's security we need to re—establish deterrence and an investment and ukrainian security as an investment in our security. our nato allies are worried about if putin is able to succeed that there will be next, with all the consequences that would bring. it is our adversaries all around the world that are looking at this moment and seeing how we react. in order to have security we do need to invest more in defence and ukraine and it is right that we talk to our allies about that. whilst we are enormously grateful for the continued support and investment they have put into a european security, it is not right to rely on american taxpayers to do that if we are not prepared to make sacrifices for our own security. i am. that is

keir starmer thinks we will follow the format from the 2019 election, two head to heads between borisjohnsonn, two head to heads between boris johnson and jeremy corbyn. labour sources say that we aren't going to rip up the formatjust to suit the whims of the conservative party. that's it from us tonight. election newsnight is here every weekday night 10.30 bbc two and bbc news — for interviews with all the parties and deep insight. faisal�*s here tomorrow. have a good night live from london, this is bbc news. rishi sunak zigzags across britain on a whirlwind tour — and sir keir starmer rallies support at a football club in kent — at the start of six frantic weeks of the uk general election campaign. at least four people are dead after a building collapses in mallorca. hello, i'm courtney bembridge. it's only 2a hours since the prime minister sprung ajuly general election on us all — but campaigning is already in full swing. party leaders are setting off on what will be six frantic weeks of intense campaigning ahead of the 11th ofjuly. the prime minister has already been to events in england

there was a headache for former prime minister borisjohnson when he tried to vote.to id. he was a prime minister who brought in the law that required the right photo id and that was back in 2022 and it was then compulsory for voters in england to show voter id. we understand what happened then is that he left, went and collected his id and then came back and then was able to vote. let's just mark your card for what is coming up because plenty of votes in its go to nottingham. plenty of votes being counted so as you will have gathered over the last couple of hours it's a friday morning and we get of others which by now and get a full picture. it's not the case for the last few elections local election or mayoral elections local election or mayoral election results which are not coming in this morning becoming a this afternoon and actually into the weekend so we have our live feed ready at nottingham we have sunderland as well and we are waiting for the results of the local elections but also my oral elections as well —— mayoral elections as from as well —— mayoral el

does that mean there will be no place for boris _ that mean there will be no place for borisjohnson whenjohnson when it comes to the campaign i— boris johnson when it comes to the cam -aain. . , boris johnson when it comes to the cam-rain. ., , . ., boris johnson when it comes to the cam-cain. ., , . ., campaign. i have been clear about this in the past. _ campaign. i have been clear about this in the past. i _ campaign. i have been clear about this in the past. i want _ campaign. i have been clear about this in the past. i want every - this in the past. i want every conservative who shares the vision that i do to be part of that campaign, to fight for the things that we believe in. the conservative family is a broad church but we are united by a set of values and that set of values that i talked about early on are fountain and an innate optimism about our country from an intrinsic sense of pride in our history and identity and our knowledge that actually progress comes from people, not from the states and that is about creating the innovative economy that i talked about, seizing the opp

borisjohnson promised in - getting it back to where it was. | borisjohnson promised in 2022 getting iti thing, you cannot make commitments without— thing, you cannot make commitments without showing — thing, you cannot make commitments without showing how— thing, you cannot make commitments without showing how you _ thing, you cannot make commitments without showing how you will - thing, you cannot make commitments without showing how you will pay - thing, you cannot make commitments without showing how you will pay for i without showing how you will pay for it. without showing how you will pay for it we _ without showing how you will pay for it we have — without showing how you will pay for it we have set— without showing how you will pay for it. we have set out— without showing how you will pay for it. we have set out how— without showing how you will pay for it. we have set out how we - without showing how you will pay for it. we have set out how we will- without showing how you will pay for it. we have set out how we will pay. it. we have set out how we will pay for it _ it. we hav

announced that he is to stand down at the election — he has served under david cameron, theresa may, borisjohnsonay taken the decision to step down as a member of parliament." he said the chance to serve is "wonderful", "but there comes a moment when you know that it is time to leave. that a new generation should lead. " in the statement, which is around two—and—a—half pages long, mr gove says being asked to serve as a minister has been i have today taken the decision to step down as a member of parliament." he said the chance to serve is "wonderful", "but there comes a moment when you know that it is time to leave. that a new generation should lead." in the statement, which is around two—and—a—half pages long, mr gove says being asked to serve as a minister has been "the honour of my life", but adds "i also know the toll office can take, as do those closest to me". he then talks through the achievements he is most proud of from his time in office. he says that he "undoubtedly made mistakes" but tried to "fight for greater social justice" during his time in politics. in his statement he backs ris

, i heard on countless — i think borisjohnson, i heard on countless times say to president zelensky,f being as heroic as they are, — are capable of being as heroic as they are, then we will do our best not only— they are, then we will do our best not only to — they are, then we will do our best not only to help you as a uk bid to -et not only to help you as a uk bid to get the _ not only to help you as a uk bid to get the rest — not only to help you as a uk bid to get the rest of the word to help and it sounds— get the rest of the word to help and it sounds a — get the rest of the word to help and it sounds a safe, and i don't know if it is— it sounds a safe, and i don't know if it is true, — it sounds a safe, and i don't know if it is true, but it sounds as if every— if it is true, but it sounds as if every criminals helped pull off quite — every criminals helped pull off quite a — every criminals helped pull off quite a coup here and unlock something that was existentially threatening to the ukraine in pandering to trump, and this again is something we need to focus more on politic

borisjohnson boris johnson sayings borisjohnson sayings the case against trump should never have beenne, this is widely seen to be the weakest case against trump and a built of a counting about hush money paid to a important star, it is the sort of thing you would expect trump to be doing, it was priced in in his victory back in 2016. perhaps what would have been the more pernicious case to draw, and i perhaps shouldn't have used that word, but what would be the more advantageous a case to draw would be the florida case, the georgia case, which is of course about january, about the whole process of that presidential election, the lost votes, trying to engineer a different result through the one that people voted for. that is comint the one that people voted for. that is coming down _ the one that people voted for. that is coming down the track. but - the one that people voted for. that is coming down the track. but here j is coming down the track. but here is coming down the track. but here is the problem. — is coming down the track. but here is the problem, right. _ is coming down th

for borisjohnson, that election and its about this. this. for borisjohnson, that was, we are having a general election to get brexit done. by the end of the campaign, everyone thought that was what the election was about and borisjohnson won. so they will spend the first few days doing that. then they will have graded out what announcements they want to make and policies they want to land and how that brings the main theme to life. of course, events will happen. the other parties will have their view on that, but they will have a sense of the big policy ideas for the manifesto that they have been working on. the other thing is that they will have a clear sense to a granular level of the seats they think they have won already where they don't have to campaign, and the seats that they need to target. that will be the basis for where the prime minister goes, where the cabinet go, where resources are put in, where media are targeted. all of that groundwork has been done by the campaign team, it's all ready to go. labour are well prepped as

he also said messages criticising borisjohnson and colleagues were "raw, in the moment" expressions andonse. mr case sent whatsapps saying mrjohnson "cannot lead" and calling officials "pygmies" at the height of the pandemic. he told the inquiry he "deeply regretted" the messages. rishi sunak�*s flagship bill to ban smoking for anyone born after 2009 looks likely to be shelved. parliament will be suspended friday for the campaign and all legislation that isn't already passed automatically gets dropped — regardless of who wins. sunak faced backlash over the bill from his own conservative party. labour previously pledged to bring in the ban if they win the general election. you're live with bbc news. lawmakers in the us state of louisiana passed legislation to designate two abortion pills as dangerous controlled substances, the first in the nation to do so. the law would categorise mifepristone and misoprostol as schedule four drugs putting in them same category as ambien and xanax, which are considered to have potential for abuse or dependency. possession of the abortion drugs could resu

you were a | friend of boris johnson, david, and friend of borisjohnson, david, and you friend of borisjohnson conservative supporter and _ i am fundamentally a conservative supporter and voter— i am fundamentally a conservative supporter and voter and _ i am fundamentally a conservative supporter and voter and that - i am fundamentally a conservative supporter and voter and that is - i am fundamentally a conservative supporter and voter and that is inl supporter and voter and that is in my blood — supporter and voter and that is in my blood and _ supporter and voter and that is in my blood and that _ supporter and voter and that is in my blood and that will _ supporter and voter and that is in my blood and that will continue. i supporter and voter and that is ini my blood and that will continue. i accept _ my blood and that will continue. i accept and — my blood and that will continue. i accept and acknowledge - my blood and that will continue. i accept and acknowledge that - accept and acknowledge that the economy— accept and acknowledge that the economy and _ accept and acknowledge that the

turn up to vote, it began in england, scotland and wales under this man, former prime minister borisjohnsonstation in 0xfordshire, and he was turned away because, yes, he had forgotten his id. he later returned with the right id. he later returned with the right id. his spokesman told the bbc, mr johnson voted conservative. 0ur political editor chris mason. as chris mentioned, we have the blackpool south by—election, that is counted overnight were the conservatives are defending a majority of just 3690. conservatives are defending a majority ofjust 3690. we go live to the count with helen. so, let's start off with the basics, remind us why we have a by—election in the first place. we why we have a by-election in the first place-— first place. we are having this by-eleetion — first place. we are having this by-election because - first place. we are having this by-election because the - first place. we are having this i by-election because the former first place. we are having this - by-election because the former mp by—election because the former mp for this seat, scott benton, who was elect

neverfar behind borisjohnson, simon case was a man with a front seat atjohnson�*s number ten during thet secretary gave evidence to the uk covid inquiry. i swear by almighty god... that the evidence i shall give... whatsapp messages from the time were quoted back at him. you yourself say good - people were being put off because it's such a rat's nest. yeah, that's all correct. at times he showed his emotions... good people were working incredibly hard in impossible circumstances with choices where it seems there was never right, never a right answer. but that lack of sort of team spirit, the difficult atmosphere, you're trying to run everything from the centre of government, despite trying to run the response to a global pandemic. good people were just being smashed to pieces. and his exasperation. there were some dark days when it felt we just couldn't. .. we just couldn't get it right. and what about partygate, mr case having taken part in one office event? it was a terrible self—imposed wound. i mean, yeah, i mean, it sort of, i'm sure... to the bereaved, sort of feels like a terribl

so what did you think when borisjohnson, yourformer boss, said, "i think they're absolutely nuts"? churchill wants to ban cigars, donnez—moi un break, as they say in quebec." i think he was in quebec when he gave that quote. "it's just mad," he said. 0k, well, first of all, an adult winston churchill would still be able to smoke his cigars. because what we're not doing is saying to anyone who can smoke legally at the moment, we are absolutely maintaining that that freedom. what we're saying is that we want to stop children and young people from falling into the habit in the first place. so we know that the overwhelming majority of people start smoking before the age of 20. and we want to ensure that, through this change in the law for retail of cigarettes, that we believe the modelling shows us we will see a huge reduction in smoking over the next ten years. but on the central point, philosophically, of whether this is conservative... and as a conservative, i don't like banning things. but i also don't believe that there is liberty in addiction, and nicotine is one of the most addi

it began in england, scotland, wales under this man — former prime minister borisjohnson, here he was turn out today. and this morning he rolled up at his local polling station in oxfordshire and was turned away because he'd forgotten. he later returned with the right id. his spokesman told the bbc, "mrjohnson voted conservative". eventually! clive. chris mason, political editor. chris mentioned the blackpool by—election. well the conservatives are defending a majority ofjust 3,690, in the blackpool south by—election, and helen catt, is at the count. the tallying has already begun? we are the tallying has already begun? - are expecting their first boxes to arrive in the next five to ten minutes. it is a constituency that takes in the major sites are black though, that i was, the pier at the pleasure beach but it is the third most deprived constituency in england. laboursources most deprived constituency in england. labour sources are confident they will pick up a win here. they are framing this, as you had pat mcfadden xi, the most important contest happening this evening because it i