Today, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer return to the campaign trail after clashing over the Westminster betting row in their final televised debate before the General Election. Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Mel Stride, Shadow Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson, and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey are also scheduled for media appearances. Various candidates and leaders, including Nigel Farage, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, and SNP Leader John Swinney, are set to visit different locations throughout the day for campaigning events. Additionally, there will be interviews with Keir Starmer on ITV and a BBC debate with Northern Ireland leaders in the evening.
UK general election live: Sunak was ‘bullied’ into taking action over betting scandal, says Starmer in final debate | General election 2024
Key events
Coming up today
Here is a more detailed schedule of what we can expect on the campaign trail today, via PA:
Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer return to the campaign trail on Thursday after they clashed over the Westminster betting row in their final televised head-to-head debate ahead of the General Election.
Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Mel Stride is on morning media round for the Conservatives, Shadow Secretary of State for Education Bridget Phillipson for Labour, Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey for the Lib Dems.
9.30am Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Edinburgh West, Christine Jardine, is on the campaign trail in Edinburgh.
10.15am: Starmer is in the North West and west Midlands.
11.30am: Sunak is campaigning in the Midlands and Yorkshire with a staff Q&A at a pottery factory in Derbyshire.
12pm: Nigel Farage in the North East, before a Reform event with Richard Tice in the evening.
2.30pm Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to visit a health charity in Kirkcaldy with local candidate Melanie Ward.
3:10pm SNP Leader John Swinney on campaign trail in Edinburgh East and Musselburgh with SNP candidate for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, Tommy Sheppard. Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross to visit business in East Lothian.
8.30pm: ITV interview with Keir Starmer
9pm: Northern Ireland leaders take part in a BBC debate
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This morning’s front pages
Last night’s debate – and exclamation points – are common themes on the front pages this morning, with the Guardian leading with PM and Starmer clash over betting scandal in tetchy final TV debate:
The Times: Sunak rams home tax message in final debate
The Independent: Starmer squares up to striking doctors: I won’t give a 35% rise
The Daily Mail: Rishi’s furious blast at Starmer… You are taking people for fools!
Scotsman: SNP closing gap on Labour despite contrast in seat count
Much like the scandal, the betting puns aren’t over yet: the Daily Record has Flutter Coward beside a picture of a downcast Sunak:
The award for counting – almost – to ten goes to the Daily Express, with: No idea! 9 times Starmer fails to give an answer on boats crisis:
Maybe ‘the next foreign secretary’ knows the answer, in this week’s New Statesman:
And distinguished guests, we have a tie for the Stuff of Nightmares Award, which goes to the cover artists for the New European and the Spectator:
ShareDenis Campbell
The leaders of the BMA’s junior doctors committee (JDC) said today that they could call further strikes for this summer if the next government does not hold talks in a “timely manner”.
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However, they have stressed in recent months that they would be happy for any significant progress towards their goal of “full pay restoration” to be phased in over a number of years. That has raised tentative hopes that the long-running and very disruptive dispute may soon be over.
Wes Streeting, the shadow health secretary, has said that increasing junior doctors’ pay would need to be a “journey not an event”. He has also said that he would not approve a 35% rise because if he did, “any trade union worth its salt” would then demand the same sum for its members.
Dr Robert Laurenson, the JDC co-chair, said: “He is talking about things like ‘journey not an event’. We’re happy to have a multiyear pay deal. He has seemingly heard that, and ‘journey not an event’ matches that.”
Dr Vivek Trivedi, the other co-chair, said: “The main thing I’ve taken away from discussions [with Labour] is that there is a willingness to try and at least engage in constructive and meaningful [talks]”.
He added: “If talks do not move in a timely manner, then of course our members would expect us to call for strike action.”
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Junior doctors strike in England despite risk of scoring ‘own goal’
Denis Campbell
Junior doctors in England will strike today for the 11th time over pay, amid concern in their union that a stoppage so close to the general election is an “own goal”.
Senior figures in the British Medical Association (BMA) believe the strike is pointless and “naive” and risks irritating Labour, which looks likely to be in power by next Friday and asked the union to call it off.
About 25,000 junior doctors are expected to refuse to work during the five-day stoppage, which begins at 7am today and runs until the same time next Tuesday, 2 July.
By the end of it, junior doctors will have been on strike for 44 days since they first took industrial action in March 2023 in pursuit of a 35% pay rise.
The 10 previous strikes have forced the NHS to cancel 1.4m outpatient appointments and operations and spend £1.7bn to minimise disruption.
NHS England expects the “widespread disruption to care” over the next five days to be worse than before because heat-related health problems are adding to the strain on many services. “This new round of strike action will again hit the NHS very hard,” said Prof Stephen Powis, its national medical director.
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YouGov poll split down the middle on who won debate
A snap poll by YouGov of 1716 people had voters evenly split on who won last night’s debate. Sunak and Starmer were also practically tied on who seemed more “prime ministerial”, earning 41% and 42% respectively (with 16% “don’t knows”).
Asked how well each individual performed, Starmer came out slightly ahead, with a score of 61% to Sunak’s 56%. Starmer was way ahead on being “in touch with ordinary people”, with 63% to Sunak’s 18%. Starmer was also more likeable (52-33) and trustworthy (50-39).
Sunak beat starmer on immigration (55-35) and tax (48-37), with Starmer coming out on top on the economy (47-53), welfare and benefits (51-39) and Britain’s relationship with the EU (52-32).
British opposition Labour Party leader Keir Starmer looks on as British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaks during the BBC’s Prime Ministerial Debate on 26 June 2024 In Nottingham, England. Photograph: WPA/Getty ImagesShare
Sunak and Starmer clash over gambling scandal in final election debate
Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer have clashed over their responses to the Westminster gambling scandal, as it emerged the Metropolitan police is to widen its role in the investigation into bets placed on the general election.
In the last head-to-head debate before voters go to the polls, the Labour leader launched a fierce attack on the culture at the top of the Conservative party, saying it showed the “wrong instinct” to place bets on the future of the country – likening it to the cavalier attitude to Covid rules.
In the angry exchanges, Sunak repeatedly urged the country not to “surrender” to Labour’s plans on tax and migration and said the general election should not be decided purely based on frustration with the Conservatives.
Jessica Elgot and Pippa Crerar report:
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Sunak was ‘bullied’ into taking action over betting scandal, says Starmer in last debate before voting day
Hello and welcome to the Guadian’s live coverage of the run-up to the UK general election with me, Helen Sullivan.
This time next week polling stations will be preparing to open – voting starts at 7am on 4 July. In their final debate before polling day, Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer traded barbs over their responses to the gambling scandal, the Guardian’s Jessica Elgot and Pippa Crerar report, as it emerged the Metropolitan police is to widen its role in the investigation into bets placed on the general election.
Starmer said he had suspended his candidate, Kevin Craig, “within minutes” of Craig admitting in a statement that he had placed a bet against himself winning the seat a few weeks ago.
Starmer was comparing his actions with Sunak, who took days to make the decision. “I think that in the last 14 years politics has become too much about self entitlement, and MPs thinking about what they could get for themselves,” he said.
“The instinct of these people to think the first thing they should do is try to make money, that was the wrong instinct, and we have to change that.”
He said Sunak had “delayed and delayed and delayed” and had been “bullied into” taking action. “My candidates know I have the highest standards. They have seen by my actions the consequences”.
Sunak meanwhile repeatedly urged voters not to “surrender” to a Labour government, using language Boris Johnson used when talking about Brexit.
“Do not surrender to the Labour party the control of our borders. If Labour wins, the people smugglers are going to need a bigger boat,” said Sunak.
More on the key developments from the debate soon.
Meanwhile here is what is coming up today:
9.30am Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate for Edinburgh West, Christine Jardine, is on the campaign trail in Edinburgh.
12pm: Nigel Farage in the North East, before a Reform event with Richard Tice in the evening.
2.30pm Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar to visit a health charity in Kirkcaldy with local candidate Melanie Ward.
3:10pm SNP Leader John Swinney on campaign trail in Edinburgh East and Musselburgh with SNP candidate for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, Tommy Sheppard.
The Scottish Conservatives are on the campaign trail in East Lothian.
8.30pm: ITV interview with Keir Starmer
9pm: Northern Ireland leaders take part in a BBC debate
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Read the full story on www.theguardian.com
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/live/2024/jun/27/uk-general-election-2024-live-updates-debate-betting-scandal-rishi-sunak-keir-starmer-tories-labour