Key points
- 'Our contract with you': Reform unveil key pledges
- Watch:Would Farage rejoin Tory party?
- Sky News Daily:Reform's election promises examined
- Starmer's approval rating reaches new high - poll
- PM 'fighting for every vote' after minister's glum admission
- Live reporting by Samuel Osborne and (earlier) Faith Ridlerand Bhvishya Patel
Expert analysis
- Ed Conway:Do Reform's numbers add up?
- Sam Coates:Farage's silence on one question is telling
- Jon Craig:Who's top of Sky's election interviews league?
Election essentials
- Check parties' manifesto pledges:Conservatives|Greens|Labour|Lib Dems|Plaid Cymru|Reform
- Trackers:Who's leading polls?|Is PM keeping promises?
- Campaign Heritage:Memorable moments from elections gone by
- Follow Sky's politics podcasts:Electoral Dysfunction|Politics At Jack And Sam's
- Read more:Who is standing down?|Key seats to watch|How to register to vote|What counts as voter ID?|Check if your constituency is changing|Your essential guide to election lingo|Sky's election night plans
Sam Coates: Farage's silence on one question is telling
The real question after Reform UK's manifesto launch today is whether it is "worth the paper it is written on," saysour deputy political editor Sam Coates.
Speaking fromMerthyr Tydfil in South Wales, where the party launched its manifesto, he says: "Reform UK is a new political party. It's barely three years old and the hurdles for a new party to actually make significant gains in terms of seats under our system, first past the post, is incredibly hard."
He asks: "What's the real intention of the leader here, Nigel Farage?
"It was that question we came down to in the interview that I did with him earlier, where I pushed him time and time on whether he would join the Conservatives post-election.
"He refused to engage with that question.
"He talked around it, he made very clear that he thought it was unlikely, but he would not rule it out."
Sam says as a consequence he thinks a lot of people in the Tory party and Reform UK "will have one raised eyebrow... because the question is, does Nigel Farage, who was in the Conservative Party, think that his future is with a party that's not going to get many seats?"
Or, he asks, could Mr Farage swap from Reform UK to the Conservative Party if he is elected?
"That is the question. Nigel Farage's silence on that answer was telling today."
Sam adds: "Nigel Farage has often shaped our politics, we've seen it continually over the last 15 years.
"Is it Reform UK that he's really interested in or given today's interview, actually, is it the Tories?"
It's 10pm - here's your rundown of the day.
Tomorrow there will be 16 more days to go until Britons head to the polls to decide the country's future.
Reform UK unveiled their sort-of manifesto today, which they're calling a "contract with the British people," while Labour and the Conservatives have launched theirs already and the SNP's is due on Wednesday.
Here's everything you may have missed today…
- Our deputy political editor Sam Coatesrepeatedly asked Reform UK leader Nigel Farage whether he would join the Conservatives if he was elected - but Mr Farage refused to engage with the question;
- In his analysis, Sam said the key question was whether Mr Farage could swap parties: "That is the question. Nigel Farage's silence on that answer was telling today".
- It came afterReform UKlaunched its "contract with the British people", which includes freezing "all non-essential immigration" and a raft of tax cuts (use the tool below to swipe through all the pledges);
- Speaking in Merthyr Tydfil in South Wales MrFaragesaid this general election campaign wasn't about winning but is the "first big push" towards the next contest;
- Earlier heconfirmed his ambitions to become prime minister at the next general election, which could be in 2029;
- The party's deputy leader Dr David Bull was interviewed on our weeknight politics show Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge and told Sophy the party wants to encourage parents to stay at home to look after their children.
- Earlier today,Defence Secretary Grant Shappsadmitted it is unlikely the Tories will win the general election on 4 July - but insisted it remains a possibility;
- He also warned a Labour government would be"very bad news", telling Sky News it would mean "higher taxes for everyone".
- Rishi Sunaklater insisted he is still "fighting hard for every vote";
- Speaking from Centrica's Rough 47-3B gas rig in the North Sea, the prime minister insisted the Conservatives are "on the right track", but said he understands people's "frustrations" with his party.
- Sir Keir Starmerhas been campaigning in Hampshire, heading off concerns Reform UK could target Labour heartlands in Wales by insisting the general election is "a straight choice between Conservatives and Labour";
- Rachel Reeves, the shadow chancellor, earlier told a group of business leaders a "pro-business" Labour would hold a global investment summit in the first 100 days of entering government;
- Speaking to Sky News earlier, Labour frontbencher Jonathan Ashworth refused to explicitly say whether Labour would increase fuel duty or stamp duty, but ruled outcouncil tax re-banding".
- John Swinney, Scotland's first minister, has stressed the need for a social tariff, whereby the SNP can "commit to people who are elderly or disable that they are free of the burden of energy costs in our society";
- And the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey is near Paignton in Devon, where he insisted Nigel Farage's party aren't making things harder for him when it comes to trying to win over Tory voters.
- And finally... our chief political correspondent Jon Craiglooked at who was top of Sky's election interviews league for the Conservatives and Labour:
On the Sky News Daily podcast,Niall Patersongets analysis on what's in Reform's manifesto from ourchief political correspondentJon Craig, listen here:
Here are some other stories you might find interesting:
Join us again tomorrow for all the latest political updates throughout the day.
Premier League clubs could face 10% transfer levy under Labour
By Faye Brown, political reporter
Premier League clubs could have to pay a 10% tax on the transfer of football players under plans being considered by Labour.
Sir Keir Starmer's party has pledged to bring forward football governance reforms that would prevent breakaways in the style of the ill-fated European Super League if Labour wins the general election.
On Monday, shadow sports secretary Thangam Debbonaire was asked if this would include reviving the transfer levy - something which was recommended in a 2021 fan-led review but not taken up by the Conservatives in their version of the bill.
Ms Debbonaire said she was "going to look at everything again" that was in the review.
Speaking from Bristol Rovers' football ground, she added: "A club like this, it's not the wealthiest club in the world, and it wants to be able to invest in infrastructure.
"It wants to be able to make sure that facilities are good for the future.
"That does take money, so I'm going to look at absolutely everything that might help increase the financial sustainability."
Read more here...
Do the figures in Reform UK's 'manifesto' add up?
By Ed Conway, economics and data editor
The Reform manifesto, or "contract" as they're calling it, is a strange document.
Most manifestos are produced to give the voter a sniff of what life might look like if the party in question gets into power.
Yet Reform has said quite plainly that they have no ambition to win this election, and see their best-case scenario as, instead, installing some MPs as the beginnings of the real opposition against the Labour Party they assume will win on 4 July.
Yet, even so, they have provided a manifesto (if it's alright with you I might just carry on calling it that) with a blizzard of numbers illustrating what they would do in power if given the chance. Not only that, they put great store on the fact that this manifesto is a serious document - that their plans are "fully funded".
So: are they? Do their numbers add up?
Read the full analysis here...
As Euros get under way, who's top of Sky's election interviews league?
Week four of the general election campaign began with Grant Shapps being interviewed on Sky News and other broadcasters.
No surprise there.
Like Jude Bellingham in Gareth Southgate's England squad in the Euros, Mr Shapps is one of the first names on Rishi Sunak's election team sheet for broadcast interviews.
A league table of interviews on Sky News in the campaign so far reveals the defence secretary is one of the top three cabinet ministers leading the Conservatives' TV attack against Labour.
Not surprisingly, Sunak ultra-loyalist Mel Stride, the work and pensions secretary, tops our league table with five interviews, with Home Secretary James Cleverly also on four.
Another Sunak ultra-loyalist, Transport Secretary Mark Harper, is just behind the top three, with a trio of Sky News interviews, including Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips at the weekend.
The Sky News league table is likely to be similar to those for other broadcasters and therefore a good indication of the overall totals of interviews by top politicians during the election campaign.
What about Labour?
Top of Labour's Sky News interviews league table is tough-tackling Jonathan Ashworth, with eight, followed by shadow health secretary Wes Streeting - who also appeared on Sunday Morning With Trevor Phillips at the weekend - on seven.
This pair, clearly regarded by Labour's high command as the party's top media performers, have also been the most prominent shadow cabinet members in the spin rooms after TV debates, often taking part in lively arguments with Tory opponents.
A game of two halves
Politics, like football is of course often a game of two halves. With just 17 days of the six-week campaign left, this election could now be said to be moving from the group stages to the knockout stage.
In an outspoken comment on political leaders, Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville famously declared Southgate is "everything a leader should be: respectful, humble, tells the truth, genuine".
So as the Euros coincide with the election campaign during the second half of June, who will be a winner in July? Gareth Southgate, Rishi Sunak or Sir Keir Starmer?
Criticism of Labour candidate as 'frit or lazy' was 'unacceptable'
Labour's shadow chief secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones, tells Sophy it was "unacceptable" for a Labour peer to criticise a candidate as "frit or lazy".
Former EastEnders star Lord Cashman had the Labour whip suspended for suggesting Rosie Duffield was scared or lazy after she pulled out of local hustings over safety concerns.
Former MEP Lord Cashman commented on a social media post about her decision saying: "Frit. Or lazy."
Mr Jones says: "It's not appropriate to talk about any colleague like that, especially in the circ*mstances that Rosie was not able to attend those hustings, which were security-related."
Mr Jones adds: "And, you know, we would say that for any politician of any party, we need to make sure that all of our candidates feel safe and secure going about making the case, whatever it is that they believe in, in our democracy.
"Michael Cashman shouldn't have said that about Rosie. It was unacceptable. And that's why the whip has been removed from him."
Ms Duffield has previously accused the Labour leadership of ignoring her concerns about self-identification, which she believes threatens women's rights to single-sex spaces, and the abuse she's received over her views.
Ms Duffield is standing in Canterbury along with:
- Luke Buchanan-Hodgman, Social Democratic Party;
- Louise Harvey-Quirke, Conservatives;
- Bridget Porter, Reform;
- Henry Stanton, Greens;
- Russ Timpson, Lib Dems.
That concludes our coverage of tonight's Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge- it'll return tomorrow from 7pm. In the meantime, stick with us here for the latest general election news and analysis.
Are Labour worried about Reform?
Next up withSophy Ridgeis Darren Jones, Labour's shadow chief secretary to the Treasury.
He's asked whether his party is worried about Reform UK, with their manifesto having been launched in a Welsh Labour heartland today.
Mr Jones appears unmoved, saying the policies Nigel Farage put forward included "tens and tens of billions of pounds of commitments with no explanation as to how they're going to pay for it".
He compares it unfavourably to the Tory manifesto, adding: "I think we're probably the only party that has a fully funded, fully costed manifesto."
And on the potentially existential threat Reform poses to the Tories, it's fair to say he's not spending his time fretting about their prospects.
"It's not for me to worry about the Conservative Party," he says.
"They should be worrying about themselves."
Panel weigh in on Reform UK's family policy
Tonight's panel are weighing in on what Reform UK deputy leader Dr David Bull said during his interview with Sophy earlier - that the party wants to encourage parents to stay at home to look after their children.
He said it's a travesty parents have to work and don't spend enough time with their kids.
Former Green Party leader Baroness Natalie Bennett says the UK has "a very high rate" of marriage and relationship breakdown compared to the rest of Europe and the second-longest working hours in Europe, as well as "huge problems with poverty".
She adds: "We have huge problems with poor housing, people having to commute enormous distances.
"Let's transform our society, so people can have a balanced life."
She says one of the things that has got a lot of attention in the Green Party manifesto is the idea of a four-day working week, which she says would allow people "to actually spend with their family, they have the time to have a balanced life."
Salma Shah, former Conservative special adviser, says the Tories have had similar social policies in the past, giving the example of marriage tax breaks.
But she questions whether Reform's ideas are a vote winner: "Is it the thing that is going to really touch the hearts of those people who are still available for the Conservatives in terms of voters? I'm not sure."
We're not done with manifestos just yet...
Today was Reform's day in the limelight for its manifesto, but we're not quite done with them yet.
Still to come this week is the SNP - and its leader has told Sky News his party will have the most left-wing manifesto of anyone.
John Swinney accused Labour of moving to the right which has left the SNP as the only party to the left of centre.
"The SNP is a moderate left-of-centre political party, it always has been, always will be," he told Sky News.
"The Labour Party's essentially accepted the discipline of the Conservative approach to the economy.
"And that's going to constrain them in all that they can do.
"We already know that there's going to be spending cuts that the Tories have put in place, which the Labour Party is going to accept."
Read more from our political reporter Alix Culbertson:
'It would be extraordinary': Reform hoping to win up to seven seats
Reform UK's deputy leader Dr David Bull tells Sophy he hopes the party will win between three and seven seats in the general election.
"When we started this campaign, we thought one would be a great triumph," he says.
He says it "would be extraordinary" if a poll suggesting the party could end up with seven seats turns out to be correct.
Pushed on how many seats he thinks the party will win, he says: "I'm saying anywhere between three and seven would be marvellous."
Asked who people should vote for in the 30 seats Reform candidates are not standing in, Dr Bull says voters should go for "the least worst option".
Asked which party that would be, he says: "The really important thing is you have to vote. People died for the ability to vote. So I'm really keen that people do vote."
He also disputes the Tory attack line that a vote for Reform is really a vote for Keir Starmer, saying: "I would argue that actually a vote for the Conservatives lets Labour in. So vote for us.
"We know Labour is going to win this election. So why don't you actually follow your convictions and vote for us?"
