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Labour's Pat McFadden tells BBC Breakfast that planning reform, drink-spiking, railway nationalisation, and counter-terrorism will be just some of the areas in the King's Speech later today.

The Cabinet Office minister is pressed on nationalising train services, and how long it will take for the public to see changes.

"As the franchises for individual railways come to an end, [we want to] bring them into public ownership, to create a more integrated system, to simplify the ticketing, to make sure there is more interconnection between companies and to give ourselves a more reliable rail network and rail service.

"We think it is too fragmented and too unreliable and we want to do something about that."

Asked again on a timescale, McFadden says it depends on when the franchise contracts end.

• Read our explainer on rail nationalisation here - including when major franchise contracts end

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The prime minister says Wednesday's King's Speech will focus on economic growth - including plans to build more houses.

Our colleagues on the Today programme have been speaking to Samuel Hughes, the head of housing at think-tank the Centre for Policy Studies.

He has proposed a new town in Tempsford in Bedfordshire, north of London, which he calls the "best greenfield site in England".

Hughes says the plan would use existing railway lines - the East Coast main line and the new East West railway linking Oxford to Cambridge - to establish a new town.

More broadly, he says new towns can be a "big part of the solution to the housing shortage" - but cautions that location is a key factor.

As inflation remains at target, when will interest rates fall?published at 07:28 British Summer Time 17 July

07:28 BST 17 July

Faisal Islam
Economics editor

Let's go back to those inflation figures, which remained exactly at target at 2% for the second successive month.

Falls in some goods prices, for example clothes in summer sales, were offset by rises in hotel and restaurant prices.

The underlying measures of inflation being watched closely by the Bank of England also did not change. Services inflation remained at 5.7% and core inflation at 3.5%.

Alongside some other stronger figures for the economy, it may give some pause for thought for the members of the Bank of England committee deciding interest rates next month.

Yesterday the IMF listed the UK among the countries who could need to keep interest rates "higher for even longer" than originally anticipated to squeeze inflation out of the system.

Markets have been anticipating that rate cuts will start on 1 August, helping fixed mortgage rates fall. The latest numbers for inflation suggest it will be a finely balanced decision.

For keen-Parliament watchers, there will be a strange sight later - former prime minister Rishi Sunak on the other side of the House of Commons, as leader of the opposition.

We already know some of what he plans to say when the King's Speech - which is delivered in the House of Lords - is debated in the Commons.

"In the national interest, we will serve as an effective opposition. We will not oppose for the sake of it, but when we disagree with what the government is doing, it is our responsibility as the opposition to say so," he will say.

Sunak will add: "The party opposite tapped into the public's desire for change.

"But they must now deliver change: and we on this side of the House will hold them accountable for delivering on the commitments they made to the British people.

"The Labour Party promised no tax rises on working people and no plans for tax rises beyond what's in their manifesto, in full knowledge of the public finances.

"They can't now claim that things are worse than they thought and renege on these pledges. We will hold the government to its own promises."

Image source, EPA-EFE/REX/Shutterstock

We've just had this reaction to the inflation figures from Darren Jones, the chief secretary to the Treasury.

"It is welcome that inflation is at target, but we know that for families across Britain prices remain high," he says.

"We face the legacy of 14 years of chaos and economic irresponsibility.

"That is why this government is taking the tough decisions now to fix the foundations so we can rebuild Britain and make every part of Britain better off."

As a reminder, the inflation figures refer to June, when the previous government was in office.

The UK inflation rate remained unchanged at 2% in June, official data shows.

The Bank of England's target is 2%.

Jennifer McKiernan
Political reporter

Image source, PA Media

The prime minister says the King's Speech today will "take the brakes off Britain" with more than 35 new laws pushing economic growth.

Sir Keir Starmer said the package was aimed at improving living standards for working people by delivering manifesto commitments on better transport, delivering more jobs and boosting house-building and infrastructure projects.

"I am determined to create wealth for people up and down the country - it is the only way our country can progress, and my government is focused on supporting that aspiration," he says.

Flagship bills will include bringing rail and bus services into public ownership, establishing Great British Railways to rollout digital ticketing and automatic compensation across the whole network.

Other major bills include the launch of a National Wealth Fund to strengthen UK investment, a new Mission Control tasked with delivering clean power by 2030, the English Devolution Bill, to establish local growth plans, and recruiting for a new Border Security Command.

Sean Coughlan
Royal correspondent

The State Opening of Parliament and the King’s Speech are big constitutional moments for the monarch, carried out by King Charles for the second time in his reign.

It’s a mix of pageantry and political symbolism, with the King arriving in a carriage procession from Buckingham Palace to play his part in this ceremonial start to the new Parliament.

It’s actually pretty quirky too. There’s Black Rod knocking at the door of the Commons. There’s a procession that includes a hat called the “cap of maintenance”.

And an MP is temporarily handed over to Buckingham Palace as a hostage - although a former such “captive” remembers being offered a gin and tonic and the chance to watch the ceremony on TV.

Is this all an anachronistic craziness? Or does all this elaborate tradition, repeated over the decades, help to ensure the stability of the peaceful handover of democratic power?

• We'll have more on these traditions - including the hostage-taking - later today

Image source, PA Media

Helen Catt
Political correspondent

The exact content of the King's Speech is kept fairly under wraps. But we do already know some of what is expected to be in today's.

There will be a bill to bring the railways back into public ownership over time. Another will deal with bus franchising.

There will be a bill to change the planning system for big infrastructure projects and new homes and there is likely to be an "English Devolution Bill" to transfer some powers to local areas.

Overall, the government says the aim of the laws in this King's Speech is to improve living standards for working people through economic growth.

There is also a bit of a political row about something that won't be in it: changing the rule which says child benefit can only be paid for your first two children.

For some Labour backbenchers, the SNP and the Greens, this should be a priority for the government in order to tackle child poverty.

But the government says it won't make "unfunded" commitments - and that it does have a plan for child poverty.

• Read more on what could be in the King's Speech

Helen Catt
Political correspondent

For a government, the King's Speech is about setting priorities.

It's not prescriptive: not every bill that's announced later will necessarily make it through and the government may well pass other laws that aren't in the speech.

It is also only a programme of legislation for the next session of Parliament, which usually lasts a year, so it won't contain everything that was in Labour's manifesto.

Financial measures, like changes to taxes, are also unlikely to be covered as those will come in the Budget later this year.

However, it's a good guide to what the government thinks is most important, particularly as this is the first King's Speech of a new Parliament.

These are the laws that this government think are the most important to get passed first.

Image source, Reuters

Good morning and welcome to our coverage of the King's Speech and the State Opening of Parliament.

It's a big day for pomp and policy - remember that, although it's read by the King, the speech is written by the government. We're expecting around 35 new laws to be outlined.

King Charles is expected to speak at 11:30 BST, and there is plenty to get at before then.

Stay with us for breaking lines, policy analysis - and lots of ceremony.

Image source, Reuters