Summary

  • Conservatives welcome a letter from over 100 company bosses backing a “Conservative-led government”

  • Labour publishes its own letter signed by “people from all walks of life” as it pledges a crackdown on zero hours contracts

  • Lib Dems discuss plans to triple paternity leave to six weeks

  • Ed Balls and Nick Clegg take their campaigns to Scotland

  • There are 36 days until the general election

Live Reporting

Aiden James, Kristiina Cooper and Tim Fenton

  1. Get involved

    Text: 61124

    Election live reader:

    Only Osborne and his rich toff Tory mates could possibly think 50grand per year is somehow middle income!! 50k per year is rich

  2. Zero Hours Contracts - an epidemic?

    Reality Check

    Reality Check ZHC Epidemic

  3. Election live reader texts a reply to another reader

    Text: 61124

    Election live reader:

    In response to 1614, critics of austerity would suggest that the UK's economic position could have been better - not that it is necessarily bad.

  4. 'Nick Clegg on Germanwings plane crash'

    The Independent

    Jenn Selby writes this article:

    Nick Clegg has said there should be no “blanket rules” preventing people from undertaking certain roles of employment because they have a history of mental health problems. Speaking to reporters aboard the Liberal Democrats campaign battle bus, the Deputy Prime Minister made reference to Germanwings crash pilot Andreas Lubitz, who investigators believe suffered from suicidal tendencies before, apparently, crashing the plane deliberately.

  5. Get involved

    Text: 61124

    Gerry Fleming, Essex:

    Mr Miliband can you tell me the date you have penciled in to announce when you are going to declare a common prescription charge across the UK? ( that you removed 17 years ago)

  6. 'Today's Prime Ministers are younger than ever'

    @asabenn

    The Daily Telegraph

    Asa Bennett writes this article:

    Winston Churchill took over in 1940 at the age of 65, while David Cameron took office in 2010 at the sprightly age of 43. The trend has become so persistent that critics, like Nigel Farage, now take pot shots at "the current Westminster college kids" in government. So, is politics getting younger?

  7. BBC's Adam Fleming

    @adamfleming

    tweets:

    Is anyone hosting a watch party for the #leadersdebate #ITVdebate tomorrow night? #GE2015

  8. Get involved

    Text: 61124

    BBC News website reader:

    If economists say austerity was the wrong course, how do they explain that we have the fastest growing economy?

  9. Fraser Nelson, Editor of the @spectator

    @FraserNelson

    tweets:

    When Labour starts deriding employers as “the 1%” you get the feeling they’re fighting not just against the Tories but against business.

  10. Mark Ellis

    The Mirror

    writes this article:

    Get a grip of railways to avoid repeat of Christmas travel chaos this Easter, Labour tells Tories... Labour’s Shadow Transport Secretary Michael Dugher wants assurances there will be no repeat of the chaos at Christmas caused by late-running engineering work.

  11. BBC's Carole Walker

    @carolewalkercw

    tweets:

    George Osborne accuses Ed Balls of wanting to increase tax on middle earners

  12. Team changes

    David Cameron, Nick Clegg and Ed MilibandPA

    On a day so far dominated by big business and their letter-writing skills, it’s now time for your early team of Alex Stevenson and Victoria King to disappear. Figuratively, that is. So to sum up the first ten hours of today’s Election Live blog, here are some of the things we’ve learned:

    • Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson wears some eyebrow-raising nightwear whilst conducting Today programme interviews (07.40)
    • Conservative mockery has mugged Labour’s efforts to raise a bit of cash from their election pledges (09.41)
    • The prime minister has demonstrated there’s more reasons to like ale than just the taste (13.19)
    • One-quarter of ex-MPs have been either chased or bitten by a dog whilst on the campaign trail (10.45)
    • And Ed Miliband is going to go blond if he gets into Downing Street. No, wait – that one was an April Fool. And it wasn’t the only one,either… (13.31)

  13. 'All over the place'

    Carole Walker asks the chancellor about Ed Balls' 40p rate of tax and his commitment not to drag more people into the higher rate. Is this good news? "Frankly Ed Balls has been all over the place in the last 24 hours on this vital issue," the chancellor says. The Tory tax ambition is to reduce taxes for working people, he adds.

  14. Eric Joyce, ex-Labour MP

    @ericjoyce

    tweets:

    The Tory business letter. I count 95 men and 8 women? All white? And one Guardian Media Group director.

  15. Back to jobs

    Could the chancellor live on a zero-hours contract? "Of course it would be very difficult," George Osborne says. While they might work for a student, they're not so great for those who want "job security". And business leaders are today "saying very clearly that if you depart from our economic plan, jobs will be threatened, investment will be threatened and the recovery will be put at risk".

  16. Osborne on zero hours

    George Osborne

    George Osborne has wrapped up his speech and is now fielding a question on Labour’s zero-hours policy. He says the message from businesses is that more jobs means “sticking with our economic plan”. That’s the answer to the question of job insecurity, he says – “create more jobs”. He points out that 80% of jobs being created right now are full-time.

  17. Stephen Hammond, Conservative candidate

    @S_Hammond

    tweets:

    Labour hypocrisy over Zero Hours contracts is beyond belief. Guess which London Labour Council uses zero hours ? Merton

  18. Tom McTague, Mail Online Deputy Political Editor

    @TomMcTague

    tweets:

    Lib Dems all over the place. Clegg: 'Signatories to the letter are completely right.' Cable: 'They should be careful what they wish for'

  19. 'Dogged' economic policy

    George Osborne speech

    George Osborne is talking about the “economic stability” brought about by his policies. He points out that from this morning corporation tax has fallen to 20% - the lowest rate of any major economy in the world . “It’s not some accident or happy circumstance,” he says. “It was the result of a deliberate and doggedly pursued policy.” Oddly, the word ‘doggedly’ was used by Ed Balls in his speech earlier too. Go on, Ctl+F it. Or just scroll down to our 14.10 entry.

  20. Get involved

    Email: politics@bbc.co.uk

    Sam Marner, Sheffield:

    Find it strange people are trying to defend Clegg after his poll tumble; I live in Sheffield & all he's delivered for us is £63m in local cuts which has led to libraries & sure start centres closing across the city, the scrapping of £80m Sheffield Forgemasters loan which has held back our local economy & bedroom tax evictions which is shaming. If anyone is to blame for his seismic shift in the polls here, it is the man himself.