Summary

  • David Cameron is to confirm that the Conservatives would spend an extra £8bn on the NHS in England by 2020

  • The BBC has been told the Tories' manifesto will contain a pledge to raise inheritance tax to £1 million

  • The Conservatives are promising 15 million workers three extra days of paid leave to do voluntary work, if they win the election

  • Labour leader Ed Miliband says the SNP's economic plans would have a "devastating" impact on Scotland

  • The Lib Dems are pledging help for young people who want to rent to raise a deposit

  • There are 27 days until the general election

Live Reporting

Angela Harrison and Brian Wheeler

  1. Robert Hutton, Bloomberg

    @RobDotHutton

    tweets:

    At another Michael Fallon event. If Ed Miliband's past girlfriends have implications for Trident, we'll learn it here.

  2. John Prescott, former deputy leader of the Labour Party

    @johnprescott

    tweets:

    If yesterday's Michael Fallon interview was a car crash, Eric Pickles just caused a motorway pile-up #r4today

  3. Fraser Nelson editor of the Spectator

    @FraserNelson

    tweets :

    Have to say, Justine Miliband is a PR genius. Transforms her dull husband into a Heathcliffe-style heartthrob

  4. Victoria Derbyshire

    @VictoriaLIVE

    tweets:

    Victoria Derbyshire with young voters

    First time voters on #VictoriaLIVE say: "How parents vote does affect you" "I'll vote on local issues" #GE2015

  5. Add to the debate

    Email politics@bbc.co.uk

    Mike Holden:

    The Conservative pledge made by Eric Pickles today states that already overstretched hospitals and police services are going to be forced to allow three extra days paid leave per year for volunteering, but says big business can opt out “if it causes problems for the company”?

    Does anybody seriously think most large companies won’t opt out when looking at a 10% (or more) increase in paid leave for all staff? This idea is in chaos before the ink is dry.

  6. Twitter update

    Now there's a new way to show who you're talking about when you tweet your thoughts.

    Twitter has launched #GE2015 hashtags.

    Smiley face...

    Twitter pic

  7. Jack Blanchard, Deputy Political Editor, Daily Mirror

    @Jack_Blanchard

    tweets:

    Yvette bravely channels Blair at Labour policing launch. "Labour has long believed we need to be tough on crime, & tough on causes of crime"

  8. It's the economy...

    Yes, we've had some economic data released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) this morning.

    UK industrial output rose by just 0.1% in February, the ONS says. Construction output fell by 0.9%. There was a dramatic fall the output of North Sea oil and gas, down 12% in February compared to a year earlier.

    Although neither industrial output - that's manufacturing and coal, oil, gas and mineral production - nor construction are the dominant sectors of the economy, the falls could have a negative impact on economic growth in the first three months of the year.

    We get that figure just nine days before the election.

    The last three months of 2014 saw economic growth of 0.6%. Anything below that won't be welcomed by the Lib Dems or the Tories just before polling day.

  9. John Stevens, Daily Mail political reporter

    @johnestevens

    tweets:

    Nigel Farage unveiling his third Ukip election campaign poster in four days this morning (five posters in past 11 days)

  10. Aberdeen South debate

    Victoria Derbyshire

    Candidate in Aberdeen South

    On the Victoria Derbyshire programme now, presenter Jane Hill is talking to six representatives for the main parties, in the Scottish constituency of Aberdeen South.

    They are:

    Anne Begg (Labour)

    Ross Thomson (Conservative)

    Denis Rixson (Lib dem)

    Calum Walker (UKIP) - who is speaking on behalf of Sandra Skinner

    Dan Yeats (Green)

    Callum McCaig (SNP)

    You can learn a bit more about them here

  11. Peter Henley BBC politics reporter

    @BBCPeterH

    Candidate list for Basingstoketwitter

    tweets:

    Election candidates want a job-share but have been told they can't - Green Party says Basingstoke has got it wrong

  12. Add to the debate

    Email: politics@bbc.co.uk

    Justin Stone, Leicester:

    So, this election I have sent two emails, one despairing at the attitude of the electorate and another expressing disappointment at negative campaigning. Today the two collide. A positive announcement about paid leave for volunteering meant with absolute cynicism.

    Cameron cannot both be in hock to big business and at the same time ruining them by asking them to give something back – this looks like criticism for the sake of it. The policy is voluntary which actually disappoints me, but I’ve no doubt if it were compulsory the NHS etc could be exempt.

    I think it would be great if the BBC fact checker could work out what the impact on taxation would be if the state carried out all the activities of the charities that need volunteers.

  13. Philip Webster, Assistant Editor (Politics) of The Times

    @Pwebstertimes

    tweets:

    Labour replaces Tories as most popular party among women. Special Red Box YouGov analysis http://www.thetimes.co.uk/redbox/topic/the-road-to-2015-the-data/conservatives-no-longer-most-popular-party-among-women …

  14. HIV treatment

    BBC Radio 5 Live

    The Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt, has accused UKIP leader Nigel Farage of "scaremongering" over HIV patients in the UK.

    Mr Farage told a debate last week that of the 7,000 cases of HIV diagnosed every year, 60% of the patients were not British-born.

    Speaking to Radio 5 Live, Mr Hunt said the "majority" of people who test positive for HIV in the UK contract the virus here.

    He said it was "very important" to treat them quickly, to prevent other people contracting the illness.

    He conceded Mr Farage's argument, which was about the costs of health tourism, "may have resonated with some people" but said that was why people like him "need to say he's wrong".

    Nigel Farage during the TV debate

  15. Send us your comments

    Text: 61124

    Gary, Northants:

    Get rid of police commissioners. Our force in Northants is the second smallest yet our commissioner has the third highest spending.

  16. General Boles, minister of state (BIS, DfE), former Allied Commander

    @GeneralBoles

    tweets:

    Let me help you with that @Kevin_Maguire @toryboypierce

    Ed Miliband as PoldarkTwitter

  17. Kevin Maguire, Daily Mirror associate editor

    @Kevin_Maguire

    tweets:

    Struggling to get my head around @toryboypierce's portrayal of Ed Miliband as an Aidan Turner Poldark-style smouldering sex god

  18. IOD: Volunteering plan 'heavy-handed'

    Simon Walker, director general of the Institute of Directors (IoD) , has reacted to the Tory volunteering proposal. And he doesn't appear happy about it, suggesting the policy hasn't been thought through.

    He says many businesses are already "highly engaged in their local community and with charitable causes".

    Time off for charity work and volunteering is a matter for managers and employees to discuss between themselves, not a target for heavy-handed government intervention.

  19. BBC story: Cameron pledges 'paid volunteering leave'

    Your comments:

    Yewlodge comments on this story :

    A bribe which will have to be paid for by someone else! In this case the employers yet again and thence their business customersthus making our industries globally less competitive.Politicians need to reduce costs to business not increase them by the back door to buy a few votes with others hard work. Its usually Lab giving away others money but now the Cons are at it too. Shame on them all

    langstroth says:

    Many many 1000 of people volunteer anyway and use their own leave. 4 days is a welcome recognition of this, even if a small number of days in reality compared to the time people take off anyway.

  20. 'Come clean'

    There's also been some reaction to Labour's claim today that it can find £800m of savings that will prevent the loss of 10,000 police officers in the England and Wales.

    Liberal Democrat campaign spokesman Lord Scriven has called on Labour to "come clean" over whether it would merge some of the 43 English and Welsh forces.

    Lord Scriven said: "Under Labour, officers spent as much time in the station as on the street, re-offending rates spiralled and costs went through the roof.

    "The Lib Dems have spent the last five years sorting out their mess with a 'what works' approach to reduce crime and get more bobbies out of the office and back on the beat."