Summary

  • The Liberal Democrat Party launched its manifesto, pledging an extra £2.5bn for England's education budget

  • UKIP launched its manifesto, which included a commitment to protect the defence budget

  • Labour also published what it called its women's manifesto

  • There are 22 days left until polling day

Live Reporting

Bernadette McCague, Dominic Howell and Marie Jackson

  1. Sturgeon's two-pronged attack

    Meanwhile, on the campaign trail in Scotland, Nicola Sturgeon launched a two-pronged attack on the Tories and their coalition partners, the Lib Dems. The First Minister was visiting Kirkcaldy, Labour's safest Scottish seat held by former prime minister Gordon Brown until he retired when Parliament was dissolved. She said both parties are dishonest and cannot be trusted to keep their promises or deliver more powers for Scotland.

  2. LBC

    @LBC

    tweets:

    @Nigel_Farage tells @IainDale journalists who accuse UKIP of being racist are "part of the establishment"

  3. Peter Dominiczak, Daily Telegraph Political Editor

    @peterdominiczak

    tweets:

    @christopherhope asks Nigel Farage to answer his question on Ukip manifesto. "I think you got the answer you deserved," says Ukip leader.

  4. Boos and jeers at race question

    Here is the moment Daily Telegraph journalist Chris Hope was subjected to boos and jeers during UKIP's manifesto launch - after he asked why there was only one black face in the document - on the overseas aid page.

    Nigel Farage applauded as members of the party from different ethnic backgrounds rose to their feet in response to the question.

  5. Former army chief says UKIP has 'interesting proposals'

    BBC Radio 5 Live

    Sir Richard DannattGetty Images

    Former head of the British army Sir Richard Dannatt says "UKIP has set out some interesting proposals" on defence.

    He adds: "In fact, taken in isolation, they make a lot of sense. A number of people - myself included - have been saying that spending 2% of our GDP on defence is the right thing to do, after all the Prime Minister David Cameron himself at the NATO summit in Wales last Autumn was exulting all the NATO members to do that..."

  6. Michael Deacon, Political sketch writer, Telegraph

    @MichaelPDeacon

    tweets:

    Mail's @johnestevens, to Farage: "After Suzanne Evans's speech today, would you say a star is born?" Farage: "She was born a long time ago"

  7. Politics is missing 'respect' - Will Young

    Will Young

    Pop star Will Young has given an interview to BBC's Radio 5 live and said that the one thing politics is missing is "respect".

    The former Pop Idol winner said politicians were "all obsessed with their jobs". And he asked "Can you get to the top of the ladder in any party and stick to your principles?"

  8. Add to the debate

    Email: politics@bbc.co.uk

    Brian, Norfolk:

    Labour have just launched their manifesto for women; but when are they going to launch their manifesto for men?

    Labour seem to have a problem with men. Full stop.

    Harriet Harman is acting like a petulant headmistress of a girls only school of yesteryear.

    Ms Harman is living in the past and it is time someone in the Labour party took her to one side and told her that her views are out of date with a modern society.

    The pink bus was demeaning enough, but a woman's only manifesto is clearly a step too far.

  9. Kylie MacLellan, UK Political Correspondent for Reuters

    @kyliemaclellan

    tweets:

    Populus poll shows voters split on EU membership, with 39% saying they favoured leaving and 40% wanting to stay http://reut.rs/1H745bB

  10. John Stevens, Daily Mail political reporter

    @johnestevens

    tweets:

    Nigel Farage turns down a game of pool, saying he might not be any good "as I've not spent enough time in pubs" #ukip

  11. Political pictures

    Ed BallsGetty Images

    If you're feeling frazzled by the onslaught of information coming out of manifesto launches. Why not have a quick peruse of the best of the political pictures taken today. While his leader made headlines for eating a bacon sandwich, Ed Balls opts for ice cream instead.

  12. George Eaton, Political Editor, New Statesman

    @georgeeaton

    tweets:

    Chuka Umunna tells me 50p tax rate shouldn't be permanent - unlike Ed Miliband in 2010 http://bit.ly/1NIUFIE

  13. Tories 'underestimated' Ed

    The shadow business secretary, Chuka Umunna, says Labour must make the argument for cutting the deficit "more confidently".

    In an interview with the New Statesman, Mr Umunna warns the party will be "attacked" by left-wing groups when it comes to make cuts in government.

    He said there was nothing "progressive" about spending more on debt interest than housing and "that is where there is an argument from a progressive position to be made for balancing the books". Mr Umunna also said he did not want the top rate of tax to be raised to 50p permanently.

    He also praised Ed Miliband, whom he backed for the party's leadership. "One of the things that the Tories have massively underestimated in this campaign is the extent to which the characteristics that people attribute to Ed - honesty, decency, integrity - are an asset to our party. They totally and utterly underestimated that."

    Chuka UmunnaGetty Images

    "We need to make that argument and we need to make it more confidently... because if we get elected... we're going to have to make some really tough decisions. We need to be clear why we're doing this - we will be attacked from the left, not just by the Green Party but the Socialist Party and others, and we've got to have a confident, not a defensive position."

  14. Robert Peston, BBC economics editor

    @Peston

    Tweets: So the official Tory policy is to trounce LibDems and vice versa, but apparently not all activists got the memo

    Letter from John Harthman@Peston

  15. Jason Groves, Deputy Political Editor, the Daily Mail

    @JasonGroves1

    tweets:

    Lib Dems looking properly worried about Kingston and Richmond seats. First, watered down Mansion Tax, now reviving opposition to Heathrow

  16. Telegraph Comment

    @TeleComment

    tweets:

    Poor old Nick Clegg. He never gets a break - and he deserves one, laments @DPJHodges http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/general-election-2015/11539595/Nick-Clegg-deserves-a-break.html …

  17. Jason Beattie, DailyMirror political editor

    @JBeattieMirror

    tweets:

    Labour source: "If the Tories can make it to the spin room, it’s strange Cameron can’t make it to the debate podium" #GE20215

  18. Signing off

    Right – the weather is superb outside, so it’s time for your early team of Alex Stevenson and Victoria King to make a quick dash for the exit after handing over to Dominic Howell and Marie Jackson. Here’s some of the more unexpected developments from the last 10 hours:

    • UKIP’s press conference saw a journalist jeered and sarcastically applauded after he pointed out there was just one black face in the party’s manifesto (see 12.02 post)
    • The Lib Dems appear to be labouring under a technical curse – their battle bus has broken down twice in the last 24 hours, and the feed to their manifesto launch cut out shortly after Nick Clegg began taking questions (14.35)
    • Nigel Farage says he is a “gregarious cove” who just can’t help having informal conversations with other parties – including the Conservatives (12.04)
    • Labour’s Tom Harris has admitted his party leader is a “bit of a geek” – and that voters in his constituency are “raising their eyebrows approvingly” at newspaper reports of his past romances (13.40)
    • UKIP’s manifesto features lots of policies – and a bit of photoshopping, too (14.55)

  19. More UKIP policies

    UKIP's manifesto , launched today, contained well-publicised pledges to push for an EU exit and to curb immigration. But what else was in there? Here are six eye-catching proposals from Nigel Farage's party:

    *Make it a criminal offence to cold call someone in respect of pension arrangements

    *End sex education for primary school children

    *Make First Aid training part of the national curriculum

    *Amend the smoking ban so pubs can offer a separate room for smokers

    *Hold a national referendum every two years on the most popular petition with over two million signatures

    *Restrict postal votes to those with a valid reason to have one

  20. Can you tell Liberals from Lib Dems?

    Andrew Neil
    Daily and Sunday Politics

    The Liberal Party is "far more euro-critical" than the Liberal Democrats said its leader. who is fielding four general election candidates. And Steve Radford said the Liberals, formed in 1989, were "far more concerned on social policies" and wanted to do more for the low-paid in society. He said the Liberal Party could be described as more progressive, than of the centre right. Mr Radford, a Liverpool city councillor, spoke to Jo Coburn, who also got a reaction from former SDP member Danny Finkelstein, who is now a Conservative peer. Watch the interview

    Liberal Party logo