The Labour leader begins his stump speech by saying that "it's only when working people succeed that Britain succeeds". It's the "central thread" running through the campaign, he explains, before working his way through the policies on Labour's pledge card. We first found out what was featuring on the card last month . Its five big promises to voters are:

- A strong economic foundation

- Higher living standards for working families

- An NHS with the time to care

- Controls on immigration

- A country where the next generation can do better than the last

Yesterday a sixth pledge was added to a new version of the card:

- homes to buy and action on rent

Ed Miliband is in Barry where he's helping out the local candidate, Chris Elmore, who's standing in the Vale of Glamorgan constituency. "It's great to have a trained butcher in the House of Commons. I think that's what the House of Commons needs," he says.

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Image source, Jeff Overs/BBC

And here's the closing statements from today's defence debate:

- The SNP’s Angus Robertson says the parties provided no details about the defence cuts expected to be forced through by the main parties. He says the conventional armed forces should be supported – but “weapons of mass destruction” shouldn’t.

- The Greens’ Rebecca Johnson says the UK needs to change “how we think about defence and Britain’s place in the world”. She makes clear “outdated inhumane weapons” like Trident need to be abandoned.

- The Conservatives’ Michael Fallon says his party “puts defence first”. Commitments will be met because of the “strong economy” – whereas “a Labour government propped up by the SNP” would put that at risk.

- Labour’s Vernon Coaker says his party “will not take risks with Britain’s security” and underlines his determination to support the armed forces.

- The Liberal Democrats’ Sir Nick Harvey says the “balance of our defence priority” is wrong because it’s based on Cold War thinking, not the state of play now.

Mike Holden:

Michael Fallon insists that the UK could deploy a division – although it’s not sustainable, as everyone instantly points out - when challenged on the decline of Britain’s military. There are 82,000 soldiers in the British Army now, down from 350,000 in the First Gulf War, but Mr Fallon says the US has said Britain is an “indispensable” ally. Vernon Coaker says there are “real and difficult questions” and the “deployability” is “what it’s all about”. And then there’s questions about the types of deployability, too. An unexpected note of agreement to finish, there.

“Nobody is making this commitment because the sums involved… are so eye-watering that nobody has come up with a way of affording it,” the Lib Dems’ Sir Nick Harvey says. Angus Robertson agrees, but warns that the government might try to include other non-defence bits of government spending in order to maintain the 2% figure. Rebecca Johnson, of the Greens, points out the Nato 2% target was decided by Nato. She offers a brief history of the “military-industrial complex” - and appears to suggest the aid budget should be incorporated into defence spending. She won’t offer a “direct figure” and then seems to struggle with the idea of maintaining a standing Army, or fighter jets, or a Royal Navy.

John Hayter:

K. Norfolk:

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What about Labour? “We’re committed to where the budget is now, that’s the starting point,” Vernon Coaker says. That rather sounds like exactly the same thing as Michael Fallon was saying a moment ago. But it doesn’t stop him arguing with the defence secretary over spending plans. Mr Coaker says: “You need to speak to your chancellor… who said that the real-terms budget decrease over the next three years… will be 18%.” Andrew Neil complains neither of them have answered the question - at which both Mr Coaker and Mr Fallon begin speaking at once.

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Time for the discussion to move on to Britain’s commitment to spend 2% of GDP on defence. Michael Fallon gets a real grilling but says the “actual percentage number” decision will take place in this autumn’s comprehensive spending review. “We are already top of the class,” the defence secretary says. He points out that some of the other countries don’t even spend 1%. And then there comes what feels like a concession: “We can’t commit now to the exact totals for the three following years of the current year,” he says.

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Would the Greens support ongoing British membership of Nato, then? It’s not really clear, to be honest. Vernon Coaker says there’s a “contradiction” between giving up our nuclear weapons and “accepting the American nuclear umbrella”. Angus Robertson says the SNP accepts “all of the rules of the club” - the Nato club, that is. And on that Andrew Neil shuts down the debate on Trident. Phew. And the programme isn’t even over yet.

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The nuclear debate continues:

- Sir Nick Harvey explains the Lib Dem position of dropping down to three nuclear submarines, rather than the current four. Mightn’t the decision to deploy a nuclear sub in a crisis be a destabilising factor? That goes both ways, Sir Nick says. “The United States will flex its posture as part of its diplomacy to send a message,” he insists, suggesting Britain could do the same.

- Angus Robertson says the “massive decision” is being taken when £30bn of spending cuts have already been voted through. “These guys are prepared to spend £100bn on something that doesn’t deter, that doesn’t work.” Pulled up on that, he cites the Falklands and Vladimir Putin’s Crimea annexation as evidence that Britain’s threat doesn’t make much of a difference. Mr Robertson says the three UK “austerity” parties want to spend money on something that will “destroy the world”. Michael Fallon responds by saying it’s impossible to say whether a threat will emerge between now and 2060. He’s not prepared to “gamble” with the future security of the country.

- Rebecca Johnson says Britain ought to comply with its obligations under the terms of the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. She also raises the possibility that a cyberattack could turn “our own stupid nuclear weapons against us”. 

Vernon Coaker says the debate about Trident isn’t just about what’s being deterred today. The decision affects the security of the UK for “decades”, he points out. Michael Fallon responds by asking how a minority Labour government could push the policy through if backed with the SNP. “We will not negotiate with the national security of the country,” Mr Coaker responds.

The shadow defence secretary wonders how Mr Fallon would vote - implying that Labour and the Conservatives could easily get the Trident decision through. Challenged on that, the defence secretary is rather evasive. The best way to avoid “confusion and uncertainty” is to back the Tories, he suggests. Relying on the Tories to back a Labour government on Trident though would apparently, slightly confusingly, cause "uncertainty".