Summary

  • David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg each faced the audience in a Question Time special

  • Mr Miliband rules out a Labour coalition or a deal with SNP, while Nicola Sturgeon says SNP MPs will have 'big clout'

  • The prime minister says he has no plans to cut child benefit or tax credits, despite Lib Dem claims

  • Mr Clegg says he's not sorry for his "brave and plucky" decision to enter coalition

  • Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood hints at a deal with Labour, while UKIP's Nigel Farage says an EU referendum defeat wouldn't 'kill' his party

  • There are seven days left until the general election

  1. Miliband and the economypublished at 20:44 British Summer Time 30 April 2015

    BBC News Political Editor tweets:

  2. 'You are lying'published at 20:44

    That was a strong accusation levelled at Ed Miliband. His questioner says Labour spent for 13 years and sold off gold on the cheap.

    Ed Miliband says what they didn't do is build up other industries.

  3. Labour spendingpublished at 20:42 British Summer Time 30 April 2015

    BBC Newsnight Political Editor tweets:

  4. On Labour spendingpublished at 20:41

    Mr Miliband says he does not accept that the last Labour government overspent but adds that "spending's got to fall. That's why we will reduce spending". He's accused of '"lying" about Labour's previous record by an audience member.

  5. Balancing the bookspublished at 20:39

    Reality Check

    Ed Miliband says he's going to reduce the deficit every year and balance the books. It's important to stress that what he means by balancing the books is not the same as what Mr Cameron means.

    Labour wants to balance the current deficit, which means it could borrow money to invest. The Conservatives are not prepared to borrow for investment either and want an overall surplus by the end of the next parliament.

  6. Miliband on that notepublished at 20:35

    First question for Ed Miliband is how can people trust a Labour party that made a joke about leaving the Treasury with no money? The Labour leader admits the last Labour government made a mistake on banking regulation. "We've learnt that lesson," he says. Ed Balls, he adds, takes getting the deficit down "incredibly seriously".

  7. Ed Miliband's up...published at 20:33

    The Labour leader faces the audience.

    Ed Miliband takes the stage
  8. 'Decisive outcome'published at 20:32

    Finishing his time on stage, Mr Cameron calls for a "decisive outcome" to the election and promises a referendum on whether to stay in a reformed EU. He says the British people "deserve" it.

    He wants "everyone holding that stubby pencil" in the voting booths to know they would get a referendum if they vote Conservative.

    He ends by declaring that he will "do the right thing for the country".

  9. On coalitionspublished at 20:31

    Mr Cameron says he's aiming for an overall majority. He doesn't want to have to negotiate away parts of his programme in a "dark room with [Lib Dem leader] Nick Clegg". An in/out referendum on Europe is a "red line".

    "I would not lead a government that did not contain that pledge," he says.

  10. QT audience questionspublished at 20:31 British Summer Time 30 April 2015

    Margaret Longstaffe tweets:

  11. European budgetpublished at 20:31

    Reality Check

    David Cameron says he has cut the EU budget.

    Every seven years the EU agrees its long-term budget, the so called Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), which is the overall spending ceiling for that seven-year budgetary period.

    The leaders of all EU member states have to unanimously agree on the MFF, which the European Parliament scrutinises and votes on. The EU’s 2014-2020 budget was indeed cut for the first time in the bloc’s history.

    Under the deal, the EU’s budget was cut by either 3.4% or 3.7%, depending on which measure you're looking at. David Cameron led a group of other EU countries in demanding a cut in the EU budget. The other two leaders taking part this evening also supported a cut.

  12. Winning people over?published at 20:30

    David Cameron addresses the audience
  13. A 'moral dimension'?published at 20:29

    A member of the audience asks Mr Cameron to answer these questions with a "moral dimension", saying his answers focus on economics. Mr Cameron replies that helping someone get a job and obtain a house have a "moral dimension".

  14. Migration targetpublished at 20:27

    Mr Cameron says he sticks with a target of below 100,000 for net migration. "I believe that's the right ambition," he says.

  15. The debate moves to immigration...published at 20:26

    Bob Wilson, a firefighter, asks Mr Cameron how he would control immigration if we remain in the EU. The Prime Minister lists four changes he would make:

    • no unemployment benefit for jobseekers from an EU country
    • jobseekers who are still unemployed after six months have to go home
    • you have to work for four years before getting tax credit
    • a ban on sending benefit home
  16. 'Extra nurses'published at 20:25

    Reality Check

    David Cameron says that his government has added 7,000 more nurses to the NHS since the last election. This information comes from the number of “qualified nursing, midwifery and health visiting staff”, published by the Health and Social Care Information Centre, external.

    The most recent data shows that the number of staff in this category has increased by almost 7,200, which is more than Mr Cameron suggested.

    But, crucially, these figures include more than just nurses. The increase appears much less impressive if we remove midwives and health visitors from the data. On that basis, the number of nurses has gone up by just over 2,000 since May 2010.

  17. Send us your commentspublished at 20:24

    Email: politics@bbc.co.uk

    Caroline Rae:

    Why are working people without children who work less than 30 hours not entitled to working tax credits? I have been working on a zero-hours contract since November 2013 and have never been so badly off. Reliant on food banks for at least six months. Please explain how working people are better off.

  18. Youth unemploymentpublished at 20:24

    Reality Check

    David Cameron says that youth unemployment has been plummeting. The latest figures, external from the Office for National Statistics said youth unemployment was 16.1% in the three months to February. This is down from the preceding three months and lower than the same period a year earlier (19.2%). However, it is still higher than the pre-financial crisis low of 13.8% for the three months ending February 2008.

  19. NHS and the economypublished at 20:23

    The PM argues: "The NHS grows with a Conservative government...You only have a strong NHS with a strong economy".

  20. 'I don't agree with you, sir'published at 20:22

    Mr Cameron has a difference of opinion with an audience member over the NHS. A man in the audience says: "Anyone with half a brain knows the NHS is not sustainable". The prime minister replies: "I don't agree with you, sir." To which the man responds: "Well, you're wrong."