Following on from his trip to Blackpool, Jeremy Corbyn has now arrived in Doncaster, south Yorkshire, to speak to people affected by the flooding in the Bentley Town End area.

The Labour leader, who was joined by local candidate Ed Miliband, paid a visit to a stall set up to provide refreshment to residents and emergency services.

Glenn Campbell
BBC Scotland Political Correspondent

The Brexit party’s MEP for Scotland, Louis Steadman-Bryce, has quit as a general election candidate in protest at the decision not to field candidates in seats won by the Conservatives.

Mr Steadman-Bryce said he supported a “localised agreement” with the Tories in Scotland to help fight the SNP.

But he said he could not support the UK wide arrangement because he does not trust Boris Johnson to deliver the sort of Brexit he supports.

The former Brexit party MEP in Scotland David Coburn has called on Nigel Farage to stand down his candidates in all 59 Scottish constituencies.

Image source, Getty Images

The issue of televised debates is certainly proving contentious. On Monday, the Lib Dems began legal action against ITV over their exclusion from one.

Well, today, Channel 4 says it has put plans for a debate on the economy on hold, because it was "not possible to reach an agreement with all parties".

But two of those parties are pointing the finger at Chancellor Sajid Javid, accusing him of "running scared".

Shadow chancellor John McDonnell and the SNP's Ian Blackford had already agreed to the debate. The Liberal Democrats' Ed Davey was also set to take part.

"Sajid Javid is running scared of debating with me and completely understandably, as the Tories are inventing silly figures which Labour would pull apart in a public debate," Mr McDonnell says.

Mr Blackford says: "It's frankly embarrassing that the Tory chancellor is doing a chicken run and refusing to defend his party's record."

The broadcaster should go ahead and leave an empty chair for the chancellor, he adds.

Mr Javid told Channel 4 News on Monday he did no want to "pre-empt" ongoing talks, but he was ready to have a "robust discussion" with Mr McDonnell "any time".

Returning to the issue of the online election battle, BBC digital elections reporter Joe Tidy has been looking at how political parties are spending money on Google ads to ensure certain websites come up when parties are searched for.

We thought we would try it ourselves and here's what happened when we googled the two main parties:

Image source, Google

Image source, Google

As you can see, a search for the Labour Party brought up a Conservative-funded ad for a website which makes claims about Labour spending - claims which have been described by BBC Reality check as "problematic".

Meanwhile, a search for the Conservatives brings us to a Brexit Party site attacking Boris Johnson's Brexit deal.

All through the day the BBC is talking to voters in Bishop Auckland - an important marginal seat in County Durham. We've got a dedicated live page just for that, but are taking some snippets here too.

Paula Kempin, who owns The 68 Cafe high above the Durham dale, has plenty of regulars from Bishop Auckland.

She says of the choice facing her on 12 December: "I'm not voting just for Brexit, which is why at the moment I'm still really torn."

Nigel Farage's Brexit Party think they can take crucial votes in the constituency.

But Paula adds: "That's the wrong decision, if that's his tactics it's the wrong decision, because he should withdraw."

Elsewhere, the BBC met two first-time voters at the 17th Century Three Horseshoes Pub in neighbouring Barnard Castle.

Bar worker Kim Moore said: "If somebody came in and explained what they wanted then it would be an easier choice to make, but at the moment I don't understand what anyone is doing."

Farm labourer Dean Bainbridge added: "I'm going to stick with Boris and see if he can get the job done."

Among the tributes to Frank Dobson, the former Labour health secretary who has died at 79, is this story of his surprising fame from the Independent's deputy political editor Rob Merrick.

Daily Mirror associate editor Kevin Maguire adds another tale of Mr Dobson's brushes with global celebrity.

He tweets , externalthat Mr Dobson, who had campaigned against South Africa's apartheid system, was speechless when he was introduced to Nelson Mandela in London, after the latter had been freed from 27 years of imprisonment.

“What’s wrong, Frank,” asked Mr Mandela. “Don’t you recognise me?”

Stepping away from electioneering, the political world has been paying tribute today to veteran Labour politician Frank Dobson who has died aged 79.

To get a sense of what he was about, listen back to an interview he gave to Jeremy Paxman when he was health secretary - shared by BBC political analyst Peter Barnes.

He was being asked about merit payments made to surgeons involved in the scandal over the treatment of babies undergoing heart surgery at the Bristol Royal Infirmary.

Here's a little more from the Sajid Javid interview that he gave on his trip to Bristol, where he paid a visit to the shop he used to live above.

The chancellor says the government is “very concerned” about the flooding in northern England and “the impact it’s having on the people there”.

Earlier, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the response to the floods had been "woeful", but Mr Javid defended the government, saying it took action immediately and, as chancellor, he had released funding over the weekend via the Bellwin scheme.

The government's emergency Bellwin scheme reimburses councils for costs they incur during a response to flooding, for items such as rest centres, temporary accommodation and staff overtime.

Mr Javid also said the Conservatives wouldn't be reciprocating the Brexit Party move by standing aside Tory candidates in some Labour areas where the Brexit Party could challenge the incumbent.

He said: "We will stand in all the seats we normally stand in, we won’t be standing aside for anyone. We won’t be doing any deal with Nigel Farage or anyone else."

Dominic Casciani
Home Affairs Correspondent

The government has a legal definition of an “emergency” - it’s an event that threatens “serious damage to human welfare”, the environment, or is a major attack, such as war or a huge act of terrorism.

The Civil Contingencies Act 2004, external forces public bodies to prepare for such worst-case scenarios. In the case of the current floods, the Environment Agency, local councils and others are expected to have planned properly and to swing into action.

If an emergency is somehow overwhelming, ministers can use the Act to take control and even override existing laws and rules.

One of the catalysts for the legislation was a national fuel shortage in 2000 as protesters blockaded refineries over petrol pump prices. Were that to happen today, a prime minister could in theory order the Army to commandeer fuel tankers and keep the nation moving.

The Cobra meeting is Whitehall’s way of trying to efficiently bring together all the key people in an emergency to co-ordinate the government’s response.

The BBC's Digital Elections Reporter Joe Tidy says this is the most aggressive use of internet campaigning he's seen so far during the campaign.

He explains: Google "Labour Party" and the top result is costofcorbyn.com - a bespoke Tory site that further spreads a message that has been criticised as "based on flawed assumptions" by @FullFact, external and @BBCRealityCheck, external

Image source, Reuters

BBC political correspondent Tom Barton has been talking to Stainforth residents and local volunteers about the visits they've had from politicians following severe flooding in the area.

The chairman of a charity in the South Yorkshire town that's helping flood victims, visited by Jo Swinson earlier, said the visit was "political".

This morning the Lib Dem leader met volunteers at Stainforth4All, which has been collecting clothes for affected residents at nearby Fishlake.

Fred Turner, the charity's chairman, told the BBC: "I can't ever remember a Lib Dem MP coming to Stainforth - okay, it's nice to meet her."

He said he was "very sceptical but it's better than them not coming and seeing what's going on".

A volunteer helping to sort clothes said the election was the reason "they are turning up now - if they really cared they'd have been here on Saturday."

"It's too little too late."

Another said politicians should be doing more: "Instead of getting on TV they ought to be doing stuff - they should be seeing victims on their own homes, helping out, getting big companies to help them."

The latest stop on the campaign trail for Chancellor Sajid Javid was the street in Bristol where he grew up.

He used an interview to continue the Conservatives' attack on Labour's spending plans, saying the UK could not afford the cost of a Jeremy Corbyn government.

He says Mr Corbyn is planning "a huge, reckless spending spree", reiterating Tory claims that Labour plans to spend to spend £1.2tn.

As you can read here, this is figure problematic because it makes a number of assumptions about what Labour intends to spend before it has published a manifesto.

However, Mr Javid defended the sums, saying “if Labour thinks they are the wrong numbers, why they don’t set out what the real numbers are?”

When asked why the Tories hadn't put out figures for their own spending, he added: "We will absolutely set out our numbers."

BBC Trending

Pro-Remain discussion groups were generally very unhappy about the Brexit Party's announcement - although today, as the news sinks in, there’s a bit more optimism that it won’t make much of a difference.

It has also inspired more chat about tactical voting, with lots of users who had previously said they’d only want to vote Lib Dem now discussing how they’ll vote Labour/ whoever keeps the Tories out.

General pro-Brexit groups are celebrating the Brexit Party announcement, usually sharing BBC/ mainstream media articles or Youtube videos of Farage speech. .

The reaction in groups specifically devoted to the Brexit Party is less enthusiastic. Many are annoyed - confused about where they will vote (a lot say they will go Conservative, with reluctance) - and describe themselves as “betrayed”.

Image source, Reuters

Nigel Farage's announcement that he would stand down Brexit Party candidates in certain seats in order to help the Conservatives created a big response on social media.

This included fake/satirical accounts of candidates saying Mr Farage owes them money. Mr Farage has said he will not refund those candidates who spent money trying to become an MP for his party.

Interestingly, the Brexit Party’s website "borisbrexitdeal.com" is still live.

It reads: “The prime minister’s deal is not a proper Brexit.” This was a paid google ad just days ago.

Mr Farage said he had decided to stand down some of his candidates after hearing "a big shift of position" in Mr Johnson's approach to Brexit - namely a pledge not to extend the transition period that would follow the UK's departure from the EU.

Image source, Getty Images

SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon - pictured having fun on the campaign train today - has said there’s no deal with the Green Party to stand aside in certain Scottish seats.

The BBC's Morag Kinniburgh reports Ms Sturgeon as saying it's up to the Greens to decide if they will stand down in Scottish constituencies where the Brexit Party has decided not to field candidates in order to help the Conservatives.

Image source, PA Media

Having long campaigned for independence for Wales, Plaid Cymru is launching a commission to examine in detail how the country could separate from the rest of the UK.

The party's leader Adam Price says this election is at "a watershed moment in our country's history" where the issue of independence "has moved from the margins into the mainstream of Welsh political debate".

"Our mission is to convince the people of Wales that independence is not merely desirable, but actually vitally necessary to tackle our problems and improve our standard of living," he says.

The commission, which will be launched in Caernarfon this evening, will consider the economic case for independence and look at the future relationship between Wales, the rest of the UK and the European Union.

Christian Fraser
BBC Journalist

I've been struck by what people have been telling me over the last few days about some of the new investment which is coming in here.

In the ancient part of the town is Auckland Castle which gave the town its name.

You can see there's lots of scaffolding down there and new money - the City financier Jonathan Ruffer has come in here and saved the castle and the precious artwork inside.

Lots of people are coming back to the town to have a look.

But when you come around here to the main drag in Bishop Auckland, you get a very different feel about the town.

At the top end here you can see some of the businesses have shuttered, even Poundworld has gone. Local businesses are really struggling to survive.

Image source, Reuters

Speaking of Brexit, after the deadline was extended to 31 January 2020, it meant the UK remained a member of the bloc (for now), and as a result, there are certain things we have to do.

One of them is to nominate a British commissioner to the EU, but a spokeswoman for the incoming European Commission President, Ursula Von Der Leyen, says the UK has not yet responded to her request for one.

Yesterday, a spokesman for Boris Johnson said: ‘The UK meets its legal obligations and our officials remain in regular contact with the president-elect’s team."

But the EU spokeswoman says Ms Von Der Leyn has now sent a second letter to the British government reminding them of their obligations.

She is expecting an answer "by the end of this week".

Today we have been answering questions on Brexit, like this one from Pavlo:

Q - If Jeremy Corbyn becomes prime minister, will he continue freedom of movement as we know it today?

A - Labour is committed to holding another referendum on whether to leave the EU. If the country voted to Remain, then free movement between the UK and EU would continue.

Even if Brexit happens, Labour may try to retain free movement, which means British and EU citizens would still be able to live and work in whichever country they choose.

A motion to that effect was passed at the 2019 Labour Party conference,but we need to wait for Labour's election manifesto to see if it also becomes a formal policy pledge.

Read more answers to questions.

Send your questions to BBC News via the form on this page and we'll do our best to answer them.

Earlier today, we mentioned the draft review of the £88bn HS2 rail project, which recommends that the government gives it the green light despite rising costs.

The project has faced opposition in some rural communities over its environmental damage and disruption, but northern leaders have called for it to go ahead. Prime Minister Boris Johnson hoped to defer the decision until after the election.

Now Green Party co-leader Jonathan Bartley has weighed in, calling the review a "whitewash".

He says the planned 250mph railway is "environmental vandalism" and should be scrapped.