Independent research group the Institute for Fiscal Studies says the Lib Dems' plans are the "most fiscally prudent" - while Tory and Labour spending plans are "not credible".

Speaking to the Spectator, the magazine he once edited, Boris Johnson said the memory of 2017 - when the former Tory prime minister lost her majority - was "evergreen" and "people should be in no doubt that their vote matters".

"There are no luxury votes in this election, if you want to prevent a Corbyn/Sturgeon coalition you must vote for the Conservatives.

"If you want to get Brexit done then you must vote for the Conservatives otherwise, believe me, we'll be back at the same situation we were in in 2017."

Read the full interview here., external

Emma Vardy
Ireland Correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

"Who are the DUP?" became one of the most asked questions on Google UK in 2017.

The DUP have featured prominently in decisions affecting all our lives since that 2017 election.

("How to make slime" beat the DUP to Google's top spot but I'll make no judgements about the nations priorities here!)

In 2017 the DUP was effectively able to name its price. It had just enough seats, with 10 MPs, to tip the balance of power and offer the Conservatives a small majority, by means of a confidence and supply agreement, in return for the £1bn to spend at home.

So will this general election bring about a new money-spinning opportunity for Northern Ireland?

Read more from Emma here.

David Gregory-Kumar
Science correspondent, BBC Midlands Today

Image source, GETTY IMAGES

As part of Midlands Today's election coverage, we're looking at the environment, farming and countryside issues.

Click here for a round-up of where the parties stand on badger cull and hunting, the farming subsidy, rural broadband and trees.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Did you miss Emma Barnett's show on BBC 5 Live earlier?

We admit we missed most of it as we were kept busy with the fall-out from the IFS's attack on Tory and Labour spending plans - let alone the DUP's manifesto launch and speeches from Jeremy Corbyn, Nigel Farage and Jo Swinson...

But here's a clip from one of the key points in Barnett's show - where a Labour candidate said she hopes men in her party will "sit out" next time there's a leadership contest.

You can listen back to the show on BBC Sounds.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

The Unite union's Len McCluskey has said that the chief rabbi was "wrong" to criticise Labour over anti-semitism. Earlier this week, Ephraim Mirvis claimed the party is not doing enough to root out anti-Jewish racism - and asked people to "vote with their conscience" in the general election.

Asked about Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis's comments, Mr McCluskey said: "I think it was wrong and quite extraordinary that a religious leaders should come out and say that."

He said: "Labour has fought, Jeremy Corbyn, I've fought all my life against anti-semitism. Labour has now very robust procedures to deal with anybody. We don't want a single anti-semite in the Labour Party."

He added of the chief rabbi: "I'm sure that's what he believes if he said it - I just absolutely, fundamentally disagree with him."

Read the full story here.

Former Prime Minister Theresa May is in Plymouth for the unveiling of a statue of Nancy Astor, the first female MP to take her seat in Parliament.

While there, she started clapping along to a song sang by children, which Financial Times political correspondent Laura Hughes described as "not quite dancing".

In October last year, Mrs May attracted attention after making an entrance at the Conservative Party conference by boogieing to Abba's Dancing Queen.

She also danced with a group of school children during a trade visit in South Africa before that.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

A few minutes ago union boss Len McCluskey spoke to us on the World at One.

He said he "completely" rejects the criticism of Labour's spending plans by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

The IFS said Labour would be unable to deliver its spending increases as it has promised. It also criticised the Tory's pledges.

Mr McCluskey - a key supporter of Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn - said the Labour manifesto was fully costed and created an opportunity for "radical fairness".

He also responded to the idea that Leave voters who normally support Labour will choose to vote for the Conservatives in the election because of their different stances on Brexit.

He said the "vast majority" of people who voted to leave the EU did so for two reasons: the first reason is austerity - "left-behind cities, politicians not listening to them" - and the second is concerns about "how greedy bosses use migrant labour to try to undercut wages and conditions."

He said only Labour will change these things.

"We are serious about negotiating a credible exit," he added.

Len McCluskey is a key figure in Labour circles. His Unite union has donated more than £11m to the party since Jeremy Corbyn became leader.

Image source, PA Media

Despite the election, Scottish First Minister's Questions are still happening.

Among the questions is one from Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie asking about support for police, says BBC Scotland political journalist Philip Sim.

Mr Rennie says just 3% of officers believe the government really cares about their wellbeing, while 10% have turned to alcohol or prescription drugs and a third are at work “mentally unwell”.

First Minister Nicola Sturgeon says “we all care” and the government is doing all it can to back cops, our correspondent reports.

Our correspondent adds:, external "You sometimes get the feeling the MSPs are bored of the election too; during this week’s obligatory backbench invitation to deliver a stump speech at #fmqs, external, a lot of them were just talking among themselves."

Confused by the latest election developments? Got a question about polling or policy? Or is there anything else you'd like us to explain?

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

Today we have been answering questions specifically about housing, like this one from Joanna MacGowan in Southampton:

Q - What are parties pledging to do to help first-time buyers?

A - Young people in particular are less likely to own a home than previous generations, according to the think tank the Resolution Foundation.

The Conservatives want to introduce a new mortgage with long-term fixed rates, requiring only a 5% deposit, to help young people buy their first homes.

This is in addition to creating a scheme where first-time buyers will be able to get a 30% discount on new homes in their local area.

Labour has also said it would give local people "first dibs" on new homes built in their area.

It has also promised to review Help to Buy. This is a government scheme which lets buyers access a loan of up to 20% of the purchase price, or 15% in Scotland, or 40% in London. The loan is interest-free for the first five years, and it only applies to new-builds.

You can read more questions on housing here.

Speaking on a visit to a Darlington engineering firm, Grant Shapps, the transport secretary, says there is a north-south capacity issue on rail but has not committed to supporting HS2.

"I want to check and understand whether HS2 is the right way to do it," he says.

Mr Shapps says there would be a report on HS2 after the election and a Conservative government would "look at the costs and the benefits and we'll make a perfectly rational decision" on whether to proceed with the project.

He says the Conservatives "are absolutely committed to northern power house rail".

Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

Image source, Getty Images

Politicians all crave the approval of the Institute for Fiscal Studies because they are regarded as the high priests of public finance and politicians want them to give their manifesto the thumbs-up.

So they can turn around to voters and say "well look, our plans are credible, affordable, deliverable. Who says so? Well the IFS says so".

Only that's not what the IFS have said. In fact they seem to have given both the main parties a D minus for their efforts, not just when it comes to spending but on a whole range of high-profile manifesto policies.

So on social care, for example, they say both the main parties are not offering credible proposals to ensure families don't face catastrophic care costs.

On benefit changes, they're saying well look Boris Johnson isn't really doing anything to reverse existing benefit cuts whereas Jeremy Corbyn's plans to scrap universal credit risks a decade of more upheaval and turmoil for claimants.

Consolation I suppose for Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn is that the IFS seems to be saying you're both as bad as each other.

And let's be honest, in the real world, I suspect most voters are pretty battle-hardened when it comes to believing everything they're promised during the election.

It's been a busy morning for all the parties. If you're just joining us, here's what's happened so far:

• The day has been dominated by analysis from the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), an independent think-tank, that says neither Labour nor the Conservatives' spending plans are "properly credible". The Liberal Democrats' plans are the "most fiscally prudent," it says
• Both major parties have rebuked the IFS's criticisms
• Jeremy Corbyn has launched Labour's "nature manifesto", setting out the party's environmental plans, which include creating 10 new national parks and planting two billion trees by 2040
• Boris Johnson has been campaigning in Devon, where he has been talking about the Conservative's policies for women, including encouraging more women into work and politics
• Jo Swinson has been in east London, where she talked about her party's plans to tackle homelessness. She also hosted an event billed as "The Problem with Boris" in which she attacked the prime minister's record and character, as the Lib Dems roll out their new plan to deny the Tories a majority
• The BBC is spending the day in Cheltenham to see which issues matter to people there
• Several party leaders, including the SNP's Nicola Sturgeon, prepare to take part in a live TV debate on climate change tonight

Image source, Getty Images

The Lib Dems' event - called the "problem with Boris", where leader Jo Swinson set out why she thought Conservative leader Mr Johnson was "not fit" to be PM - has now ended.

The party announced it would end rough sleeping in England within five years, if elected.

Read more on the party's pledge here.

BBC Politics Live
BBC2's lunchtime political programme

Labour’s Lucy Powell has responded to the criticism from the Institute for Fiscal Studies over its spending plans.

She says the £89bn spending pledge "is fully costed in our manifesto, every penny of where that's coming from is identified in our grey book”.

She suggest that Labour is facing more scrutiny over its plans because the Tories "are not actually saying where their [money] is coming from".

When interviewer Andrew Neil points out that compensation for Waspi women - those who lost out as a result of changes to the pension age - is not included in the costings, she says that’s because “it’s a one-off” – something which is refuted by Mr Neil.

She says: "It’s a one-off expenditure to restore an injustice that was done to many, many millions of women."

Image source, Getty Images

Nigel Farage spoke at a Brexit Party campaign event in Hull earlier - where several candidates came on stage to Kanye West's music in what BBC correspondent Frankie McCamley describes as a "party vibe".

"His main message, as expected: Brexit," she says. "Get Brexit done.

"He talked a lot about the fishing industry here, how a lot of it has gone away. He wants to bring it back.

"And as expected, this big tactical attack on Labour. He wants those Labour Leave votes. Here in Hull it's a Labour stronghold but 67% of people voted to leave the European Union."

At the event, Mr Farage told supporters: "I think the truth of it is, they [Labour] realise they are now fighting a defensive battle, they know they can't win the election.

"This is now a defensive strategy to try to hold the seats that they have held for decades, it's almost an acceptance that they have lost the election."

Our correspondent Frankie McCamley says there was a bar nearby, saying: "We know Nigel Farage loves these photo opportunities," and adds: "I'm sure he'll be out there playing a bit of golf shortly."

The prediction was correct, and Mr Farage was later pictured swinging a club at the driving range.

Image source, PA Media

Labour's pledge to plant two billion trees by 2040 is proving a popular talking point in many parts of the country today - and the Politics Live studio is no different.