Mohammad Yasin for Labour says his party would give more money for schools, provide free lunch for primary school children and more free childcare, which would be paid for as outlined in the Labour manifesto.

"This government has made £8m in cuts to schools in Bedfordshire.

"Teachers who have joined since 2010, most of them are leaving because of stress and pressure. Headteachers are finding it very difficult to find good teachers."

Lib Dem candidate Henry Vann says the Conservatives have not been giving local authorities the power or the resources to improve schools.

"Our schools are unfunded, we need more money, we need more qualified teachers and every school should be required to employ qualified teachers or those working towards qualification.

"I don't agree with the Conservative policy to remove that requirement and have anyone coming and teaching."

Sandra, a primary school teacher for 40 years, says she's been appalled at some of the schools she's been supply teaching in in Bedfordshire over the past two years.

She put to the panel: "I want to know how the candidates intend to tackle the poor state of the education system which is, in my opinion, heading towards the same fate as the NHS as young teachers are leaving the profession in droves."

The panel was asked how they would help small businesses in Bedford.

Mohammad Yassin (Labour) said: "We would ensure a better workforce and put more money into education and training, something which the Conservative have not done.

"We would also ask the council to provide lower business rates... [but the council has been hit by] £35m of cuts. We need more money."

Richard Fuller (Conservative) said: "Since I became MP I have tried to increase the number of small businesses in Bedfordshire and the number has increased dramatically.

"We should focus together on how to get measures to maintain lower rates and supporting people who run businesses."

Henry Vann (Lib Dem) said: "The first thing I would do is block the Conservative plan to make small businesses do quarterly tax returns.

"The Conservatives are only talking about deregulation."

Lucy Bywater (Green Party) said: "We would support small businesses because we believe in local communities and the local economy.

"We'd give extra help to start-up companies." She said she was concerned that Amazon was paying too little tax compared with local firms in Bedford.

The Conservative candidate, Richard Fuller, rejected criticism of his party leader, Theresa May: "I opposed a number of Conservative policies which were in her area [when she was Home Secretary], particularly on immigration and on stop and search... And Theresa May, in both cases, listened to the evidence, came to a judgement and changed the law, and I think that speaks volumes for her."

Mohammad Yasin says of his leader, Jeremy Corbyn: "A lot of people had doubts about him, but since the election campaign has started he has come out as a true and principled man.

"He speaks from the heart and he does not take the U-turn like Theresa May."

Lucy Bywater says: "Caroline [Lucas], our first leader, has been voted ethical politician of the year several times. She stands by her morals and her principles, which a lot of politicians don't.

"We also have Jonathan Bartley, our new co-leader, and I think it shows how we can do different things differently."

As a Liberal Democrat, Henry Vann says he trusts Lib Dem leader Tim Farron.

"Here's something that Labour will probably bring up at some point - tuition fees. He [Farron] signed the pledge and he kept it and he voted against the increase. I trust Tim Farron."

The candidates taking part in tonight's debate at Bedford Rugby Club are being asked: "How important do you think your leader is to the success of your party at the ballot box?"

Kate in the audience asked the candidates which parts of their party manifestos they disagreed with or found idiotic.

Mohammad Yassin (Labour) said: "I think the Labour manifesto is the best. It is fully costed and tells where the money comes from and where we will spend it, unlike the Conservative manifesto.

"I can't think of anything I disagree." He said he'd read most of the manifesto.

Lucy Bywater (Green) said: "This is a really hard question. I honestly can't think of anything."

She was asked about the commitment to a four-day working week, but she defended the policy asking, "why should we be wage slaves?"

Richard Fuller (Conservative) said: "The energy price cap. I don't think it is a good idea. I don't know how it would work.

"Mr Yassin has said he supports the Labour manifesto but hasn't read it all."

Henry Vann (Lib Dem) said: "One policy area where I think it lacks ambition is in education.

"I think all schools should be the same [rather than having free schools and grammar schools etc]. That's what people want."

Mohammad Yasin, who's the Labour candidate for Bedford and Kempston, accuses the government of overseeing a decline in wages for working class people of £1,400 on average since 2010.

"Labour will give a real minimum wage of £10-an-hour. We will give workers rights when they start work and equal rights for part-time as well as full-time workers.

"We need to protect the workforce and protect the EU workforce and we need to increase the number of jobs. Looking after the workforce is the real solution and only Labour can do that."

The Liberal Democrat candidate, Henry Vann, has hit out on the Conservatives' approach to the cost of living.

"The National Living Wage is not a real living wage. I'm proud of the Lib Dems' record in coalition in lifting poor people out of paying tax altogether.

"I'm also proud that our manifesto says we will raise benefits in line with inflation. But I'm afraid the National Living Wage is just a re-branded minimum wage, and people are going to food banks more and more."

Richard Fuller, who's defending his seat in Bedford and Kempston as a Conservative, is proud of the government's record on wages.

"The first step to high pay is to have a job and, since 2010, 2.9 million jobs have been created across the country and we have seen unemployment go down.

"The second thing is to make sure people's pay goes up and I was one of the early and strong supporters in Parliament talking for the National Living Wage.

"I was proud the Conservatives did something the Labour government never did and that was to introduce the National Living Wage."

Green party candidate Lucy Bywater says people are living on mushrooming debt.

"Inflation is rising faster than wages, so we have a situation where people's rent and mortgages are so high they cannot keep pace with the cost of living.

"We're seeing people relying on food banks and the shocking thing is that many people relying on food banks are people in work. Something needs to change desperately."

Some of the political focus today has been about wages and the cost of living.

Labour claims that many people aren't "just about managing" - they are not managing at all. Many argue that wages are not keeping pace with inflation.

How are people in Bedford and Kempston coping with the cost of living?

Left to right we have Mohammad Yasin (Labour), Richard Fuller (Conservative), Henry Vann (Lib Dem) and Lucy Bywater (Green).

Andy Holmes
BBC Three Counties Radio political reporter

One of the more interesting seats in Beds, Herts and Bucks, currently it's Tory with Richard Fuller the incumbent, but he holds a majority of just 1,097 from 2015, and Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has already visited the town twice with the seat as high as 13th on the party's target list.

Mr Fuller and previous Labour candidate Patrick Hall battled hard over three elections with Hall triumphant in 2005, and Mr Fuller winning in 2010 and 2015.

Mr Hall isn't standing in 2017, so Mr Fuller will instead face competition from local Labour councillor Mohammad Yasin, along with Lib Dem candidate Henry Vann and Lucy Bywater from the Green Party.

Jane Killick
BBC Three Counties Radio

These are the candidates we'll be hearing from in our debate at Bedford Rugby Club this evening...

Lucy Bywater (Green)Lucy has lived in Bedford for 14 years, is married with two teenagers and works in publishing. In local council elections she has contested the Castle Ward in Bedford for the Green Party on three occasions and is an active campaigner for the local party. She has a Masters in Children's Literature from De Montfort University and a Politics and Modern History degree from the University of Manchester.

Richard Fuller (Conservative)Richard is Bedford-born and narrowly won the election in the town in 2010 from Labour's Patrick Hall, and held on to the seat in 2015 by an even tighter margin. He'd previously stood and lost to Hall in 2005. Was schooled in Bedford before going on to study at Oxford University and then Harvard Business School. He joined the Conservative Party in 1979, delivering leaflets for Trevor Skeet in the election of the same year and was chairman of the Young Conservatives between 1985 and 1987.

Henry Vann (Lib Dem)Henry is the education portfolio holder at Bedford Borough Council. He stood in the constituency in 2010, finishing third behind Hall and Fuller. He graduated from Cambridge in 2007 and previously appeared in Vogue magazine. Henry works in London in the music industry and sings in the choir at St Paul's Church in Bedford.

Mohammad Yasin (Labour)Mohammad has lived in Bedford for more than 25 years and currently resides in the Queen's Park area where he's been a Labour borough councillor for the last 11 years. He's the current portfolio holder for adult services and housing and is a former speaker of the council.

Jane Killick
BBC Three Counties Radio

Hello. This evening we're meeting the people who want to become the MP for Bedford following the general election on 8 June.

They'll be debating key issues including immigration and housing.

Image source, Google

You can listen to the debate live from Bedford Blues Rugby Club on BBC Three Counties Radio, between 17:00 and 19:00.

We'll also be bringing you the main points here.

First up, let's have a quick look at who's taking part.

Our regular updates for Beds, Herts and Bucks are coming to a close - we'll be back with the latest news, sport, weather and travel from 08:00 tomorrow.

But stay with us as we bring you live coverage from Bedford, as the candidates vying for your votes in the town take part in a special election debate.