Summary

  • UK government finances showed a surplus of £8.8bn in January, the Office for National Statistics said

  • A Lords report on the Ukraine crisis accused the UK and EU of a "catastrophic misreading" of the Kremlin's mood

  • The Scottish Conservatives held their conference in Edinburgh

  • George Osborne and Boris Johnson unveiled plans for 24hr transport services in 'long term plan for London'

  • There are 76 days until the general election

  1. BBC's economics editor Robert Pestonpublished at 20:05 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    tweets, external: Greece will present reform programme on Monday - so eurogroup, IMF and ECB can decide whether this comprehensive enough

  2. Breaking Newspublished at 19:50 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Officials say a deal has been reached between Greece and its eurozone creditors over the country's financial bailout. Full story here.

  3. Any Questions, 20:00 GMTpublished at 19:45 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    BBC Radio 4

    Jonathan Dimbleby

    Join Jonathan Dimbleby and guests on Any Questions tonight at 20:00 GMT on Radio 4, with political debate from Lumen Christi College in Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland. On the panel: the former chief executive of the Child Exploitation and Online Protection Centre, Jim Gamble; Sinn Fein MP for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, Michelle Gildernew; writer and political commentator, Simon Heffer; and Democratic Unionist Party MP for North Antrim, Ian Paisley.

  4. More from Green Party leaderpublished at 19:36 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Natalie Bennett

    Natalie Bennett, has told BBC London 94.9 that her party want to build half a million new homes across England if they come to power at the general election. She said they wish to fund the homes by removing the mortgage rate relief for private landlords and to end the right to buy scheme, that she called "the privatisation of a public asset".

  5. Bennett: fuel price drop 'not good news'published at 19:16 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Natalie BennettImage source, Getty Images

    Green Party leader Natalie Bennett has told BBC London 94.9 it is not good news that petrol prices have gone down.

    Asked by Eddie Nestor whether the recent drop in prices was a good thing, Ms Bennett responded by saying, "No, it isn't good news", and went on to say the government needs to cut the amount of money being spent on Britain's roads.

  6. Tory campaign tacticspublished at 19:15 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Conservative Home

    Conservative posterImage source, Press Association

    At Conservative Home, Mark Wallace takes a look, external at different approaches within the Conservative Party to general election campaigning. He says: "The tricky task in a campaign is not picking between being positive or negative, it's in making the two sit comfortably and plausibly alongside each other. Switching from the promise of sunlit uplands in one breath to predictions of doom and disaster in the next makes you look mad, not persuasive. If there's some divide among Tory figures about which they prefer to do more of, that won't necessarily do the campaign any harm."

  7. Love and politicspublished at 18:52 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    The Daily Telegraph

    Frank Doran

    The pressures of being a politician cost Labour MP Frank Doran his first marriage - but helped him find new love too, he's been telling the Telegraph's Rosa Prince, external. Mr Doran was first elected to parliament in 1987 but the strain proved too much. "She couldn't quite handle everything that was involved," he explains. When he lost his seat in 1992 he found comfort in fellow Labour MP Joan Ruddock. "[Joan and I] were together when I lost my seat. We've been together now for about 20 years and we married about four years ago," he says. "Because we're both so experienced, we've been here such a long time, we understand all the pressures." He says he's standing down now because he's "old and decrepit".

  8. Speaker's wife's 'horrific ski accident'published at 18:40 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Sally BercowImage source, Press Association

    The Mail Online reports, external that Sally Bercow, wife of Commons speaker John Bercow, has broken her leg in nine places and faces a 12-week lay-up. Mrs Bercow has previous form in providing colourful headlines, and once entered the Celebrity Big Brother house.

  9. James Cook, BBC News Scotland correspondentpublished at 18:28 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    tweets, external: Interesting reading Conservative lines on #indyref. Cameron: "the question is settled." Davidson: "this isn't over and it hasn't gone away".

  10. May: UK needs 'extremism strategy'published at 18:19 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Home Secretary Theresa May

    Home Secretary Theresa May has said authorities need to look at the ideology which drives young people to travel abroad and join extremist groups. Ms May said it was important to look not just at terrorism but "extremism across the whole spectrum". Click here for a video of the Home Secretary talking about the need for a UK "extremism strategy".

    On Friday, Metropolitan Police said they believed three London schoolgirls were travelling to Syria via Turkey, to join Islamic State militants.

  11. Royal US trippublished at 18:04 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Prince Charles and Duchess of CornwallImage source, AP

    The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall are to meet US President Barack Obama during a four-day tour of the US. The White House said Mr Obama will host the royal couple in the Oval Office on 19 March. They will be in the US from 17 to 20 March to "promote the UK's partnership with the United States", Clarence House said. They will also mark the Magna Carta's 800th anniversary during their trip. Read the full story here.

  12. Greece latestpublished at 17:59 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Mark Lowen
    BBC News, Athens

    Greece government source tells me: "There is no agreement so far. There is only the clear message of the Greek Prime Minister to Donald Tusk (EUCO chair) that if no agreement tonight, he will ask for an extraordinary summit." Read the full story here.

  13. If I were prime minister...published at 17:43 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    The Independent

    Joey BartonImage source, Press Association

    For each of the final hundred days before the polls open, the Independent has been inviting one contributor to describe what he or she would do as prime minister. Today's candidate is footballer - and Twitter philosopher - Joey Barton, external. His priority is to "privatise religion": "The state should neither be for or against religion. People will continue to be free to indulge in religion in their own time and with their own money. However, religious people should cease to expect taxpayers to subsidise their particular religious thinking and life styles. We shouldn't waste public money on religion when we can better serve the common good by spending money saved on social housing, the NHS and a pluralist education."

  14. Tory Scottish fortunespublished at 17:34 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Ruth Davidson

    Scottish Conservative leader Ruth Davidson has told BBC News: "At the last general election here in Scotland [in 2010] we got between four hundred thousand and five hundred thousand votes - the same as the Liberal Democrats and the SNP." Noting the disparity in the number of Commons seats this resulted in for each party, she adds: "Our great strength in Scotland is also our great weakness - our support is spread right across the country."

  15. Apprentices are paid 'exploitative' ratespublished at 17:33 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Some news just in: Apprentices are paid "exploitative" rates and must receive higher wages if the programme is to solve youth unemployment, a report says. The National Union of Students say apprentices cannot afford to travel to their place of work or study, or take time off sick. England's teenage apprentices are entitled to £2.73 an hour - £95 for a 35-hour week. The government is considering raising apprentices' pay by £1 an hour. Get the full story here.

  16. Cameron hits back at Sturgeonpublished at 17:21 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    David Cameron and Nicola Sturgeon 22/01/2015Image source, PA

    Last week Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon made a speech in London where she blasted Tory spending cuts as "morally unjustifiable". Today, David Cameron hit back at the SNP leader. "I'll tell you what is 'morally unjustifiable', first minister," he said earlier. "And that is racking up more debt than our children and grandchildren could ever hope to re-pay. Passing the buck like every other hopeless left-wing administration in history. "And that's why it will be us - the Conservative Party - who will do the right thing, clear up this mess - and leave Scotland standing taller."

  17. UKIP/Green supportpublished at 17:10 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    New Statesman

    Nigel FarageImage source, Reuters

    At the New Statesman's May2015.com general election website, Will Jennings and Gerry Stoker have an in-depth analysis, external of the causes for surging support for UKIP and the Greens. "The odds of someone intending to vote Green or UKIP are up to two and a half times higher (and at least 50 per cent greater) if they express distrust in politicians," they write.

  18. Mayoral resignationpublished at 16:56 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    Shafiq ChaudhryImage source, Slough Borough Council

    Slough's mayor has resigned after attending a court sentencing to support the family of a child sex offender. Shafiq Chaudhry - who serves as a Labour councillor - was in Reading Crown Court on Monday when Esmatullah Haidaree and Azim Ahmed were jailed for sexual offences against three girls. He said he was trying to "support a family torn apart by one man's horrendous crimes" but understood his actions could be misconstrued.

  19. Alan Roden, Scottish Daily Mail political editorpublished at 16:38 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    tweets, external: Tory delegates listening to Taylor Swift and 1D before @RuthDavidsonMSP speech at #scc15.

  20. Andrew Black, BBC reporterpublished at 16:33 Greenwich Mean Time 20 February 2015

    tweets, external: . @ScotTories leader @RuthDavidsonMSP addressing her party conference - a few empty seats in the hall. #scc15

    Conference hall