Voting agepublished at 10:12 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
Acting Labour leader tweets...
Summary
A report says restoration of Parliament without moving MPs and peers out would cost £5.7bn and take 32 years
If MP and peers were moved out for six years, the cost would drop to £3.5bn, the report adds
UKIP deputy chairwoman Suzanne Evans is facing the sack after she said party leader Nigel Farage was perceived as "very divisive"
European President Martin Schulz says compromise is needed over EU reform during talks with David Cameron
Subsidies for new onshore wind farms will end on 1 April 2016, a year earlier than expected
London mayor Boris Johnson has been caught on film swearing at a taxi driver
Voting agepublished at 10:12 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
Question Time lineuppublished at 10:11 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
Kennedy servicepublished at 09:49
Image source, PALater, Charles Kennedy's family will attend a special service in Glasgow to remember the ex-Liberal Democrat leader who died earlier this month aged 55.
Senior political figures are expected at the thanksgiving service at Glasgow University, where the politician studied and served two terms as rector.
The university has set up a memorial fund to name a teaching area after him.
Mr Kennedy studied politics and philosophy at the university and graduated with an honours degree in 1982.
He was President of Glasgow University (Students) Union from 1980 to 1981 and won the British Observer Mace for university debating in 1982
Higher bills?published at 09:40
Image source, GettyFormer Lib Dem Energy Secretary Ed Davey has been speaking to the BBC about today's announcement that subsidies for new onshore wind farms will come to an end next year - earlier than expected.
Quote MessageI do want to see subsidies go down, but doing it earlier than you told the industry is going to hit investment, hit jobs and actually this is going to end up with higher energy bills."
Quote MessageIf you still want to hit your targets but you are not going to use onshore wind, then you're going to have to use more expensive low carbon electricity to hit those targets, that means people's bills will go up."
Legal action?published at 09:48 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
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'Plan to keep the lights'published at 09:25
Image source, EPAEnergy Secretary Amber Rudd says there are enough subsidised onshore wind schemes in the UK to meet renewable energy commitments.
Quote Message"We have a long-term plan to keep the lights on and our homes warm, power the economy with cleaner energy, and keep bills as low as possible for hard-working families.
Quote MessageWe want to help technologies stand on their own two feet, not encourage a reliance of public subsidies. So we are driving forward our commitment to end new onshore wind subsidies and give local communities the final say over any new wind farms."
Earlier this week, the European Commission progress report suggested the UK was one of several member states set to significantly miss its renewables targets for 2020 and would "need to assess whether their policies and tools are sufficient and effective in meeting their renewable energy objectives".
'Out of step'published at 09:15
Image source, PAMaria McCaffery, chief executive of industry body RenewableUK, says the government's decision to prematurely end financial support for onshore wind farms sends a "chilling signal" - not just to the renewables industry, but to all investors right across the UK's infrastructure sectors.
Quote MessageIt means this Government is quite prepared to pull the rug from under the feet of investors even when this country desperately needs to clean up the way we generate electricity at the lowest possible cost - which is onshore wind. People's fuel bills will increase directly as a result of this Government's actions. Ministers are out of step with the public, as two-thirds of people in the UK consistently support onshore wind."
What future for the EU?published at 09:10
EU finance ministers are meeting in Luxembourg later, with Greece high on their minds. The country has just two weeks left to reach a debt deal or face defaulting on an existing €1.6bn (£1.1bn) loan repayment due to the IMF. Given the UK's attempts to renegotiate its relationship with the EU ahead of a referendum, which creates the possiblity of a Brexit, is the future of the union in question?
The BBC's Mark Mardell, who presents The World This Weekend, has been exploring that possibility.
Quote MessageIn my years as the BBC's Europe editor, from 2005 to 2009, there was plenty of debate about the future of the European Union, but I never took seriously the idea that it might one day cease to exist. That no longer seems so fanciful. The founding father of the European Union, Jean Monnet, used to say: "Europe will be forged in crises, and will be the sum of the solutions adopted for those crises." The equation these days rather points towards subtraction, and the crisis could drive Mr Monet's project backwards. How these traumas are treated over the next few years will define what the EU becomes."
More from Mark here .
'The hunters are the hunted'published at 08:58
We'll find out this morning who will chair each of the Commons select committees for the next five years. Some candidates have already been elected unopposed, but others face a vote.
The BBC's South of England political editor Peter Henley has been looking how those facing a ballot canvass other MPs.
Quote MessageThey've even taken to giving out election leaflets - some highly original ones, like this on a leaf, left in a tea room (above). At the beginning it all seemed very fresh and modern. But now it's becoming tiring. The hunters are the hunted, canvassers have had the tables turned and everywhere an MP goes a candidate stops them with a new voting plea."
You can read more here.
Europe talkspublished at 08:50
Image source, EPADavid Cameron is continuing to make the case for the UK to overhaul its relationship with the European Union today. The PM will meet his Irish counterpart Enda Kenny for talks in Downing Street and also host European Parliament president Martin Schulz.
More here.
Gaffe or triumph?published at 08:50 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
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Boris cab rowpublished at 08:40
Image source, PALast night, a video of London mayor Boris Johnson's altercation with a London cabbie emerged, external. In it, Mr Johnson is seen swearing at the driver, who offers some colourful language of his own. BBC Transport Correspondent Tom Edwards explains the background:
Behind this incident is an ongoing dispute that has been simmering for months.
The black cab trade blame the Mayor Boris Johnson and Transport for London for failing to do enough to protect them. Cabbies say the rise of Minicab phone apps in particular uber and the increase in illegal Minicab touting is putting them out of business.
Cabbies are unhappy Uber uses a mobile app to work out the cost of journeys. They argue this is the same as a taxi meter, which only black cabs are legally entitled to use in London.
There have been protests on the roads and at City Hall and radio phone ins are inundated with cabbies. Now the mayor is talking about putting a cap on the number of Minicab drivers. But the relationship between some black cabbies and the mayor is looking increasingly strained.
Quote MessageWhere could MPs go?published at 08:30
Later, a report looking at the options for the restoration of the Houses of Parliament will be published. One option could be to relocate temporarily, but where would MPs and Peers go?
Some potential choices are in London, close to Whitehall and convenient for those based in Whitehall, such as the Queen Elizabeth II Centre and even Buckingham Palace.
Further afield, options could include the Birmingham Library and Manchester Town Hall. BBC reporter Pippa Simm took a look at some options earlier this year.
If Parliament does move, where to? Send us your thoughts politics@bbc.co.uk
Scottish government 'consulted'published at 08:24 British Summer Time 18 June 2015
Wind farm review?published at 08:15
Scotland's Energy Minister Fergus Ewing has warned the UK Government that its decision to end onshore wind may be the subject of a judicial review.
Quote MessageThis announcement goes further than what had been previously indicated. It is not the scrapping of a 'new' subsidy that was promised but a reduction of an existing regime - and one under which companies and communities have already planned investment."
Quote MessageOnshore wind is already the lowest cost of all low carbon options, as well the vital contribution it makes towards tackling climate change, which means it should be the last one to be scrapped, curtailed or restricted."
Labour hustingspublished at 08:11
Labour's leadership hopefuls have been grilled on the public finances, welfare and immigration in the first live television debate of the contest.
Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper, Liz Kendall and Jeremy Corbyn went head to head in Nuneaton, a marginal seat Labour failed to win at the election.
One audience member asked them to compare themselves with "successful" SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon.
The new leader will be announced at a special conference on 12 September.
Parliament set to move?published at 08:08
A range of options for the "major restoration" of the Houses of Parliament, which could cost more than £3bn, is be considered by MPs.
The 150-year-old Grade I listed building is partly sinking, contains asbestos and has outdated cabling.
An Independent Options Appraisal (IOA) report, compiled by industry experts and due to be published on Thursday, will set out scenarios for its refurbishment.
It is expected to include suggestions for Parliament's temporary relocation.
A report in 2012 warned that "major, irreversible damage" may be done to the building unless significant restoration work is carried out.
Another previous report concluded the cost of maintenance is such that if the Palace of Westminster, as the building is also known, was a commercial structure of no historical significance, it would be cost-effective to demolish it and rebuild using modern construction techniques.
Boris v taxi driverpublished at 08:04
Image source, Getty ImagesLondon mayor Boris Johnson has been caught on film swearing at a taxi driver. Mr Johnson, who is also a Conservative MP, was involved in an altercation at traffic lights in the footage obtained by the Sun., external
A source close to the mayor told BBC political correspondent Ross Hawkins it was "a colourful choice of language" .
But the source added: "He was giving as good as he got to a guy who heckles him regularly."
It is understood the incident took place over a week ago.
The general secretary of the Licensed Taxi Drivers' Association, Steve McNamara, said: "This was an incident between two grown men.
"No children were about and no-one was offended. It's a bit of a storm in the tea-cup."
Wind farm subsidiespublished at 08:02
Image source, PAWe begin our morning round-up with the news that new onshore wind farms will be excluded from a subsidy scheme from 1 April 2016, a year earlier than expected.
There will be a grace period for projects which already have planning permission, the Department of Energy and Climate Change said.
But it is estimated that almost 3,000 wind turbines are awaiting planning permission and this announcement could jeopardise those plans.
Energy firms had been facing an end to generous subsidies in 2017.
The funding for the subsidy comes from the Renewables Obligation, which is funded by levies added to household fuel bills.
After the announcement was made, Fergus Ewing, Scottish minister for business, energy and tourism and member of the Scottish parliament, said he had warned the UK government that the decision could be the subject of a judicial review.
Good morningpublished at 08:00
Alex Hunt
Politics editor, BBC News OnlineHello and welcome to our rolling political coverage on a warm Thursday morning in Westminster. It's going to be a busy one with news about wind farm subsidies, David Cameron continuing his EU tour, the results of elections to chair Commons committees and possibly a historic decision around lunchtime to temporarily move MPs and peers out of Parliament while it is restored.