Sean Curran
Parliamentary correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

Some British people have "illusions" about discussing the UK's future ties with the EU at the same time as nailing down the its Brexit terms, according to German Chancellor Angela Merkel.

She told German MPs that the future relationship can only be discussed once the exit issues - such as UK payments to the EU budget - are resolved. 

And on the sequence of the Brexit talks, she said "some people in the UK still have some illusions on that score" which would be "just a waste of time".

Image source, PA

The latest crime figures are out, and they show police recorded 4.8 million offences in 2016 - a 9% increase from the year before. 

Knife and gun crime incidents recorded by police rose by more than 10% last year compared with 2015. 

The Office for National Statistics says this was "thought to reflect changes in recording processes and practices rather than crime".

But Diane Abbott, Labour's shadow home secretary, says the figures are "a stark reminder of Theresa May's record of failure on policing and crime".   

YouGov’s latest voting intention figures are out, external - and they show the Conservatives on 45%, Labour 29%, Lib Dems 10% and UKIP 7%.

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The BBC's Peter Barnes writes: The last five dates for the State Opening of Parliament, when the Queen’s Speech is delivered, have all been on Wednesdays. 

And so have eight out of the last ten. 

So why is this year’s going to be held on Monday 19 June? 

It couldn’t have anything to do with the fact that Royal Ascot starts the next day could it?

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Baroness Warsi, who was Conservative party vice-chairman under former leader Michael Howard, said there was no need for personal attacks on Jeremy Corbyn – and admitted she did not know what a mugwump was.

She told BBC2’s Daily Politics: “This is just Boris being Boris. Jeremy Corbyn is an ineffective leader of the Labour party, which is what he has shown, which means he can never be an effective prime minister.

“Jeremy Corbyn, without sounding ultra-confident, is not going to be prime minister. I just don’t think we need to resort to personal attacks on him. It’s obvious he cannot run a political party and he’s not going to be able to run the country.”

She added: “The question is not whether or not Theresa May is going to be prime minister – it’s what size her majority is going to be.”

The Labour leader hit out at the Conservatives as a party which is "strong against the weakest and very weak against the strongest, the wealthiest and the richest".

He said he wanted to send a message "it doesn't have to be like this and thing can be very different".

Mr Corbyn said a Labour government "would invest for the future" - in the economy, young people and jobs.

He accused the Conservatives as giving tax breaks to the very rich and the biggest corporations.

In a rallying cry, he said: "Come with us on this journey to create a fairer, more decent society for everyone, not just the few."

Jeremy Corbyn says the 2017 general election is about the "future" and "removing the sense of insecurity that many people face".

He said it's "not right" that a million people wake up not knowing if they have a day's work because of zero contracts.

The Labour leader also said it was not right that people were left waiting in A&E departments or struggled to receive the social care they need.

He went on: "It's up to us to put it right and we do that by electing a Labour government that invests for the future."

The Queen will formally open the new session of Parliament on 19 June, says a spokesman for Theresa May.

European Parliament
Brussels

Image source, AFP

Away from the election, there’s an interesting bit of Brexit detail over at the European Parliament, where MEPs have just voted to sign off 2015 spending from the European Medicines Agency (EMA).

The latest audit report, external on the London-based EU agency notes that its current rental contract in Canary Wharf, which runs until 2039, does not include an early termination clause.

The report estimates that the payable rent until the end of contract could total €347m, and says any relocation costs should be considered as part of the Brexit talks.

The current contract was only signed in 2011 – when the report says “a potential exit of the UK from the Union was not foreseeable”. 

Jeremy Corbyn has pledged to build a million homes over the period of a Parliament if Labour gets into power.

Speaking in Harlow, Essex, he said half would be council or housing association homes for rent and would be "totally affordable".

Mr Corbyn said: "That's the Labour way. We want our country properly housed and we want our young people growing up with security so they can achieve more."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson says the UK might join forces with the US to intervene in the event of another chemical attack in Syria.

The US carried out a missile strike against a Syrian air base in response to a suspected chemical weapons attack on a rebel-held town in early April.

"If they [US] come to us and ask for our support...in my view, and I know this is also the view of the prime minister, it would be very difficult for us to say no," said Mr Johnson.

He also suggested that action could potentially take place without a Commons debate on the issue.

The Conservative Party appears to have settled on its slogan for the 2017 general election campaign.

Do you know what it is yet? Watch this video to give you a hint.

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