Turning now to the political view of things, Laura asks former levelling up secretary Simon Clarke why the Tory party has taken such an issue with Lineker's comments.

He says he profoundly disagrees with Lineker's comments about the migration policy.

Clarke explains it matters because the ex-England international has a huge reach and platform on the public broadcaster.

The Tory MP adds he does stand up for free speech and that he doesn't like cancel culture.

The show starts with a chat with our panel to hear what's on their mind and what they're hoping to hear from our political guests this morning.

When Peter Salmon worked at the BBC he used to be Gary Lineker's boss and he says "it's a mess". He says it's Oscars day but there are no prizes for how this has been managed.

"I think they've got to take action pretty quickly," he adds.

Salmon says the situation with BBC chairman Richard Sharp does not help and that BBC director general Tim Davie is isolated and needs to come home.

The situation has got away from the BBC and it needs to get on top of it.

"I think the guidelines are a bit opaque," he says on how they relate to freelancers vs staff and who can and can't say things.

He says Lineker is more than just a tv presenter he's a national figure with views and passions "it may be that Gary's outgrown the job," he says.

We're live on air, but if you're watching on BBC One you might have noticed that the programme on beforehand was Match of the Day.

It was running without commentary or pundits. And the reason why is going to be a major subject of discussion on the show coming up...

Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg is live now on BBC One, the BBC News Channel, BBC iPlayer and here on this page. What are the big issues up for discussion?

Well Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves are here to answer questions on Wednesday's Budget.

To discuss the ongoing fallout from the impartiality row with sports presenter Gary Lineker, former BBC director general Mark Thompson and former BBC TV executive Peter Salmon will also join Laura.

On today’s panel are Conservative MP and former Levelling Up Secretary Simon Clarke and Labour MP Nadia Whittome.

Lesley Paterson– world champion triathlete and screenwriter of the Oscar-nominated film All Quiet on the Western Front will also be on today's show.

All this and more to come in the next hour.

This morning the BBC spoke to Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey who claims 36 Tory MPs made complaints about Gary Lineker's comments.

"The BBC is a great British institution, its trusted news is important for our country, our democracy but also for the world and that's why its independence is so crucial," he says.

"And I'm afraid the Conservative government has been undermining the BBC's independence over a number of years now, not least with its appointments for example the current chair Richard Sharp.

"What we saw with this Gary Lineker episode we saw 36 Conservative MPs write to the BBC essentially asking for [him] to be punished."

He says the MPs were wrong to do this and in order to restore the perception of the independence of the BBC then "strong measures" are needed including the resignation of BBC chairman Richard Sharp.

Sharp was appointed by the government and this is being investigated along with claims that he helped arrange a loan for former PM Boris Johnson.

Joining Laura will be:

Simon Clarke MP, who was levelling up secretary under Liz Truss. A key ally of the former PM, he recently set up the Conservative Growth Group to put pressure on Rishi Sunak to follow some of her planned economic policies.

Nadia Whittome MP, who became the House of Commons' youngest MP when she topped the poll at the snap general election in 2019. She represents the Nottingham East constituency. In May 2021 she took some time off after being advised to do so by her doctor following a diagnosis of PTSD. Last October she was ordered to delete a tweet saying Rishi Sunak becoming PM "isn't a win for Asian representation".

And Peter Salmon who has worked on many hit shows including MasterChef, Big Brother, Pointless and The Island. He co-invented Sport Relief and has held a host of top broadcasting roles - including being the director of sport and controller of BBC One.

The Budget cannot mask big changes to our economypublished at 08:48 Greenwich Mean Time 12 March 2023

08:48 GMT 12 March 2023

Laura Kuenssberg
Presenter, Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg

In normal times (remember them?) there would be a frenzy this weekend about what's coming up in next week's Budget.

If it feels a bit muted so far, that isn't just because of a bit of a media frenzy over something else (what could that be?) but because Jeremy Hunt was employed as a "calm down" chancellor - called in like a soothing manager of many years' experience in a sensible bank to sort things out after some crazy young guns spent all the loot.

Given how he got his job and his political character he's not going to wake up on Wednesday morning and spring a red box full of massive shocks on an unsuspecting public.

One senior Conservative MP is hopeful of a few "pleasant surprises" but notes the Downing Street neighbours' priority is to "hold on to their reputation for caution and prudence".

But when we sit down on our programme from 9am with Jeremy Hunt and Labour's Rachel Reeves - who hopes to fill his job - there's so much more than the specifics of what's coming on Wednesday to talk about.

Bluntly, the economy has failed to grow persuasively for a long time, and no strong surge is coming soon.

Read Laura's full analysis here.

Most of Sunday's front pages reflect the impact of a day of disruption for BBC sports programming following the decision to ask Match of the Day host Gary Lineker to step aside.

On its front page, the Sunday Times reports that the broadcaster has "descended into chaos with its chairman facing renewed pressure to resign".

The paper says Lineker's suspension from hosting Saturday's MOTD in an impartiality row over his social media use "led to mutiny" as many presenters, pundits and commentators pulled out in solidarity.

The Observer says the Lineker row "threatens to topple BBC chiefs" as well as "derail parts of the government's controversial new asylum policy". In its Sunday spread, the paper reports that BBC Chairman Richard Sharp and the corporation's DG Tim Davie "were both under growing pressure to resign," as leading sports and media personalities have continued to defend the football star's "right to criticise what he regards as racist language used by ministers to promote their immigration policy".

You can read a full digest of this morning's front pages here.

Welcome to our live and continuous coverage of today’s big political interviews as we bring you text coverage, reaction and analysis from Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.

Today’s programme will be looking ahead to the Budget on Wednesday, with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt and Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

To discuss the ongoing fallout from the impartiality row with sports presenter Gary Lineker, former BBC director general Mark Thompson and former BBC TV executive Peter Salmon will also join Laura.

On today’s panel are Conservative MP and former Levelling Up Secretary Simon Clarke and Labour MP Nadia Whittome.

Lesley Paterson – world champion triathlete and screenwriter of the Oscar-nominated film All Quiet on the Western Front will also be on today's show.

Stay with us as we bring you more from today’s guests, as well as analysis and reaction from the panel.