Jack Burgess
Live reporter

It was another busy morning on this week's edition of Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg.

A lot was covered, with Deputy Prime Minister Oliver Dowden, Labour's Lisa Nandy, Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey and Estonian PM Kaja Kallas all having their say.

You can read our story here on the deputy PM declining to say whether it was Islamophobic for Lee Anderson to say London Mayor Sadiq Khan is controlled by "Islamists".

We'll be closing this page shortly but before we go there's time for a quick name check.

This page was written by Nadia Ragozhina and Aoife Walsh, and edited by me.

We look forward to you joining us next Sunday - same time, same place.

Image source, PA

Once again, it was the Post Office scandal making headlines in the past week.

This time it was former Post Office Chairman Henry Staunton and Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch trading blows over the government’s handling of compensation.

Staunton alleges he was told by top civil servant Sarah Mundy to delay compensation to victims of the Horizon IT scandal. His claims have been vociferously denied by Mundy and the government.

Staunton, who was sacked in January, has been accused of spreading “made-up anecdotes” by Badenoch.

Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey - who was a guest on today’s programme - has come under scrutiny for his role in the scandal. He was minister for postal affairs from 2010 to 2012 in the coalition government.

Laura has asked Davey about a letter Alan Bates, a sub-postmaster turned campaigner, sent him in 2010 asking for a meeting.

Davey says he declined the meeting, telling Bates that he did not believe it "would serve any useful purpose".

Asked if he regrets his comments now, Davey tells Laura: "Yes. I was in office 11 days, and was advised by officials that because the government didn't run the Post Office... it would be inappropriate for me to meet him."

Davey says he later decided to meet Bates and adds "I believe I was the first post office minister on record to have met him".

Image source, Getty Images

As she closed the show, Laura Kuenssberg confirmed that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt will be appearing on the programme next Sunday, ahead of the Budget.

When he announces the Budget, the Chancellor will say how much money the government plans to take in taxes, and what it will spend it on.

There is a lot of focus on whether he will cut taxes ahead of the general election, due later this year.

Earlier this month, it was confirmed the UK fell into recession at the end of last year; meanwhile, the cost of living crisis continues to effect huge swathes of the electorate.

So a lot is riding on this Budget for the government, as the polls loom.

We’ll be listening out for any clues dropped by the deputy prime minister as to what might be in that all-important red box.

You can read more on what to expect from the Budget here.

Image source, EPA-EFE

Kaja Kallas was one of the guests on the programme and has said that Europe needs to get more serious about its defence.

She was speaking a day after Ukraine marked two years since Russia's full-scale invasion of the country.

On Saturday, flanked by four Western leaders, who had arrived in Ukraine in a show of solidarity, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky issued a rallying cry, vowing his country will prevail.

"None of us will allow our Ukraine to end," Zelensky has said in a speech in Kyiv.

Estonian PM Kaja Kallas says leaders risk ignoring lessons from the 1930s and 1940s if they do not bolster support for Ukraine.

Whew, that went quickly!

Here's a look back at what the guests have been discussing this morning on Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg:

Deputy Prime Minister - Oliver Dowden has said that Tory MP Lee Anderson would have kept his job if he had apologised for his comments. Dowden refused to be drawn into the debate of whether those comments were Islamophobic. The Deputy PM has also said prime minister Rishi Sunak has been robust in showing there's no tolerance for Islamophobia.

Estonia's prime minister - Next up was Estonian PM Kaja Kallas, who has said it's time to "focus our efforts" on stopping the war and helping Ukraine to fight back against Russia.

She has called on those Nato members who are paying less than 2% of their GDP towards the Nato budget to step up and pay more - saying that when "war comes to Europe, it spreads very fast". She also warns that lessons from 1940s Europe should be learnt.

Lib Dem leader -Sir Ed Davey has said he should have apologised to the former sub-postmasters and mistresses earlier over his role in the Post Office scandal.

He adds that the priority now was the government to make sure they got the exoneration and compensation quickly and "got to the truth".

Finally, Labour's Lisa Nandy has said she was embarrassed by what happened in the Commons last week but once again insisted there was no truth to the repots that Labour MPs threatened the Speaker with the loss of his job.

The programme has now finished, but the panel have been sharing their closing thoughts with Laura Kuenssberg.

Andy Burnham - Laura asks the Mayor of Greater Manchester if he would still want to be an MP now.

Burnham says he's been much happier over the last seven years with what he's working on in Greater Manchester.

He says the situation in Rochdale is sad and adds that Westminster politics sometimes works against them rather than with them.

Burnham says he is standing for a third term as mayor, but he wouldn't rule out returning to government one day.

Therese Coffey - Laura turns to the former environment secretary next and asks if Coffey's still glad she's an MP, and if life's better on the backbenches.

Coffey says Parliament is about the national impact of what you can do. She speaks about an infection she had that took "a greater hold" a few years ago, which was a reminder that "we're all human beings" and that you have to "choose and prioritise".

She says she'd welcome more people who want to become MPs.

Halima Begum - Laura asks ActionAid's CEO if she's relieved that she didn't become an MP.

Begum says she thinks its a myth that only MPs have a difficult time. She says there's not a day that she gets any rest, and her plate is full.

She adds that politics feels "gridlocked at the moment".

Laura asks Lisa Nandy about the upcoming Rochdale by-election where Labour have had to drop support for the candidate after he made antisemitic comments.

Who would Nandy advise Labour voters to vote for, Laura asks?

Nandy replies by saying the by-election is an unprecedented situation and she wouldn't advise people to vote for anyone.

She brings up the "hate and division" that she's seen across British politics in the last weeks and condemns PM Rishi Sunak for the way he has dealt with comments by Tory MP Lee Anderson.

She concludes by saying that people should vote for whomever they believe can "end the hate and division that's pilling on to our streets.

Laura now asks Nandy if she can guarantee that Sir Lindsay Hoyle will be reappointed as Commons speaker if Labour wins the general election.

"No, of course I can't," she says, adding that it is not in the "gift of the political party".

She says the Speaker is elected by MPs from across the Commons, which is an essential part of the speaker's independence.

Laura then asks if Nandy can guarantee no-one threatened the Speaker with the loss of his job last Wednesday during the House of Commons Gaza ceasefire vote? Sir Keir Starmer has denied that he individually did that, she adds.

Lisa replies that she can and says she's had numerous conversations with her colleagues.

She says the idea that you would threaten the Speaker is "for the birds", she says.

"It's not how it works, he is the guardian of our processes and procedures," Nandy adds

"The idea that anyone could threaten the Speaker and get away with it is nonsense", Nandy says.

We're now hearing from Labour's Lisa Nandy.

Laura starts off by asking Nandy if she's embarrassed by what happened in the House of Commons on Wednesday.

"Yes, of course," she says.

Nandy says it was a "very angry debate" that focused on what was happening in the House rather than on Rafah.

She says it was a moment they could have "come together and speak with one voice and send a very clear message".

Nandy says she's glad that a motion calling for a humanitarian ceasefire passed, but adds: "I don't think anyone could look at those scenes on Wednesday and think that that covered the political system in the UK in glory. It didn't."

Are you confident of being the third biggest party after the upcoming general election, Laura Kuenssberg asks Davey in conclusion.

Yes, is the answer.

Laura sounds surprised, having just pointed out that in some polls the Lib Dems are going neck and neck with Reform UK, a new party.

But Davey confirmed he is confident.

Laura refers to comments from senior members of the Lib Dems, who said Davey needs to be more bold and present a more comprehensive offer.

Davey says he disagrees, and adds that some people want the Lib Dems to be a think-tank, but he wants to win elections.

He says that when he became leader it was after a very disappointing result in the 2019 elections.

Davey says he told the party he wanted it to change, to listen to people and get back to community politics.

He also says he's ensured the party focused on issues voters are concerned about.

Lee Castleton, a former sub-postmaster, in a recorded video message asks Davey who had told him not to engage with the JFSA, the organisation acting on behalf of sub-postmasters and mistresses, and Alan Bates.

Laura presses Davey on that, asking who it was specifically who had told Davey not to take action.

Davey again says it was officials who had been telling him not to engage.

He adds that eventually he did meet with Alan Bates, the first post office minister to do so.

Now Laura turns to a letter Alan Bates, a sub-postmaster turned campaigner, wrote to Davey in 2010 asking for a meeting.

Davey responded by declining the meeting, writing that he did not believe it "would serve any useful purpose".

She asks Davey if he regrets his comments now.

Davey says yes, and that he was in office 11 days, had been advised by officials that the government didn't run the post office and it would be inappropriate to meet him.

Davey says Bates responded and he then told officials he did want to meet him and hear his concerns.

He says he was the first post office minister on record to meet him and listen to his concerns.

Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey is next in the hot seat and Laura starts by asking why it took so long to apologise over his role in the Post Office scandal.

Davey says he should have said sorry earlier.

He adds that his heart goes out to the "sub-postmasters and their families who were treated appallingly".

The key thing now is to make sure they get the compensation and exoneration to happen quickly and that "they get to the truth".

He talks about two sub-postmasters in his constituency and says he will fight for them and join others to make sure the government gives them the fair deal they deserve.

On a finishing note, Laura asks Kallas about being put on Putin's most wanted list. How does she feel about being named a target?

Kallas replies that she's had a lot of messages of congratulations. But, jokes aside, she adds that this shows "that Putin's playbook hasn't changed".

"This is meant to make me afraid and the only response is that we shouldn't be afraid," she adds.

She concludes by saying she's not afraid.

Laura asks about former US President Donald Trump's calls for Nato countries to pay more into the budget, and Kallas responds that this is a signal to everyone in Europe to do more "for our defence".

She points out that Trump has been saying this for a while, "maybe not in such harsh words".

And she adds that Estonia has been spending more than 2% of their GDP, and have now increased it to over 3%.

"Not all Nato countries are doing it," Kallas says.

"It is very important that other countries do this too. When the war started I thought everyone would now understand that we have to spend more on defence."

"But to my surprise that isn't the case," she says.

Kallas continues by saying that everyone should spend more than 3%.

She adds that in the '80s some countries spent more than 6% of GDP.

"The threat was real, the Cold War. Now there's a hot war going on and still some countries think that it doesn't really concern them.

"Again, the lessons from 1930-40s is that when there is war in Europe it's going to spread if we are not strong enough," Kallas said.

Laura Kuenssberg asks Kallas if she thinks we are potentially risking another world war.

Kallas says that Putin is very clear about his aims. He hasn't changed his goals - "his aim is to conquer Ukraine and move on".

If he is able to achieve his goals in Ukraine, she says the next step would be "attacking Nato". And that's a question for all of us, she adds.

"We have to do everything to increase our own defence, to spend more on defence so that Russia wouldn't' think about attacking Nato.

"Defence is not a provocation," Kallas adds.

We're now hearing from Kaja Kallas, the Estonian Prime Minister, who Laura has been speaking to about the war in Ukraine.

"We have to really focus our efforts in stopping this war and helping Ukraine to fight back", Kallas begins by saying.

She says that Russia will continue to fight if they win in Europe and that's why "it's very important for all of us to help them right now".

Kallas says we need to remember the history of the 20th century and says one lesson from the 1940s is that when the war expanded in Europe it went very fast.

"No country is left untouched," Kallas says, and adds "that's why we all have a skin in the game".

Laura asks if she thinks the politicians are listening and Kallas says that in the US she feels that the majority support helping Ukraine, but we have to learn from history and not repeat the same mistakes, she warns.

Laura now turns to a statement put out by the prime minister last night condemning extremism and antisemitism. She asks Dowden why it didn't mention Islamophobia.

Dowden says the prime minister has been robust in showing there's no tolerance for Islamophobia.

He then says week after week, people are going to marches carrying placards which have antisemitic tropes on them and parliament has been impacted over fears of safety.

Dowden says that's what the PM was addressing in his statement.

He says other parties need to stand up and call this out because we cannot allow freedom of expression to be put at risk.