Munira Wilson also commits the Lib Dems to not raising VAT after the election, in line with a pledge made by Labour and the Conservatives earlier.

She says the party would not hike the sales tax - or income tax and National Insurance.

The party would target taxes on banks, tech firms and energy companies, Wilson tells BBC Breakfast, adding: "They have benefited from problems in the economy and society and should be paying their fair share."

Image source, PA Media

Up first this morning, we're hearing from Lib Dem candidate Munira Wilson, hours after her party announced its intention to get mental health professionals in every school in England - if elected.

Pressed on where these professionals are coming from, she tells BBC Breakfast one in five children struggles with their mental health and says there are "adults already working in counselling and mental health" who've expressed a wish to work with children.

The BBC's Naga Munchetty cuts in to tell Wilson that no one's doubting the important of the issue and says it's not clear how the Lib Dems would fund this pledge.

Using an example of waiting lists in Birmingham and Solihull, Munchetty says there are 17,000 children currently waiting for mental health treatment in that one area. Munchetty suggests having these professionals in classroms won't "touch the sides" on the issue. Wilson says the Tories have let children down in this area.

Sam Hancock
Live reporter

Good morning. The stage is set for another busy day on the campaign trail and I'm here again, with colleagues in our London newsroom, to guide you through the latest news lines, analysis and political spats as the day progresses.

Here's a look at who's going where today:

• Rishi Sunak will be in the South East later on, Keir Starmer is heading to South Wales and Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey will be in campaigning in Somerset
• The Green Party will be launching its campaign in Bristol, where candidates will argue that electing Green candidates will make any Labour government "braver and more ambitious"
• The SNP, Reform and Plaid Cymru will also be holding campaign events, which we can bring you more details on later

Before all that, though, we're going to bring you this morning's main election interviews - with candidates from a number of the major parties. And it looks like VAT is going to be topic of the day - or the morning at least. Let's get going.

Let's take a look now at Thursday's front pages.

The Guardian declares that Labour veteran Diane Abbott has set up a "clash" with Sir Keir Starmer, external, after defying him with her vow to remain an MP for "as long as possible".

The paper reports that a deal for her to retire from Parliament, after her readmission to the Labour party, has broken down.

"I will not be intimidated," says the Daily Telegraph headline. The paper says she's thrown Labour’s election campaign into turmoil., external

The Times says the Labour leader is facing backlash from the left of his party over what it calls a "full blown purge" of candidates, external who had supported the previous leader, Jeremy Corbyn. Sir Keir said yesterday that "no decision" had been taken to bar Diane Abbott, external.

"We’re behind you, Keir," reads the Daily Mirror's headline. The words are written across a picture of the Labour leader, posing with student nurses, external, on the campaign trail in Worcester yesterday.

• Read more from today's papers here

Kevin Peachey
Cost of living correspondent

The Conservatives and Labour have accused each other of multi-billion pound black holes in their spending pledges.

At the same time, neither are keen to talk of any kind of tax rises. In fact, they say they want the tax burden to come down.

And they've both committed to get debt falling as a share of national income.

So, as the campaign enters a second week, clarity and honesty over the financial challenges facing the next government remain a key theme.

Just a few days ago, the Institute for Fiscal Studies said the state of the public finances was a "dark cloud" hanging over this election.

Without significant economic growth, and with tax rises seemingly increasingly ruled out - cuts to public services may become more of a prospect, whoever is in power.

Image source, Getty Images

Value added tax, or VAT, is the tax you have to pay when you buy goods or services.

The standard rate of VAT in the UK is 20%, with about half the items households spend money on subject to this rate.

There is a reduced rate of 5% which applies to some things like children's car seats and home energy.

When you see a price for something in a shop, any VAT will already have been added.

There are also various items for which you do not have to pay any VAT, such as most supermarket food, children's clothing, newspapers and magazines.

More here.

Image source, Getty Images

Labour and the Conservatives have both ruled out raising value added tax (VAT) if they win the general election.

Writing in the Telegraph, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said the Tories would not raise the main rate of the sales tax during the next Parliament.

He challenged Labour to make the same pledge, claiming the party had been evasive on the issue during recent media interviews.

Shortly afterwards, shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves also ruled out a VAT hike, dismissing a claim she had planned to raise it as "nonsense".

Read more here.

Francesca Gillett
Live reporter

Welcome back to another day of election coverage - and today marks the start of the official five-week campaign.

At one minute past midnight last night, Parliament was dissolved. All MPs have to clear their offices and are no longer considered MPs. If they want to come back, they'll have to stand as candidates.

Here in the London newsroom we're looking through the schedule for the day. It looks like another busy one - the Greens and Plaid Cymru are both launching their campaigns today, plus there are policy announcements and campaign events from the SNP, Lib Dems, Reform UK, Labour and the Conservatives.

We're pausing today's coverage of the general election campaign. Before we go, here's a quick look back at what's been happening:

• Rishi Sunak said he's not worried about the polls, which on average suggest Labour is leading the Conservatives by about 21 points, with the PM insisting he is changing minds on the campaign trail
• The Conservatives have promised to scrap some university courses in England to help fund 100,000 apprenticeships per year if they win the July election

• Labour has promised a target to start treatment within 18 weeks for most NHS patients in England will be hit within five years

• Sir Keir Starmer has denied the party has banned Diane Abbott from standing as a Labour candidate, amid a row over whether the party will select the veteran MP to run in her Hackney North and Stoke Newington seat at July's election

• The Lib Dems said they would increase taxes on big tech companies to fund putting mental health professionals in all of England's state schools
• Junior doctors in England will stage a five-day strike in the lead-up to the election in their long-running pay dispute with the government - Sunak said the timing of the strike "makes it look incredibly political", while shadow health secretary Wes Streeting said a Labour government would negotiate to bring the strikes to an end

You can read all of today's latest political stories here. We'll be bringing you the latest updates and analysis from the campaign trail tomorrow - see you then.

Labour is pledging to put more police in communities and "take back our town centres from thugs and thieves".

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper, who is expected to visit South Yorkshire tomorrow, repeated the party's promise of 13,000 officers and community support officers working in neighbourhoods in England and Wales.

The pledge involves hiring 3,000 new officers and 4,000 PCSOs.

The rest of the numbers are made up by officers already hired in the government’s recent boost in police numbers, and by special constables, who work part time and are unpaid.

Conservative policing minister Chris Philp said the policy "isn't worth the paper it's written on".

• Read more here

Nick Eardley
Political correspondent

The shadow chancellor has ruled out increasing VAT for the next parliament.

She was responding to Conservative claim that the party was leaving the option open.

Rachel Reeves said: "Labour will not be increasing income tax, national insurance or VAT. I want taxes on working people to be lower not higher. That is why we opposed the increases to national insurance when Rishi Sunak put those forward as chancellor.

"Jeremy Hunt needs to explain how he is going to fund his £71 billion pound unfunded spending plans that risk putting up interest rates and people's mortgages."

Kate McGough
Education producer

The Liberal Democrats say they will increase taxes on social media giants and companies like Amazon and Google to fund mental health professionals for all England's state schools, if they win the general election.

The new workforce would be paid for by tripling the amount such companies pay in what is known as the Digital Services Tax.

Recent NHS stats show nearly 340,000 children and young people are currently on waiting lists to access mental health services in England.

The Conservatives said they had already increased training places for mental health nurses, while Labour said it would put mental health support in every school.

• Read more here

Image source, PA Media

Scotland's First Minister John Swinney says a generation of young people has been "robbed of opportunity" by "a broken Westminster consensus with absolutely nothing positive to offer".

Speaking ahead of campaigning for the SNP tomorrow, Swinney says young people in Scotland have benefited from free university tuition, as well as free bus travel for those aged under 22.

Earlier, the Conservatives promised to scrap some university courses in England to help fund 100,000 apprenticeships per year if they win the July election, while Labour reiterated promises to introduce technical excellence colleges aimed at training workers for local industries, and to reform the apprenticeship levy into a "growth and skills levy".

Image source, .

Adam Fleming and Alex Forsyth are joined by Newsnight political editor Nick Watt to discuss conflicting reports over whether Diane Abbott has been barred from standing to be a Labour MP.

Listen now and throughout the campaign.

Jayne McCormack and Davy Wilson
BBC News NI

Image source, PA Media

Some big news tonight for one of the UK’s most marginal seats, Fermanagh and South Tyrone in Northern Ireland, where the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) says it will not stand a candidate.

Instead, DUP leader Gavin Robinson encouraged all unionists in the area to back the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP candidate Diana Armstrong.

It’s a move that’s likely to make Sinn Féin’s task of holding on to the seat much harder.

The party retained Fermanagh and South Tyrone in 2019 by just 57 votes - the slimmest margin of victory of any constituency in the UK.

That came after the DUP stood aside and backed the UUP’s Tom Elliott, who previously won the seat (with the DUP’s backing) in 2015.

The sitting MP, Sinn Féin’s Michelle Gildernew, announced last week she would not be standing again.

Earlier today, Pat Cullen, the head of the Royal College of Nursing, stepped down, announcing she is seeking Sinn Féin’s nomination to stand as their candidate this year.

A full list of candidates standing in all 18 constituencies will be available on BBC News NI when nominations close on 7 June.

As we 've just reported, Jeremy Corbyn took a swipe at Labour as he launched his campaign to be re-elected as an independent MP this evening, accusing the party of "denying democracy".

Corbyn was suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) in 2020 - when, in response to the Equality and Human Rights Commission report into the party’s handling of antisemitism complaints, he suggested the scale of the problem had been "dramatically overstated" by opponents.

After Corbyn confirmed he would stand against Labour, he was informed he was no longer a party member - standing against the party automatically triggers expulsion.

Asked about his predecessor's announcement last week, Sir Keir Starmer told BBC Breakfast: "That's a matter for Jeremy... we will have an excellent candidate."

Local Labour councillor Praful Nargund has been announced as the party's candidate for the north London seat.

A complete list of candidates standing in Islington North will be available on the BBC website after nominations close.

Susana Mendonca
BBC Radio London, reporting from north London

Jeremy Corbyn has given his speech at his campaign launch in north London. There were cheers from his supporters as he shouted, “I’m standing to be the independent MP for Islington North”.

He said he was standing in the general election to “make sure people are heard” and said that he was “also standing for democracy”. He accused Labour of “denying” democracy by not allowing him to stand in the general election for the party.

Corbyn said: “Labour members were denied a vote. If you shut down that democratic voice then you’ve got problems... that’s why I’ve decided I will run.”

He told the audience of 150 or so supporters that he could have filled the room several times over, but there was a limit on how many people were allowed to be in the hall of the community centre in Crouch Hill where the event was held.

His supporters also applauded the moment where Corbyn said he had sent a message of support to Diane Abbott because he couldn’t be at a rally tonight in support of her in Hackney, which was being held following the uncertainty over whether she will be allowed to stand as a Labour MP.

Asked on his way out of the venue whether he thought Abbott should stand as an independent candidate, Corbyn said he would support her “whatever she decides to do”.

A complete list of candidates standing in Islington North will be available on the BBC website after nominations close.

Image source, BBC / Amanda Benson

Earlier today we heard from crossbench peer Lord Simon Woolley, a friend of Diane Abbott and the founder of Operation Black Vote, which promotes the participation of black Britons in politics.

Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s World at One, Woolley said he thought the length of the investigation into Abbott over comments she made on racism was in and of itself “disrespectful”.

As a reminder, BBC Newsnight reported yesterday that the party's investigation was completed in December 2023.

“At the very least, the Labour Party owes Diane Abbott an apology for how long it has taken. This is a big moment for the Labour Party and Diane and Britain’s black communities,” he said.

Woolley said a Labour executive meeting is set to take place which will conclude what the findings are, and he warned that the party risked disrespecting "one of the most popular MPs in modern time" if they don't have a "respectful and adult conversation" with Abbott.

Speaking at a rally this evening, Abbott said the Labour party was "insisting" she be banned, and said it hadn't communicated with her personally on the matter at all, despite Keir Starmer earlier saying no decision had been taken on barring her.

We reported a little earlier on Rishi Sunak's Q&A in Devon (see our previous posts).

The prime minister told the BBC's political editor Chris Mason he was "thoroughly enjoying" himself meeting voters in the election campaign.

Asked if he was changing people's minds on the campaign trail, Sunak said he was. You can watch that clip below.