Catriona MacPhee
BBC Scotland

Image source, PA Media

Scottish Greens co-leader Lorna Slater has accused the Conservatives of inciting a “desperate” culture war to win voters, after the party pledged to reform the equalities act to include biological sex.

She also accuses the equalities minister, Kemi Badenoch, of encroaching into the devolution settlement by proposing to make the issue a reserved matter.

“Equalities is, and should continue to be, a devolved matter. It’s outrageous that Westminster is further encroaching into the devolution settlement," Slater says.

She says the Tories are "putting forth desperate measures" in a bid to appeal to "their more right-wing Conservative with a capital C base".

“...they imagine that this kind of measure is something that could really get them enthused, but the reality is that most people believe...in equality and I don’t think that is going to significantly move the dial," she continues.

"Kemi Badenoch's pledge is a culture war trying to enliven a very small number of people that have radical views in this space that are not in keeping with mainstream views at all."

Slater was speaking at the launch of the Scottish Green’s plans for a national road-use charging framework.

The scheme would see motorists being charged a fee to travel on public roads. The party says money raised by the levy will fund improvements to the public transport network.

The climate crisis should be a key talking point during general election debates, environment groups urge in a letter to broadcasters.

A number of green groups – including WWF, Greenpeace UK, National Trust, Possible and Green Alliance – have written to the BBC, Channel 4, ITV, Sky and Global, to ask the broadcasters to ensure their coverage reflects the public's "real concerns" over the issue.

The groups say support for climate action is "overwhelmingly high among all demographics".

"As broadcasters you have a duty to ensure that general election coverage reflects the public's desire to see strong and serious leadership on climate and nature recovery - and a genuine debate about the solutions," the letter adds.

Hirra Khan Adeogun, co-director of climate charity Possible, says climate issues have been missing from discussion around the election so far.

"Climate solutions can bring down bills, bring up quality of life and bring the country together – so let's have a conversation about it," she says.

It's been a busy day so if you are just joining us or would like a recap of all the latest, here's what the politicians been saying:

• For Labour, the theme is firmly centred on national security
• Sir Keir Starmer said Britain would be "fit to fight", reaffirming Labour's commitment to a "nuclear deterrent triple lock"
• Meanwhile, the Conservatives focused on a proposal to amend the Equality Act, with a pledge to re-write the law so that a person's sex can only be defined as "biological sex"
• Kemi Badenoch, minister for women and equalities, said the proposed change was about making the law clearer
• The law needs to be changed to "protect women spaces" and to stop men who are "predators" from exploiting laws that protect transgender people, she said
• In response, the Liberal Democrats accused the Tories of waging "phony culture wars"
• Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper said the proposed change was a "cynical distraction" and there was no need to "unpick" a law which had been in place since 2010
• The Lib Dems have also called for a "Blue Flag" status for rivers, calling raw sewage being pumped into rivers an "absolute catastrophe"

Lucy Manning
BBC News Special Correspondent

Nigel Farage has announced on X, formerly Twitter, he will be making “an emergency general election announcement” this afternoon with the Reform UK leader Richard Tice.

When the election was called Farage ruled out standing saying it hadn’t left him enough time to campaign in a constituency, but he has a few more days to make a final decision until nominations actually close.

So could we see a major U-turn from the Reform UK honorary president, with a decision he will now run to become an MP?

There had been speculation he would stand in Clacton in Essex.

If he does change his mind this would be his eighth attempt to become an MP.

One Reform UK source said of the possible announcement that Farage “loves his theatre”. This would certainly be dramatic.

Liberal Democrats deputy leader Daisy Cooper has been out and about in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, where her party has announced that a "Blue Flag" status for rivers will be included within their manifesto.

It's a system that already exists for beaches and is designed to signal that it's a safe place to swim.

Cooper refers to an "absolute environmental catastrophe" of raw sewage being pumped into rivers and streams.

She says her party has been "at the forefront" of calling to an end to the dumping.

How much raw sewage is released into rivers and seas? You can find out here.

Labour attacks Conservatives over Army recordpublished at 11:56 British Summer Time 3 June

11:56 BST 3 June

Labour is claiming that the Conservatives have cut the Army to its smallest size “since Napoleon” and missed recruitment targets every year.

The most recent Ministry of Defence figures, external on UK armed forces personnel show the number of UK regular army forces (excluding Gurkhas and volunteers) was 75,325 in April 2024, down from 79,330 in October 2019, just before the last election.

So the number has fallen by around 4,000 in that time.

Military historians estimate this is indeed the smallest size of the regular army since the Napoleonic wars in the early 19th century.

Though the Army today has a reserve force of over 30,000 so it is slightly larger than in Napoleonic times if they are factored in.

A written answer , externalto Parliament by the defence minister, Andrew Murrison, in January 2023 showed the number of non-officers recruited into the army in every financial year since 2010-11 versus the targets for that year.

The data suggests a deficit in every year except 2020-21, when the target was reduced following the Government’s review into defence in 2021.

We're well into the election campaign now so here's a handy list of key dates over the next few weeks.

Tomorrow night, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer will have their first televised debate on ITV.

That will be followed by a seven-party debate this Friday, 7 June, moderated by the BBC's Mishal Hussain.

If you're keen to make sure your vote counts, note down the Tuesday, 18 June, deadline for registering to vote.

On Thursday, 20 June, Fiona Bruce will present a Question Time Leaders' Special involving leaders of the four biggest political parties.

The following week, and just days before election day, there will be another head-to-head debate between Sunak and Starmer - that's on Wednesday, 26 June, and will be hosted by Sophie Raworth.

This is set to be the last TV debate of the election campaign.

Image source, .

Gender laws already a sore spot in Scotlandpublished at 11:21 British Summer Time 3 June

11:21 BST 3 June

Rajdeep Sandhu
BBC Scotland

It's certainly a policy which will create clear dividing lines and antagonise opponents. Not just on the substance around gender but also the plan to take powers away from devolved governments.

This is already a sore spot: Last year the UK government stopped Scottish legislation to reform gender laws.

The Conservatives seem keen to press that bruise. But it does leave their Scottish colleagues in an awkward position - accusations will come their way of attacking devolution and the Scottish Parliament in which they have 31 MSPs.

So expect lots of anger from the SNP over this.

It will be tricky territory for the Labour party as well, on the gender issue, but also on devolution and whether the powers should stay with the Scottish Parliament.

Conversations around devolution tend to leak into conversations about independence.

Expect this to dominate Scottish politics today with questions on gender and devolution thrown at all the parties and to come up in a TV debate of Scottish political leaders tonight.

Going back to the Tories pledge to tackle "confusion" over legal definition of sex, the Liberal Democrats have weighed in now, with the party accusing the Conservatives of waging "phony culture wars".

The Conservatives this morning pledged to amend the act so that when it refers to a person's sex, it can only mean "biological sex".

But Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper says the proposal is a "cynical distraction" from the Tories' "failings" on issues like the NHS, social care, the cost of living crisis and protecting the local environment.

"I think the government is failing on so many counts - time and again we have seen how it tries to wage these phony culture wars," she tells LBC News radio.

Cooper adds that "where there is confusion within service providers there could be better guidance, but I really don't think there's any demand to unpick, or any need to unpick, the Equality Act itself".

She says the law, which has been in place since 2010, includes "hard-won protections" for women, transgender people and other groups with protected characteristics.

The Labour leader is asked by a reporter from the Times about his commitment to repeal the Northern Ireland Legacy Bill, which would stop new Troubles-era cases and inquests from starting, and offer a conditional amnesty to those accused of killings.

"I am committed to repealing it," Starmer says, saying he worked in Northern Ireland for five years helping to establish a police service that had the confidence of all the communities there.

He says it's a "mistake" for a government in Westminster to pass legislation on this issue that does not have the support of any political party or community in Northern Ireland. Resolving the issue without their consent and support is "not the right way".

He also disputed that across the armed services members are "all against" repealing it because "it provides an amnesty for all sides, including the terrorists".

You can read more about the Northern Ireland Legacy Bill here.

Image source, PA Media

Asked at what point Starmer came to support nuclear weapons and why, the Labour leader says that before he came into politics - when he was the director of public prosecutions - he worked with security and intelligence services on national security issues.

"I had to deal with operations where we were taking down terrorist gangs that wanted to destroy the very fabric of our society," Starmer says, recounting one operation that tried to blow up seven airplanes in the middle of the Atlantic.

"We had to take real-time decisions in those cases that I was part of, [I] was trying to do my part in relation to the defence of this country and everybody that lived here. So I don't need lectures from anyone on national security or the importance of protecting lives in this country," Starmer adds.

Starmer is now asked about the party's candidate selections and the events that have occurred over the last week or so, in particular with Faiza Shaheen who told Newsnight last week that she had been blocked from standing as Labour's candidate in Chingford and Woodford Green.

He says he wants to make sure Labour is "putting the best possible candidates forward", adding that he makes no apologies for that.

Without directly addressing the Shaheen case, Starmer says the Labour Party has changed and again stresses his line that Labour has defence and national security as a key priority.

Starmer is now asked by a Sky journalist if he believes in a "moral case" for the stopping of arms sales to Israel.

He replies by saying that the scenes in Gaza are "horrifying", particularly in Rafah.

The number one priority is for a ceasefire, he says, something his party has been asking for for months.

Starmer says aid is desperately needed and there needs to be the beginning of a political process that leads to a two-state solution which recognises Palestine alongside a safe and secure Israel.

He adds that Labour want to work with allies and that the Rafah offensive should not go ahead.

The UK should follow the US and review weapons licences to see if any armaments are being used in Rafah, Starmer says.

Starmer is pressed again on David Lammy and Angela Rayner voting in parliament in 2016 against the nuclear deterrent - at the time, Lammy cited his Christian faith when explaining why he voted against it.

The Labour leader is asked whether he spoke to them about their stance.

"I lead this party, I have change this party", he says, adding that if Labour does come into power he would be the prime minister. He adds that he has the whole shadow cabinet behind him on this.

"I lead from the front, I have always led from the front and this is an issue I feel very strongly about," Starmer adds, repeating that he voted in favour of the deterrent.

Starmer is now taking questions from the media.

First up is the BBC's Chris Mason. He asks if the Labour leader would authorise nuclear weapons if circumstances necessitated it, and if Labour has really "changed its spots", saying current frontbenchers voted against the UK's nuclear weapons just eight years ago.

Starmer says the nuclear deterrent is "fundamental" and "a vital part of our defence".

"Of course that means we have to be prepared to use it," he says, adding it would be irresponsible to set out the circumstances under which it would be used.

On the second question, Starmer says: "This is a changed Labour Party and the most important thing is that I voted in favour of the nuclear deterrent."

He says his commitment to it is "absolute".

Starmer continues on the theme of national security and defence.

He tells attendees that he is "absolutely committed" to rebuilding relationships with allies.

He cites a security conference he attended in Munich in February where he met a number of world leaders and pledged to them that with a Labour government, the UK would be a point of stability in a chaotic world.

He underlines that this is not a party political issue, but a national issue - adding that Labour will always "put out country first".

Starmer says Britain is "less safe and less secure", arguing that "we have the smallest army since the time of Napoleon".

He talks about how Labour is "totally committed" to national security and that "we have to be fit to fight".

He then emphasises the importance of the country's nuclear deterrent, saying it is "the foundation of any plan to keep Britain safe.

"It is essential."

He refers to his party's commitment to the new triple lock nuclear deterrent, saying Labour will deliver all the needed upgrades and build four new nuclear submarines.

The plan "won't just keep us safe", Starmer says, it will also support good jobs and growth, adding that within the first year of a Labour government, the party will carry out a new defence review.

Starmer tells his audience that with "my changed Labour party, national security will always come first".

He says that is the message he took to Kyiv last year when he visited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Starmer adds that "we have to be resolute, not just in support for Ukraine but at home" in the face of actors who try and attack and weaken the UK - talking not just of air and land and sea attacks but also information warfare.

"I would prefer if politics were kept out of this issue," Starmer says, adding that through all of this parliament he has deliberately not been partisan in terms of these issues.

Image source, Pool

We're now hearing from Labour leader Keir Starmer.

He starts by noting this week marks the 80th anniversary of D-Day, and pays tribute to the bravery of soldiers involved.

"This week and every week, we will remember them," he says, adding "we can honour their sacrifice with our decisions today."

"Sadly the world we live in today is perhaps more dangerous and volatile than at any time since then," he says, adding "the post-war era is over and a new age of insecurity has begun."

He says national security is the "most important issue of our times".

Speaking just before Healey at that Labour event was Louise Jones, an army veteran and Labour candidate for North East Derbyshire, who is running to be "Labour's first female veteran MP".

She says there is a special bond between the armed forces and the nation.

"Today that bond is increasingly fragile," she says, claiming the Conservatives have begun to "erode the offer" to the military, focusing on accommodation.

A full list of candidates for all constituencies will be available on the BBC News website when nominations have closed on Friday.