Election latest: Labour warn Tories face 'Liz Truss takeover' - as Sunak dismisses concerns around postal ballots (2024)

Our political editor Beth Rigbywas at a Sir Keir Starmer speech earlier today and her line of questioning took an unusual turn...

There's no doubt Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey has been the king of campaign stunts during this election, but Labour sort of got in on the act with some oddly-branded pillows featuring an image of Rishi Sunak.

"Don't wake up to five more years of the Tories," read an accompanying message... and Beth couldn't resist asking Sir Keir about it:

Our weeknight politics showPolitics Hub With Sophy Ridgewill be live on Sky News from 7pm.

The fast-paced programme dissects the inner workings of Westminster, with interviews, insights, and analysis - bringing you, the audience, into the corridors of power.

Sophy is joined tonight by the Labour shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds and the Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker, who's teased a bid to replace Rishi Sunak if the Tories lose the election.

On Sophy's panel tonight are:

• Harriet Harman, former Labour deputy leader;
• Kate Fall, Tory peer and David Cameron's ex-chief of staff.

Watch live on Sky News, in the stream at the top of this page, and follow live updates here in the Politics Hub.

WatchPolitics Hubfrom 7pm every night during the election campaign on Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on theSky News websiteandappor onYouTube.

Sir Keir Starmer revealed this morning that he never works gone 6pm on Fridays because he likes having some dedicated time carved out to spend with his wife and children.

He told Virgin Radio it's a strategy he'll "try to keep to" if he becomes prime minister this week.

But the idea of clocking off as early as 6pm sounds alien to Rishi Sunak, who we heard from a little while ago.

Asked about Sir Keir's remarks, he said: "I haven't finished at six ever."

The prime minister said it would mean "we only have a couple of hours left in the day at this point, which is not great".

I, for one, would love to finish at 6, and I don't even have kids.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) says there'sa "conspiracy of silence"at this election - that all the major political partiesaren'tbeing honest enough about their fiscal plans.

The think tank says all the major parties are avoiding discussion around the black hole in their spending plans for after the election - but what else are they not talking about?

On the Sky News Daily, Niall Paterson is joined by economics and data editor Ed Conway to look at why topics from tax to Brexit might bemissing from the campaigning.

Plus, Ed explains how exit polls - the first and most accurateearly indications of who mightwinthe general electionon voting day - are put together.

Labour claim the Conservatives face a "Liz Truss takeover" if Rishi Sunak wins the general election on Thursday.

Unveiling a 12-page dossier, shadow paymaster general Jonathan Ashworth claimed the Tories' candidates include "166 hardcore Trussites".

But close inspection of the dossier reveals many of the candidates named are fighting seats the Conservatives stand little or no chance of winning.

They include Tottenham, where Labour's candidate is shadow foreign secretary David Lammy, and Doncaster North, where shadow energy secretary Ed Miliband is standing.

Other candidates listed include those fighting Labour strongholds such as City of Durham, Easington and Liverpool Walton - and many more where Labour is expected to win.

The few candidates standing in safe Tory seats do, however, include Mhairi Fraser, described in the Labour dossier as "Truss's heir apparent", in Epsom and Ewell.

Defending a 17,873 Tory majority won by former cabinet minister Chris Grayling in 2019, she appeared with Ms Truss, Lee Anderson and Jacob Rees-Mogg at a Popular Conservatism conference.

'Diabolical forces' haunting Tory candidate list

Challenged by Sky News about some left-wing Labour candidates being supporters of former leader Jeremy Corbyn, Mr Ashworth said independent Mr Corbyn was now a candidate against Labour.

In his opening remarks, Mr Ashworth said he "cannot remember any occasion when an incumbent government has got their candidate selection so obviously wrong".

"Not even the professional exorcist standing for the Tories in Cardiff East could expel all the diabolical forces haunting their candidate list," he quipped.

On the "166 hardcore Trussites", Mr Ashworth said: "Most of them share the core Pop-Con belief which is that Trussonomics was sabotaged by the so-called big state establishment in the autumn of 2022 and has never been given a proper chance to succeed."

Labour want civil servants in the office

Later, Mr Ashworth said civil servants would still be required to spend three days each week in the office under a Labour government.

Asked if he would, as paymaster general, remove the requirement brought in by the Tories for civil servants to spend three days a week or 60% of their time in the office, he said: "We want to see civil servants in the office."

The campaign is in its final week, with just three days to go until Britons will cast their votes in the general election.

Here is your tea-time bulletin.

• Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has been at a campaign event in Hitchin today, where he has urged the British public to "vote for a summer of change" with his party;
• He was also asked by our political editor Beth Rigby if he worries about his popularity, and potentially having the "longest wedding and shortest honeymoon" with the British public;
• Sir Keir said his record speaks for itself, claiming his "track record as a leader is clear" - and Labour is a changed party.

• We've also heard from Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who promised to "work his socks off" for the British people;
• He said: "I know you're frustrated with me, frustrated with our party, it hasn't been an easy few years for anybody. I get all of that";
• We've also explained what the "supermajority" the PM keeps warning about actually is - and what it means in practice (spoiler: it's not really a thing, see our 14.50 post for more);
• Political correspondent Rob Powell has dug into why Mr Sunak keeps talking like he's lost the election, suggesting it may do little to help the Tories get their voters to the polls on Thursday (see 14.30 post).
  

• And, in typical Liberal Democrat fashion, Sir Ed Davey partook in a spot of bungee jumping today - his message was to encourage people to "try something new" and vote for his party;
• He then took part in an outdoor Zumba class;
• Political correspondent Matthew Thompson - who has spent much of the campaign with Sir Ed - has explained what a successful day at the polls would look like for the Lib Dems (see 15.35 post).

Coming up on the Politics Hub With Sophy Ridge at 7PM will be shadow business secretary Jonathan Reynolds and Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker.

The panel will consist of former Labour deputy leader Harriet Harman and Conservative peer Baroness Kate Fall.

WatchPolitics Hubfrom 7pm every night during the election campaign on Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on theSky News websiteandappor onYouTube.

The "deafening silence" on climate change during the election campaign has been criticised by major business group the CBI.

But the next government cannot claim to be pro-growth without also being pro-green, Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the CBI, will tell a conference in London today.

With just three days to go until the general election, she will highlight the "deafening silence from all the parties about the issues of climate change, biodiversity loss, net zero and our planet".

But there is a risk in trying to "separate the economy from net zero", she will say, adding: "Whoever forms the next government can't be pro-growth and deliver for our people, planet and communities, without being pro-green."

Read more below:

By Tom Parmenter, national correspondent

This year Sky News' Target Towns has focused on how the people of Grimsby and Cleethorpes are feeling in the run-up to the general election.

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer both travelled to Grimsby to answer residents' questions for Sky's The Battle For Number 10 programme on 12 June.

In the final week of campaigning, we asked five residents what they have made of the national campaign:

It's not just the UK gripped by an election this week.

In France, Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally party is on course to take control of the country's parliament - should first-round results be replicated in the decisive second round this weekend.

It's worth noting that Emmanuel Macron will remain president, but a fresh prime minister is on the cards (read more here).

Labour wants 'better' deal with France

Asked if an incoming Labour government would find it more difficult to work with France and strike a better deal with the European Union if Paris shifts to the right, Sir Keir Starmer struck an optimistic tone.

Speaking on the campaign trail in Birmingham, he said: "I will work with any government in Europe and across the world if we are elected in to serve the country.

"For me, that's what serious government is about."

Sir Keir stressed his desire for a "stronger and better" deal with France for tackling small boat crossings, and to renegotiate with the EU too.

But he stressed the French and British elections were both still in the balance despite the sense of inevitability surrounding both.

"I genuinely don't want to get ahead of myself," he added.

Starmer vows to maintain support for Ukraine

Sir Keir also dismissed questions on whether he'd meet Vladimir Putin.

He said the Tory government and Labour opposition had "spoken with one voice" on the war in Ukraine, and that won't change.

Should Labour win the election, Sir Keir would be set to attend a NATO summit next week in Washington.

By Matthew Thompson, political correspondent

Ed Davey may have begun the day dangling upside down from a crane on his latest stunt - but with three days to go until polling day, his electoral fortunes still hang in the balance.

Which begs the question, just what does success look like for the Liberal Democrats at this election?

As it stands, given this year's extensive boundary changes, the party are defending just eight seats, if we adjust the 2019 vote to the new map.

That equals their worst ever performance in 2015 - so presumably they're aiming higher than that.

Senior party sources are tight-lipped about putting a ceiling on their ambitions. Believe me, I've asked.

Is a historic result on the cards?

But today, one at least hinted at where they see their floor. It was suggested to me that the party has an eye on the historical record.

The largest number of Lib Dem gains at a general election was 26 seats, back in 1997. Added to their current eight, that gives a total of 34. Anything above that, it was strongly suggested, would be a good night.

Though I dare say in their heart of hearts, Lib Dem HQ will be hoping for more.

If you take the average of the five most recent MRP polls, which predict seat numbers as well as vote share, you get 58. The least generous of them gives the Lib Dems 49 seats.

Polls are just polls, of course. They're not gospel. But one senior strategist told me his expectations were "higher this week than they were last week, which in turn is higher than they were at the start of the campaign, and that's higher than they were at the start of the year".

I'll leave it to you to decide whether those thrice-risen expectations are likely to have gone beyond a mere 34 seats, even if the party won't spell it out publicly.