Election latest: Starmer avoids saying where funding for NHS reform will come from as poll suggests public backs tax rises to pay for healthcare (2024)

Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer faced a grilling from our political editor Beth Rigbyand our live studio audience in Grimsby this week.

The Labour leader went first, being questioned on U-turns, his previous support for Jeremy Corbyn, and his proposals for government if he wins the election

The Conservative leader was held to account on his record, his progress at meeting his five pledges, and his plans for the next five years, should he win on 4 July.

If you missed the event and want to catch up, you can watch it in full here, or watch the highlights below.

Our weeknight politics showPolitics Hubwill be live on Sky News from 7pm with ourpolitical correspondentAli Fortescuehosting this evening.

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

Joining Ali tonight isAndrew Gwynne, Labour's shadow social care minister, as the party focusses its campaigning today on fixing the NHS.

She will also hear from Conservative candidatePhilip Daviesas the party continues to face an uphill struggle in the polls.

AndDavid Gauke, former Tory justice secretary, will give his take on the future of the party.

On Ali's panel tonight are:

• John Rentoul, chief political commentator for The Independent;
• Mo Hussein, former Downing Street chief press officer.

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.

Rishi Sunak has just addressed delegates at the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland.

Here is what he said, as he said it:

• The prime minister says they are there "united" because they "choose peace";
• "The Ukrainian people did not ask for this fight, but in defending their country, their valour and their sacrifice have been truly humbling to witness";
• "It is a cruel paradox that the things that make life worth living are also the things for which brave men and women are prepared to die - for family, for freedom, for the ability to shape one's own future";
• Mr Sunak references his first visit to Kyiv, and says there is "no justification" for Russia's actions;
• He says Vladimir Putin has "no interest in genuine peace", having ordered countries in his sphere of influence not attend the summit;
• "We should ask, why does Russia feel so threatened by a summit discussing the basic principles of territorial integrity, food security, and nuclear safety?"
• The PM says the summit is a chance to move towards a just peace;
• He concludes: "We want to see an end to this war, and we want to make this the day that the path towards a just and lasting peace in Ukraine became that much closer."

Rishi Sunak has arrived in Switzerland for what is likely to be his last international engagement before the UK general election.

The prime minister is attending an Ukraine Peace Summit – along with 50 other world leaders – at a secluded resort near Lake Lucerne.

Addressing the event, Mr Sunak will warn Russia's allies that they are "on the wrong side of history".

He will say: "Putin has no interest in a genuine peace. He has launched a sustained diplomatic campaign against this summit, ordering countries to stay away, spinning a phoney narrative about his willingness to negotiate."

The event is the largest world leader gathering focussed solely on Ukraine since the Russian invasion began.

Mr Sunak is expected to meet the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to reiterate the UK's support for the country and re-emphasise that any peace deal should be on his terms.

The meeting comes a day after the prime minister arrived back from the G7 summit in Italy and at the midway point of the general election campaign.

With just under three weeks until polling day, the conservatives continue to lag in the polls, meaning this could be the last overseas summit Rishi Sunak attends as prime minister.

Recent months have seen Sir Keir Starmer work to increase his own presence on the international stage, attending the COP climate summit in Dubai and the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The Labour leader was also pictured speaking to world leaders, including President Zelenskyy, at D-Day commemorations in France last week.

Rishi Sunak was criticised for leaving the events early and subsequently apologised.

The prime minister also attended the Trooping of the Colour parade and is expected back in the UK on Saturday evening to continue campaigning.

Rishi Sunak spoke to broadcasters on arrival at the Ukraine Peace Summit in Switzerland a short while.

He expressed pride in the UK's support for Ukraine, saying it has "played a leading role", and was the first to provide lethal aid.

On the summit itself, that Russia is not attending, he said it's "right that we find a lasting peace on terms that are acceptable to Ukraine based on the principles of the territorial integrity and the UN charter".

The PM was also asked about matters at home.

It was put to him that his poll rating is disastrous, and is asked what he is doing to address it.

He replied: "I think what we've seen over the last week is manifestos from both the major parties and the clear choice at this election between a Conservative manifesto that offers a clear plan to deliver a secure future for Britain, taking bold actions and notably cutting taxes for people at every stage of their lives."

Mr Sunak went on to say that Labour is putting forward "no ideas".

"Just higher taxes. £2,000 worth of high taxes for every working family. I don't want to see that happen."

That claim about taxes that Mr Sunak and the Conservative Party have continued to repeat has been branded highly dubious by experts, including our economics and data editor Ed Conway.

After attending the G7 summit in Italy, the PM jetted back to the UK for Trooping the Colour this morning.

Following that national celebration of the King's birthday, he has immediately flown to Switzerland for the Ukraine Peace Summit.

Over 100 countries and organisations are attending the conference this weekend - including Ukraine's President Zelenskyy - to find a way of setting a path towards peace with Russia.

Vladimir Putin has not sent a delegation, however.

By Alexandra Rogers, political reporter

The Conservatives have raised just 10% of the donations they managed to collect in 2019 under Boris Johnson in the first week of the election campaign.

Electoral Commission data released today shows the Tories raised £574,918 in the period 30 May to 5 June, compared with the £5.7m they received from 6-12 November five years ago.

The figures show political parties reported £3.2m in donations in the first week of the election campaign.

Mr Sunak's party raised £574,918 through donations alone, on top of £22,453 that came from public funds.

Meanwhile, Labour generated £926,908 from donations alone and £652,411 from the public funds that are given to opposition parties with more than two MPs.

They show a complete turnaround in Labour's fortunes from the 2019 election, when the party raised just £218,500 in the first week of that campaign.

This time round, the single biggest donation given to Labour totalled £500,000 from film company Toledo Productions.

Read the full story here:

By Professor Will Jennings, Sky News elections analyst

Even a poll-obsessive like me would have to admit that during election campaigns we often spend too much time focusing on the election 'horse race' - who is up and who is down in the polls - on an almost hourly basis.

Even in this election, where Labour has been well ahead of the Conservatives from the outset, the focus has been on how much.

Figures for the Labour lead span a huge range from 16 to 25 points. And now there's talk of "crossover".

Has Nigel Farage led Reform past the Tories into second place for the first time in a general election campaign?

There's a 10-point difference between pollsters in the figures reported for Reform UK starting at nine points and reaching 19.

The unprecedented nature of what the top end of these results suggest means we could be heading for a seismic reordering of the political landscape on 4 July. Alternatively, many pollsters could end up with egg on their faces.

What lessons can we learn from polling at previous British general elections?

Perhaps the most fundamental thing is that polls become more informative about the result as election day nears.

Read the full analysis below:

By Dr Hannah Bunting, Sky News elections analyst, and Joely Santa Cruz, data journalist

This week, the leaders were selling their visions to voters as they launched their manifestos, and Sunak and Starmer went head to head in Grimsby at the Sky News live election special The Battle For Number 10.

Watch their journeys in the latest week in our animated map below.

This campaign is being fought on new electoral boundaries, with many constituencies undergoing significant changes since 2019.

For the purposes of this analysis, we use notional results based on calculations by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher, Honorary Professors at the University of Exeter, which estimate the 2019 election seat results if they had taken place on the new constituency boundaries.

Read the full piece below:

On Wednesday, Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer faced a grilling from Sky's political editor Beth Rigbyand our live audience in Grimsby on their plans for government.

The two men were questioned on their pledges to the electorate, their trustworthiness, their records, and whether they are suited to lead the country as it faces challenges on many fronts.

If you were not able to watch the programme - fear not, because we are airing an hour-long highlights show live on Sky News now.

You can also watch live in the stream above, and at the link below.

You can watch Sky News free wherever you get your news.

Sky channel 501, Virgin channel 602, Freeview channel 233, on theSky News websiteandappor onYouTube.