Key points in BBC General Election debate – and the way they have an effect on you
Senior figures from all the major political parties will face off in a BBC General Election debate tonight.
Penny Mordaunt will stand in for the Tories against Labour’s Angela Rayner in the seven-way clash, while Nigel Farage will make his debut as Reform UK leader after a surprise return to frontline politics. Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper will step up, Stephen Flynn will represent the SMP, Rhun ap Iorwerth will appear for Plaid Cymru and the Green Party will be represented by co-leader Carla Denyer.
It’s a high-stakes moment for all the parties. Ms Mordaunt will be desperately trying to smooth over Rishi Sunak’s disastrous decision to leave the D-Day commemorations early – while other parties will try to punch that bruise.
Here are the key issues likely to come up in the seven-way clash, hosted by the BBC’s Mishal Husain.
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Defence and security
The Tories are on the ropes today after the PM was forced to apologise for skipping out of the D-Day commemorations early. Angela Rayner is likely to go hard on this – as will Nigel Farage. But Penny Mordaunt, a former naval reservist who is fighting to elected in Portsmouth, will come out fighting. However, it’s not clear how much she’ll be prepared to take the hit on behalf of her boss, as she has her own leadership ambitions.
More broadly, Labour have been trying to park their tanks on Tory lawns for months, with commitments to the nuclear deterrent and a host of veteran candidates. Ms Rayner could take aim at the Conservatives for cutting the size of the army. But Labour are vulnerable to criticism over the handling of the situation in Gaza.
Ms Mordaunt may try to focus on the war in Ukraine and the Middle East, and the threats from authoritarian states. The Tories have tried to claim – without evidence – that Russian President Vladimir Putin would be emboldened if Keir Starmer was PM. Their pledge to bring back national service was a big talking point – although undermined by the D-Day row.
NHS
Labour’s Angela Rayner is likely to go for the Tories over the PM’s failed promise to bring NHS waiting lists down. The state of the health service is a key concern for voters – and Labour has promised to clear the 3.2 million-strong backlog of people waiting more than 18 weeks for treatment within five years.
A hostile question from an audience member, such as a NHS nurse or a patient on a waiting list, could prove incredibly tricky for Penny Mordaunt as she defends the Conservative Party‘s record. The total waiting list in England is around 6.3 million people, and just over 7.5million cases. The Tories have pledged to create new GPs and hand more power to pharmacies – but they are vulnerable on lack of access to GPs, dentists and long waits for hospital treatment.
Daisy Cooper is likely to point to Lib Dem commitments on carers here. The party has promised free personal care to older or disabled people at home, if they were the government. They believe the pledge, plus raising care workers’ pay, would help free up hospital beds and keep people in their own homes.
Cost of living
Angela Rayner will try to turn the screws on the Tories over the economic chaos triggered by Liz Truss, and the hit to ordinary people’s wallets. Labour has thrown everything at winning trust on the economy from the Tories – and has won the backing of big business. But she will face questions on Labour’s tax plans and how it would fund cash-strapped public services.
Labour is also vulnerable on helping the poorest Brits after its refusal to axe the two-child benefit cap or back an expansion of free school meals. Daisy Cooper could press on these issues, as could Stephen Flynn from the SNP.
Penny Mordaunt is likely to go hard on tax like Rishi Sunak did in the ITV debate on Tuesday. The PM has promised the Tories will lower taxes if they win – not mentioning the fact that his Government has put us on course for highest tax burden since the Second World War. He also made dodgy claims that Labour would hike people’s taxes by £2,000 – that were branded “desperate” by Keir Starmer. It will be interesting to see if Ms Mordaunt goes there.
Immigration
Nigel Farage is likely to go hard on immigration – and the Tories are vulnerable to him on the right. The PM responded to him entering the fray with an announcement for an annual cap on worker and family visas to drive down immigration. Net migration – the different between the number of people arriving and leaving the UK – hit record levels last year. The Tories are seriously vulnerable here. Penny Mordaunt will likely go on about the Rwanda deportation scheme, which he has failed to get up and running.
Labour have made it clear that they won’t send asylum seekers to Rwanda and Angela Rayner will likely go for the PM about the £240million spent by the UK up to the end of last year. But Labour’s plans to find returns agreements with Europe need more meat on the bone.
Law and Order
Labour has been trying hard to take over Tory territory, making stopping anti-social behaviour on their six first steps for change. Angela Rayner could challenge Penny Mordaunt on police numbers and the chaos in the justice system, with a courts backlog causing long waits for victims and full to bursting prisons forcing the Tories to allow offenders to be released early.
Ms Mordaunt will try to make out that Labour is weak on law and order, and point to Tory commitments to hike police numbers. But she’s on shaky ground on justice as the Government has been pushing conflicting policies on scrapping short sentences but also locking up shoplifters.
