Election news
- Catch up on our rundown of the day's political news
- Tories heading for worst-ever defeat - poll
- The senior Conservatives who could lose their seats
- One of Tories' biggest 2019 donors endorses Labour
- Sky News Daily:'We need an adult conversation about migration'
Expert analysis
- Jon Craig:Poll and defection are double trouble for Tories
- Tom Cheshire:The data behind the public's view of immigration
- Darren McCaffrey:PM's trip to luxury village shows no seat is safe
Election essentials
- Check parties' manifesto pledges:Conservatives|Greens|Labour|Lib Dems|Plaid Cymru|Reform
- Trackers:Who's leading polls?|Is PM keeping promises?
- Campaign Heritage:Memorable moments from elections gone by
- Follow Sky's politics podcasts:Electoral Dysfunction|Politics At Jack And Sam's
- Read more:Who is standing down?|Key seats to watch|What counts as voter ID?|Check if your constituency is changing|Guide to election lingo|Sky's election night plans
It's 10pm and here is your rundown for today's political news...
- The Conservative Party is heading for its worst electoral defeat in history, according to a poll of almost 20,000 people;
- The Ipsos poll also suggestedNigel Farage will win Clacton from the Tories, overturning the incumbent party's huge majority there;
- It estimatedLabour could win 453 seats, while the Conservatives would take just 115, giving Sir Keir Starmer's party a 256-seat majority;
- The result would meansenior Tory figures such as Grant Shapps, Penny Mordaunt, Gillian Keegan, Johnny Mercer and Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg losing their seats;
- Our chief political correspondent Jon Craigsaid the poll is "terrible news" for the Tories;
- Meanwhile former Conservative Party donor John Caudwell has announced he is endorsing and voting for Sir Keir Starmer's Labour Party.
- Our weeknight politics show Politics Hub With Sophy Ridgefocused on the issue of immigration, with Labour's shadow equalities secretary Anneliese Dodds saying the country needs a "clear plan" to tackle migration;
- During the panel discussionJim Murphy, former leader of Scottish Labour, saida Labour policy that may work to reduce immigration is "dealing with the gangs in the same way you would deal with terrorists";
- And former Conservative MP Philip Dunne said the government's Rwanda scheme is a "deterrent" for illegal immigration, but said the UK and France need to cooperate more.
- In Scotland, Anas Sarwarhas today launched Scottish Labour's manifesto, with a focus on improving the future for young people in the country;
- He also confirmed that Scottish Labour is against the two-child benefit cap, despite there being no plans to scrap the measure if Labour wins the keys to Downing Street.
- Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey was in Eastleigh, where he discussed sewage - and claimed the Tories would "fail in opposition" just as he says they have in government;
- And on a day of special coverage of the migration crisis here on Sky News, an exclusive poll suggested more Britons think immigration has had a negative impact on society than positive.
Here are some other stories you might find interesting:
On the Sky News Daily podcast,Niall Paterson is joined by community correspondent Becky Johnsonto discuss what voters think about elections, while economics and data editor Ed Conway digs into the statistics to reveal exactly how big an impact migration, both legal and illegal, has on the UK.
That's all for today
Thank you for following our live political coverage as the general election campaign continues.
Please see our 10pm bulletin for the key points of the day's news.
Join us again tomorrow from 7am for the latest political updates.
Billionaire Tory donor endorses Labour for first time
Earlier we brought you the breaking news that billionaire Tory donor John Caudwell had endorsed Labour (see 7.31pm post).
The Phones4U founder said the "failures" of the three prime ministers in government since then, alongside Labour's "transformation" under leader Sir Keir Starmer had led him to switch allegiance for the first time in his life.
You can read more about his decisionhere...
'Waiting in various states of freezing cold': Behind the scenes of covering the election campaign
Covering a general election campaign as a journalist can largely be summed up in two words - battle bus.
Not too dissimilar to the coaches that rockstars use for their tours, battle buses are the vehicles each political party uses to transport their leaders, candidates, and advisers around the country during the election campaign.
Sky's political correspondents have each been following a different party - often joining them on the buses.
Here we take you behind the scenes on the campaign trail for the Conservatives, Labour, and the Liberal Democrats.
Sunak's personal wealth under attack ahead of key inflation announcement
By Faye Brown, political reporter
Rishi Sunak's "soaring" personal wealth has come under fresh attack ahead of crucial inflation figures coming out tomorrow.
In what will be a key moment in the election campaign, the rate of inflation is expected to ease back to the Bank of England's target of 2% for the first time since spring 2021.
The figures could provide a much needed boost for the embattled prime minister, whose key offering to voters is that the economy has "turned a corner" under his leadership and they should not risk change with Labour.
But the Labour Party says this claim is "rubbished" by data showing more than half of Brits think the cost of living crisis has become worse in the last month.
The party says that Mr Sunak's wealth increased by £122m in the last year, while data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows millions of people continue to struggle.
Read more below:
Sky News Daily: 'We need to have an adult conversation about migration'
More people in the UK think immigration hasa negative impact on society than a positive one, according to a YouGov survey forSky News.
In the first general election since Brexit, all the major parties mention migration in their manifestos.
Both the Conservatives and Labour are placing promisesto tackle illegal boat crossings high on their list of promises if they get into Number 10.
Sowhat do voters think about immigration, and how could itaffect these elections?
Niall Paterson is joined by community correspondent Becky Johnson, who'sbeen speaking to voters inSwindon about their views.
Plus,economics and data editor Ed Conway digs into the statistics to reveal exactly how big an impact migration, both legal and illegal, has on the UK.
The parties' immigration policies explained
As we've been discussing this evening, both the Tories and Labour are promising to cut net migration levels - the number of people coming from overseas minus the number leaving.
Our political reporter Alix Culbertson has looked at their immigration policies - and those from the other main parties.
Read the full explainer here...
Is Boris Johnson an asset to Tory campaign?
The public has "probably seen through Boris Johnson" and he is no longer an asset to the Tory campaign, Jim Murphy, the former leader of Scottish Labour, says duringSophy Ridge's final panel discussion.
Mr Johnson has been appearing in campaign videos for a number of his Tory MP allies after reportedly being drafted in to help counter the growing threat from Reform UK.
Mr Murphy says the former prime minister was probably an asset during 2019 but now the public and Tory MPs have seen through him.
"I think the Conservatives are making the mistake that if you play the tune of 2019 it'll work for them in the same way," he adds.
"Involving Johnson at this stage suggests a campaign that has lost its sense of direction, because they're still trying to beat the Reform party rather than try to overcome Labour."
'There are MPs who like him'
Former government adviserNimco Ali notes Mr Johnson "is popular in certain sectors of the country" and some MPs are leaning towards that.
"I would not think it's a Conservative plan to have him involved, I think it's individual MPs who like him, and he has kindly sent them those videos," she says.
That concludes our coverage of tonight'sPolitics Hub With Sophy Ridge- it'll return tomorrow from 7pm. In the meantime, stick with us here for the latest general election news and analysis.
Jon Craig: Polling trend is terrible news for Tories - and there's more trouble tonight
A poll we reported on earlier is "terrible news" for the Conservatives, says our chief political correspondent Jon Craig.
It's predicting a 256-seat majority for Labour - up on 453 seats and the Tories down on 115 (see 17.51 post)
Jon says this would be "much worse than 1997", when Tony Blair took Labour back into government, and their worst result since 1906.
But 117 seats are still too close to call in the Ipsos survey, he explains.
But while polls are only a "snapshot" of a campaign, there is a clear "trend" across the various surveys we're seeing.
"They are all fairly similar," Jon says, and it's "terrible news for the Tories".
It's been "double trouble" for the Tories this evening, he adds, given their former donor John Caudwell's endorsem*nt of the Labour Party (see 19.31 post)
"We don't know if Mr Caudwell is actually going to give some money to the Labour Party, but he's not donating to the Tories, and he's switched his allegiance."
Sunak 'hasn't given up'
Sophy presses former Conservative MP Philip Dunne on whether the Conservatives think it's all over.
It comes after the prime minister spent the day campaigning in traditionally safe Tory seats in the South West.
Mr Dunne says Rishi Sunak has "been all over the place throughout this campaign".
He says the prime minister "hasn't given up" and has "made it very clear he's fighting, every waking moment, to try to retain the Conservative government and Conservative candidates all over the country".
'No huge surprise' Tory support is waning
Asked if he is worried about the future of the Conservative Party, Mr Dunne, who is not standing in this election, says all political parties in office for a prolonged period "go through sort of waves of enthusiasm and support and waning of support".
He adds: "So it's no huge surprise that the opinion polls are suggesting that our support is declining somewhat at the moment."
