- David Cameron to take centre-stage in tonight's leaders' debate
- Poll of marginals points to Tory victory
Tony Tresigne on Platform: The all-time high petrol prices are directly related to Gordon Brown's economic incompetence
LeftWatch: "The Lib Dem manifesto takes Lab-Libbery to a whole new level of intensity"
Seats and Candidates update: Which constituencies has David Cameron visited so far during the campaign?
Michael Bates on CentreRight: Dave's growing number of 'Friends in the North'
WATCH:
ToryDiary: The Tory manifesto, the 50p tax rate and the simplification of the tax system
The Shakespeare Report: Beware of immediate post-debate polls
Nick Wood's High Noon column: The Mail remains lukewarm in its support of the Conservatives but The Times appears ready to endorse Cameron
- Timothy Barnes: The unintended comedy of the Liberal Democrat manifesto
- Martin Parsons: Three Labour ministers caught 'red handed' using parliamentary expenses for Labour Party campaigning
- David T Breaker: Labour has always been on the side of pessimism, of socialism, and Conservatives almost always on that of optimism, of freedom
MyLabourPoster: Spoofs of Labour's new poster
WATCH: Boris talks to CCHQ staff and mounts the Tory scooter"He is an unusually normal human being for a politician. Though intensely serious, he perceives the comedy of human affairs. He recognises the sense of impotence which frustrates so many people, feeding their cynicism about voting. He acknowledges distrust “and even fear” of the police among law-abiding citizens; sympathises with public rage at being threatened with fines for muddling rubbish, at the excesses of Health & Safety and human rights." - Max Hastings in the FT
Grayling blames Labour for rise in alcohol-fuelled violence
"Boozed-up girls have helped fuel an explosion in street violence, it emerged last night... The Conservatives - who uncovered the figures - said they exposed the catastrophic impact of Labour's round-the-clock drinking laws. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Grayling said: "Britain has seen an epidemic of binge-drinking under Labour. This Government's ill thought-out 24-hour drinking laws have made our town and city centres places that are bedevilled by violence and disorder on a Friday and Saturday night." - The Sun
Parties prepare for post-debate spin wars
"The debates between the party leaders will be the subject of intense “spin wars”. As soon as the debate begins, the party spin doctors will try to promote the message that their leader has triumphed in the debate." - Daily Telegraph
Tory lead 9% in today's YouGov poll - The Sun
> Last night's ToryDiary: Conservatives up to 41% in YouGov/Sun poll... but down at 35% according to ComRes
Lib Dem manifesto contains £11.6 billion black hole
"Muddled Nick Clegg was savaged last night after his Lib Dem manifesto launch descended into chaos... The Tories said there was an £11.6billion black hole in the plans. Shadow Treasury secretary Philip Hammond said: "There are lots of things in this manifesto that look appealing. The problem is the sums just don't add up." David Cameron yesterday appealed directly to Lib Dem voters to back the Tories instead. He said: "If you want to have a more family-friendly, greener Britain, a more liberal Britain, then the people who can get that done in government are the Conservatives." - The Sun
> Yesterday's Tea with Pickles: The black hole in the Liberal Democrats' manifesto
Benedict Brogan: Beware the seductive charms of Nick Clegg
"Mr Clegg is banking on the prospect of a hung parliament... What Mr Clegg is not telling us, however, is that entrenching uncertainty by voting for it would do nothing to relieve the anger and frustration that voters feel about our politics. If anything, it would exacerbate our disenchantment, by tipping us into a world of shady deals and party shenanigans that made Mr Brown's regime look like a beacon of transparency." - Benedict Brogan in the Daily Telegraph
"A hung parliament, and the awkwardness it would entail for the major parties, would have the further benefit of demonstrating beyond doubt that the present, first-past-the-post system has run its course. If it cannot produce a clear result, even when the odds are stacked in favour of the two main parties, the case for electoral reform would be proven. Of a hung parliament after 6 May, we say: "Bring it on!" - Independent editorial
Academics and economists - but not business leaders - back Labour economic plans...
"More than 50 economists from around the world have signed a letter backing Gordon Brown’s economic plans, The Daily Telegraph can disclose... It is understood that Labour failed in an attempt to get business leaders to sign a similar letter on their proposals - and as a result was forced to turn to economists, a tactic the party has used previously. However, the letter backed by academics – expected to be released ahead of the first debate between the leaders - makes no mention of the merits, or otherwise, of increasing National Insurance." - Daily Telegraph
...as small businesses back the Tories on tax"Bosses at over 400 small and medium businesses in Britain have joined some of the country's largest employers on Thursday by backing the Conservatives' plans to curb a planned payroll tax rise. The signatories ranging from plumbers and beauty salon owners to dentists and small manufacturers pledged support for the Conservatives' promise to scrap a planned rise in national insurance for seven out of ten workers." - Reuters
Mandelson brands Cameron "toffee-nosed"
"Lord Mandelson yesterday joined Labour’s personalised class war campaign against the Tories by branding David Cameron “toffee-nosed.” The senior Cabinet minister spoke just minutes after saying he had advised Gordon Brown not to “compete with Mr Cameron’s personal insults’’ in tonight’s televised party leaders’ debate." - Daily Express
> Yesterday's LeftWatch: Mandelson launches Class War attack on Cameron's "toffee nose"
Cameron overtakes Brown in Google searches
"If the UK election were to be judged on web search activity alone, David Cameron would be Britain’s next prime minister. Search figures released by Google on Wednesday for the first week of the election campaign show that the leader of the opposition overtook Gordon Brown for the first time since the Conservative Party conference in October last year." - FT
Steve Richards: Cameron is giving us more questions than answers - The Independent
Nick Herbert opposes recycling plants in his constituency
"The Conservatives have promised to push Britain towards a "goal of a zero-waste society". But Nick Herbert, shadow Environment Secretary, who has called for more recycling schemes, is opposing the construction of two major facilities in his Arundel & South Downs constituency, claiming that they are "the right idea in the wrong place". - The Independent
Charlie Whelan accused of bullying Unite officials - Independent
Samantha Cameron’s pregnancy is such good timing, say cynical voters - The Times
BNP accounts to be investigated - Independent
And finally... William Hague buys stake in a pub
"William Hague has invested in the George and Dragon pub in the North Yorkshire village of Hudswell. He famously claimed to have drunk 14 pints a day there between the ages of 15 and 21. Locals have raised £227,000 to rescue the joint. Hague says: 'I bought a small stake to help them out. I'm looking forward to the re-opening'." - Daily Mail
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