Skip to content

General Election 2019 - What you need to know today

  • By ITV News Content Producer David Williams

Just when things couldn't get much more divisive in this campaign...

Donald Trump jets into Britain later today for the latest Nato summit. We know he backs Boris Johnson for prime minister and has been a clear attack target for Labour, the Lib Dems and the SNP.

But will he have a fresh impact on the campaigns and what kind of support will the US president offer to his phone-in friend Nigel Farage's Brexit Party?

Farage defended his man in Washington during one of the feistiest exchanges in Sunday's entertaining ITV Election Debate, causing uproar along the podiums with his defence that "men say dreadful things sometimes", especially after a few drinks.

If you missed the whole thing you can rewatch it all here.

If you just want five-minute highlights (including that Farage claim), let ITV News Political Correspondent Daniel Hewitt be your guide:

The aftermath of Friday's dreadful London Bridge attack, which also featured in Sunday's debate, will remain a key talking point on Monday.

Victim Jack Merritt's father David Merritt last night condemned some of Monday's newspaper coverage, claiming his son's death is being used for "vile propaganda".

Will that cause a shift in tone and language with only 10 days to go in the election?

ITV News will be sharing all the key speeches and campaign appearances as they happen throughout the day as part of our daily Campaign Live coverage.

You can follow all the key live events on itv.com/news Credit: ITV News

Here’s what's in store today:

  • Boris Johnson is scheduled to attend a rally in Essex in the evening after pausing his morning campaigning to focus on matters relating to London Bridge

  • Jeremy Corbyn will campaign at a London train station as Labour announces the biggest ever rail fare cuts in England

  • The Lib Dems will announce £11 billion investment in mental health services

  • Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage will visit a business in north-east Wales

  • SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon will be out campaigning in Lockerbie and warn of the threat to Scotland from Boris Johnson's Brexit deal

  • Green Party co-leader Sian Berry will launch a 'right to repair' policy which promises to put a 'repair cafe' in every community

  • Ukip launches its manifesto

Here's more on Monday's election headlines and Sunday's ITV Debate:

The view from the campaigns

Paul Brand notes the change in plan for Boris Johnson on Monday.

Rachel Younger looks ahead to the Lib Dems' latest campaign pledge while highlighting the weekend's stand-out celebrity endorsement for Luciana Berger's campaign in Finchley (about eight miles north of Notting Hill).

Love them or hate them, Emma Murphy recognises the Brexit Party will maintain a clear voter target strategy - but will it work?

Calling Peston: The ITV News Election Podcast

Shehab Khan and Daniel Hewitt are calling Robert throughout the campaign. Credit: ITV News

Who won the ITV Election Debate? Who impressed?

Sitting back with a glass of wine in his hand, Robert gives his thoughts in Salford on a "pretty good" clash and picks through his favourite exchanges.

Plus why Rishi Sunak and Richard Burgon were chosen as stand-ins for Boris Johnson and Jeremy Corbyn, whether the leaders missed an opportunity or not by being absent, and the best moments from the post-debate Spin Room.

ITV News Political Correspondent Daniel Hewitt and Political Reporter Shehab Khan are digesting the campaign every weekday - and dialing in Robert to get his take on it all.

The Calling Peston podcast is taking you behind the scenes of life reporting on the election campaign trail, hearing from our reporters on the road across the country.

The episodes appear each weekday at 5pm. Download it from wherever you get your podcasts, including Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

The Conversation: Westeros it ain't, but who do Keighley voters want on the political throne?

If there is a ‘Red Wall’ of Labour-held constituencies in Leave-supporting areas waiting to be smashed down by the Tories in a couple of weeks’ time, then Keighley is probably that line of stakes in the ground that Boris Johnson’s Brexiteer cavalry will have to clear before they get there.

This metaphor is getting too Game of Thronesey, writes ITV News Correspondent Geraint Vincent.

And Keighley market, where I spent a couple of days this week, is about as far away from Westeros as it’s possible to get.

Suffice to say Labour has a majority of only a couple of hundred votes here, so if the Conservative strategy of going after Jeremy Corbyn in Labour’s heartlands is going to work, Keighley is key.

Read more from Geraint and watch his latest report from The Conversation series above.

From The North analyses a fiery Labour row in a Bury deli

Jewish people make up abour 10% of the vote in Bury South. Credit: ITV News

ITV Granada's Political Correspondent Hannah Miller is closely tracking political opinions across the North West of England.

Her report on the fight in Bury South - the constituency with the second highest Jewish population in the UK - is well worth a read.

In part it features a fiery encounter between a Labour campaigner who offered a leaflet to a deli owner.

Hannah shares her thoughts on the clash in the From The North podcast's third election special. Fast-track to 10 minutes in if time is tight.

But listen to the full considered chat with ITV Tyne Tees and ITV Border's stat-obsessed Martin Stew and ITV Calendar's chief "Follower of Farage" Joe Pike as they digest the impact of polling, counter-productive campaigners and the weaknesses in regional manifestos.

Today's question: Can you trust any of the party leaders?

Trust is a key issue in this election. Just trust me on that one.

But can you, hand on heart, back the word and the actions of one party leader over another?

Judging by ITV London Reporter Rags Martel's attempt to canvass voter opinions across London's best-known trading locations, at Tooting Market trust is in incredibly short supply.

As one woman said: "I'd put them all in the same boat. And sink it."

Watch his entertaining Martel's Markets report above.

If you're looking for an in-depth discussion on the race in three key London constituencies, watch this ITV London candidate debate, chaired by Political Correspondent Simon Harris.

Plus, as ever, here are your...

Here's the best of the weekend's campaign stories:

What's happening away from the election?

Here's what else is making the news today: