its manifesto with policy launches of the conservatives, liberal democrats, and the greens already. and today, two more. plaid cymru released its policy early this morning with the manifesto demanding fairfunding for wales and morning with the manifesto demanding fair funding for wales and more control over its natural resources. that it was the turn of the labour party, with the sleeves rolled up, party leaders to keir starmer promise that wealth creation will be the party's number one priority if they win a majority on the 4th of july. there were no policy surprises with previously announced details including 40,000 more nhs appointments each week in england, and the recruitment of 6,500 new teachers, as well as the launch of a new border security command to tackle gangs organising small boat channel crossings. sir keir promised not to raise personal taxation or vat, except on private schools. here's our political editor chris mason. the labour movement's past and perhaps its future. it's been a good week for the printing trade, all these manifestos. leader of the labour party... keir starmer was here at the office of the cooperative almost 18 months ago to start setting out his vision for government. and, as if to underline that there would be no surprises today, he was back again. wealth creation is our number—one priority. growth is our core business — the only route to improving the prosperity of our country and the living standards of working people. not everyone in here was convinced. it's the same old tory policies! point made, it was an early escorted departure for her as sir keir responded. we gave up on being a party of protest five years ago. the labour leader said his own upbringing meant he understood the reality of many families' lives. i know what it feels like to be embarrassed to bring your mates over, because the carpet is threadbare and the window's cracked. i was actually responsible for that, because i did put a football through it. and he emphasised his promise on tax. we will not raise income tax. we will not raise national insurance. we will not raise vat. that is a manifesto commitment. "hmm, but what about other taxes," i thought? "i'll ask him about that later." and another thing — because there may be some people here today who say, "where's the surprise? "where's the rabbit out of the hat?" to which i say, "if you want politics as pantomime, "i hear clacton is nice this time of year." laughter that, a joke at nigel farage�*s expense — this was keir starmer�*s conclusion. i invite you all tojoin our mission to stop the chaos, turn the page, and start to rebuild our country. thank you so much. right in the thick of it now — let's see who we can grab for a word. rachel reeves, what happens if growth doesn't happen? well, i reject this idea that we can't be any better than we are today. are you going to win? well, no votes have been cast yet, and we're certainly not complacent. we're fighting for every single vote. is there enough in here to excite people? because there's nothing new, is there? this is a serious programme to deliver the change - this country needs. are you going to win? a single vote has not been cast. we are fighting hard for every vote. we take nothing for granted. you've nailed that script, haven't you? delivered itjust like that. plenty here have a message to deliver, by hand and by bus. next stop, crewe, in cheshire — and that question i want to put to keir starmer. you've been explicit about income tax, national insurance, and vat. what about capital gains tax, fuel duty and council tax? you've not been as explicit on those? well, what we've is set out our plans in our manifesto, which is a manifesto full of hope and change for the future... but you're not being specific about those, are you? so the plans in our manifesto are set out — none of them require tax rises over and above the specific ones that we have set out well in advance actually of the manifesto. what is the plan, in those opening weeks and months? if you get the chance? to earn every vote, taking nothing for granted. we'll start the work on 40,000 appointments in the nhs to clear our backlog on waiting lists. we'll start the work on setting up great british energy, setting up our border security command, starting to recruit the 6,500 teachers we need, and starting to recruit 13,000 neighbourhood police. they are all step one — that will be the day after the election that we start on that, sleeves rolled up, hitting the ground running. there is still, though, plenty of road to trundle over in this campaign. polling day is three weeks today. chris mason, bbc news, at the mornflake stadium, in crewe. so what do voters who deserted labour for the tories at the last election think of their plans? well, the newly—formed constituency of newton aycliffe and spennymoor, in county durham has been created largely from the former constituency of sedgefield tony blair's old seat. in 2019, many seats in this area were part of the so—called �*red wall�* — that had been staunchly labour, but which now turned to borisjohnson's conservatives. danny savage has spent the day there, finding out whether labour's pledges have changed minds. labour say they are pro—business and pro—workers. all of our customers are blue—chip companies. we have got nissan, amazon. so no surprise that they were watching what sir keir starmer had to stay today at this manufacturing firm in newton aycliffe. i'm looking for stability and, to be honest, from what he said about keeping taxes stable, that gives me a sense of a strong government in terms of carrying on the economy without too much disruption. so it provides a good foundation for businesses and business owners to compete with foreign nations for business. we make delicious beer, unique beer. nearby, nick smith runs a brewery. he wasn't too moved by labour's plans. i would like to have seen a few more bold and brave suggestions from mr starmer. the whole message seems to be that we are better than the alternative, which is the incumbent government. and is that good enough? i think it'll be good enough for most people. he quit being a chemistry teacher to brew beer, so he also has thoughts on the manifesto pledge to get 6,500 teachers into classrooms. my ex—colleagues and friends and family who are teachers, i see their will to teach being sapped, and i think 6,500 seems like a drop in the ocean compared to people who are leaving. this beauticians plasma is owned by 28—year—old emily. she is pleased to see a pledge to help first—time buyers. to be able to save for a house, you can do nothing and go nowhere. the element if you are really, really trying to save for the element if you are really, really trying to save— the element if you are really, really trying to save housing prices are ridiculous in relation to wages and stuff like that. it's massively difficult. katie is a mum of three is self—employed. their biggest concern is a family? i have an eight—month—old son. i have gone back to work and i am really struggling to get him into a nursery. labour, in their manifesto, are pledging 3,000 new nursery classes across the country. that's got to be good news for you, but do you think you will see one in this village? i would hope so. some people we talked to were still uncertain about who they are going to vote for next month. will the labour manifesto win them over? danny savage, bbc news, sedgefield. a former aide to the prime minister says he made "a huge error ofjudgment" when he placed a bet on the date of the election, just days before rishi sunak called the vote. craig williams, who is standing as a conservative candidate, says the gambling commission is making "routine inquiries", with which he is co—operating. joe pike caught up with him in welshpool. politics often rewards gamblers. hello, mr williams. joe pyke from bbc news. but this bet isn't paying off. did you have inside information when you placed your bet on the election date? i have made a statement. it's an independent process with the gambling commission now. as rishi sunak�*s closest parliamentary aide, he sits behind the pm at pmqs. every time i sit behind him, i try to wear a tie. from a different part of montgomery. but what did he know when he reportedly placed £100 on there being a july election, three days before his boss's surprise announcement? did he know that you were calling a july election when he led his bet on that? it's very disappointing news. you will have seen craig williams say it was a huge error ofjudgment. there is an independent inquiry that is ongoing, which is necessarily confidential, as well as independent. you'll appreciate that, given that, it wouldn't be appropriate to comment while that is ongoing. and mr williams is not being completely clear. i won't be expanding on that statement. did you have any inside information? i made a huge error ofjudgment. that's for sure, and i apologise, and i will be working in montgomeryshire and glyndwr on the doors now. but did you have any inside information when you placed that bet? as i said, i will not be expanding on that statement. is that because you did have inside information? i'm not expanding because it's an independent process. the gambling commission are looking at it now. all i can say is... it sounds like you did know that there was an election coming, and you were perhaps trying to take advantage of that. i will not be adding to the statement... do you see why your constituents might feel that looks dodgy? do you have an apology, mr williams? in welshpool, while some seem to disappointed... i think it's very foolish. i don't understand why he did it. there was no need. ..others are supportive. that is really less important than the things that we're coping with in life. so you'll still vote for him? oh, yeah. the gambling commission is now investigating, because using confidential information to gain an advantage could amount to cheating, which is a criminal offence. joe pyke, bbc news, welshpool. and here's the full list of the candidates standing in the montgomeryshire and glyndebourne constituency. —— glyndwyr constituency. some breaking news, they say they've arrested a woman in connection with the death of a baby more than a0 years ago. they say the 57—year—old suspect who was arrested on suspicion of murder in northampton on tuesday was taken to a location in the county of questioning by detectives, to arrest her in relation to the discovery of a body of a newborn baby girl in 1980. the case was subject to a major police investigation at the time, but nobody was ever prosecuted and the inquiry closed in 1993. that's a statement from northamptonshire police to say they've arrested a woman in connection with the death of a baby more than a0 years ago. let's return to the election now. plaid cymru has also set out its general election manifesto today, offering what it called a "positive vision" for wales. the party's leader, rhun ap iorwerth, said his party would "fight every day" for the billions owed to wales from the cancellation of the high speed 2 rail project. 0ur wales correspondent hywel griffith was at the launch in cardiff. no election buying of flowers, i guess? there's a big occasion coming, and plaid cymru want voters focused on their finances. it claims wales is being short—changed and needs a new funding model — even though public spending per head here is already higher than the uk average. you want more money for wales — who gets less? of course, this is a uk government decision. as things stand, london gets more than anywhere else within the united kingdom. wales has the need. it needs better public funding than we presently get. i am arguing here for wales, because the needs here are so self—evident. so what would they do with any extra money? the manifesto pledges include recruiting 500 new gps and an extra £20 per week in child benefit. there's also a promise to eventually rejoin the eu. there'd be tax increases, too. the message pitched towards traditional labour voters, drawing them towards a nationalist party, careful not to scare them away. in your speech, you covered a lot of ground. there was one word was missing — can you guess what it was? carry on. independence. you didn't mention it once in your speech. i had to go to page a2 in your manifesto to find a reference. do you just accept it's not a vote—winner? well, listen, you're asking me now about independence, because you're talking to the leader of a pro—independence political party. you know, people know that we're in favour of independence. i talk openly about my desire for wales to take the levers of change. not in your speech, you didn't, you didn't mention it a single time. what have you got in your hands there, hywel? page a2, that's where the independence is. it's our manifesto, which includes independence, because we believe that wales won't reach its potential until we take those levers of change into our own hands. all right then, shall be it a go? plaid's own destiny depends on persuading people on the doorstep it can make a difference in westminster, notjust in wales. hywel griffith, bbc news. the liberal democrats are calling for extra money to help young carers with their education. sir ed davey wants to provide extra financial support for schools to help young people who balance care responsbilities with their education. latest figures show that around 30% of young carers are missing school. the snp leader, john swinney, was in leith to wish the scotland men's national team well in the euros, along with a message about his party's stance on the european union. mr swinney said returning to the eu as an independent country would be the "next best thing" to scotland getting to the final of the tournament. the green party has temporarily removed an online version of its manifesto, after it was criticised for using an image of an ill man to illustrate its policy on hiv. the greens launched their manifesto yesterday. the image appeared in the easy—read version of the document. some users on social media suggested it was misleading and stigmatising. the green party said it had taken action after being alerted to how the image "could be misinterpreted". the american journalist evan gershkovich is to face trial in russia on charges of espionage. mr gershkovich was detained in the city of yekaterinburg in march 2023, while working for the wall streetjournal. he has been accused of working for the cia, and collecting secret information on a tank factory. the us government says he was "wrongfully detained" and says it is working to secure his release. earlier, we heard from our russia editor steve rosenberg. more than 1a months in pre—trial detention, and today, the prosecutor's office issued a short statement saying that mr gershkovich's case will now be sent to court and go to trial — not in moscow — but will be heard by the sverdlovsk regional court, in yekaterinburg, 1,000 miles away — that's the city where the american journalist was arrested last year. what else did prosecutors say? they claim that he had been working for the cia and collecting information about a russian tank factory. now all along, evan gershkovich, his employer, the wall streetjournal, the us government have vehemently denied the charge of espionage — they say he was simply doing his job as a journalist. and, of course, we've had responses over the time from the wall streetjournal. they have said, on more than one occasion, that moscow is stockpiling americans in russia in order to be able to trade them at some point in the future. that is the fear of what is really going on here. absolutely, yes — and to be honest, russian officials haven't really hid the fact that they view evan gershkovich as a bargaining chip. let me just tell you something that vladimir putin said on this subject a few days ago. he was speaking to the heads of international news agencies in saint petersburg — he was asked about evan djokovic, and he said this. he said, "i know," putin said, "that the us administration is taking energetic steps to try to release even djokovic. but such issues," putin said, "are decided or should be decided not through the media. they like a quiet, calm, professional approach and dialogue between the secret services." he didn't mention the courts — secret services. "and of course," putin said "they should be decided on the basis of reciprocity." in other words, vladimir putin making it clear last week, as he has done in the past, that he sees evan gershkovich as in return for mr gershkovich's release, the russians want one of their own — it's absolutely clear. meanwhile, this case is now going to trial. there will be a trial, no date has been announced for the start of it. that does not mean, however, that talks will stop behind the scenes between the us administration and the russian authorities. clearly there has been a dialogue going on. we don't know what stage things are at, but that will probably continue. steve rosenberg there. in the last few hours... a senior white house official says the leaders have agreed on using $50 billion in interest from frozen russian assets to extend a loan to ukraine. we are waiting for a press conference is expected to be taking place there. german chancellor 0laf scholz said the bases had been created for ukraine to be in a position to procure everything it needs, including weapons and investment in infrastructure. in a separate development, presidents biden and zelensky have signed a security agreement to last ten years. let's speak to mark lowen who is in bari. we are waiting for president biden and volodymyr zelensky who are expected to speak at a press conference about this agreement. indeed, you can see the us and ukrainian flags lined up they are, in this press conference is a little bit delayed — timekeeping perhaps not always the top of these summits's achievements, but that significant achievement on the other hand is indeed this dealfor ukraine to get a $50 billion loan that's been signed off by g7 leaders. now how will that work? russia has about $300 billion worth of assets largely in europe that have been frozen since russia launched its full—scale invasion of ukraine. now those assets generate interest, about $3 billion worth of interest every year. what the g7 leaders have agreed is that they will use that interest as collateral to raise a loan on the international markets for $50 billion, that they will be able to give to ukraine — they are hoping to give it to ukraine at the end of this year, a much needed loan for cash starved anti—war rear ukraine. the question is exactly who will be providing the money for that loan does make some of those details are still to be worked out — g7 finance ministers are going through the detail now. the us has already said it will be happy to stump up the vast majority of it, but obviously the aim is to have as many countries involved as possible to have that broad consensus, so ursula von der leyen, who's also here as part of this g7, where the eu is represented, she said all g7 countries will contribute to that loan. it will also probably get contributions from the wider european union. so that's been welcomed of course by volodymyr zelensky — he is also called for a marshall plan akin to the marshall plan that was used after the second world war in order to rebuild ukraine after or when the guns fall silent. and there's been a separate ten year defence and security deal struck with the us, which we will hear more about when this press conference gets under way, for the us to guarantee ukraine's security and defence for ten years — that's intended to be a long—lasting deal they could outlast any political change in the us, not least this november