Election latest: Leaders get brutally blunt audience question at final debate - as PM shows off new favourite attack line (2024)

Up to spin for the Conservatives is David Davis.

"This debate was very important - the last debate before the weekend, in which people make up their minds," he says.

"And here the prime minister made an incredibly important... attack line," he says, noting Rishi Sunak's repeated pleas to voters to not "surrender" their borders or finances to Labour.

"[Sunak has] faced a once-in-a-generation issue in terms of a war in Europe, he's faced a once-in-a-century issue in terms of a pandemic and he did it with an economy from which we'd inherited massive debts in the past," he says.

After all that, "he managed to get inflation down from 11% to 2% in six months".

"The public will look at this and say: 'We've got a difficult world, all sorts of disruptions at home and abroad, who will deal with it the best of these two'?" he says.

"I know who I'll be voting for."

ByTim Baker, political reporter, in Nottingham

With minutes to go, a group of smiling Labour spinners arrived to watch the final summations.

Darren Jones - under fire for his comments about the cost of going for net zero, revealed in The Telegraph - tells Sky News it's clear who was more prime ministerial during the debate.

He and the other Starmer backers then burst away to the various cameras and microphones to talk up their leader.

Meanwhile, serious faced Conservatives enter from the other end of the room to give their verdicts.

Tory candidate - and former minister - David Davies says he thinks Rishi Sunak's repetition of the "surrender" phrase will have gone down well.

This just in from YouGov - which has found there was no winner in tonight's BBC leaders' debate, the last of the general election campaign.

Asked who performed best - the results came in exactly 50/50.

Our deputy political editor Sam Coates says there will likely be disappointment in the Conservative ranks over this result.

"Neck-and-neck polling doesn't seem to me like it's going to change the race," he says.

"I think there's a really interesting question about Rishi Sunak's tactics, in my view, watching that, he was effective in highlighting the choice - the policy difference between the two men.

"I wonder looking at that poll whether that's what the public are really looking for."

The Met Police has announced it will take the lead on investigating "a small number of cases" related to the Westminster betting scandal.

A spokesman said the force would "assess whether the alleged offending goes beyond Gambling Act offences to include others, such as misconduct in public office".

The Met is not taking over the entire investigation into bets on the timing of the election, they said.

"The Gambling Commission will continue to lead the investigation into cases where the alleged offending is limited to breaches of the Gambling Act only," said the spokesperson.

They added that more details would be provided tomorrow.

The final debate of this election is over.

Sir Keir Starmer and Rishi Sunak went head-to-head for an hour and 15 minutes.

At times, the exchange become heated, with the prime minister in particular targeting Sir Keir's stance on issues while the Labour leader was speaking.

The two men clashed particularly on borders, taxes, and gender.

Our chief political correspondent Jon Craig says: "The debate ends as it began, with Rishi Sunak shouting over Sir Keir Starmer.

"It's not a good look."

Jon adds: "And as the debate ended, there was no handshake between the pair, which is unusual for these TV clashes.

There’s clearly no love lost between these two. It showed. A pretty ill-tempered clash at times.

"Sunak on the attack, Starmer more on the defensive."

Follow along for the latest reaction, or scroll back through to see how the debate unfolded.

In his closing statement, Sir Keir Starmer reiterates that power is in the hands of the public on 4 July.

He says: "My message to you is simple - if you want your NHS back, you have to vote for it.

"If you want a growing economy, you have to vote for it. If you want more police on our streets, more teachers in our schools - you have to vote for it.

"If you want to end 14 years of chaos and rebuild our country, then that power is in your hand on 4 July."

And that brings the debate to an end - with no handshake obvious between the leaders.

In his closing statement, Rishi Sunak says he understands why the country is "frustrated" with the Conservative Party - and him.

"I get it. But this is not a by-election, it's a choice with profound consequences for you and our country," he says.

He urges voters to think "what a Labour government would mean".

"Can you afford to pay at least £2,000 more in tax? And why won't Keir Starmer be straight with you about what he wants to do?"

Sir Keir can be heard muttering "that's a lie" from off-screen.

Mr Sunak urges people not to "surrender" to Labour if they are "not certain".

"Don't vote for any other party. Vote Conservative," he says.

Karl McCartney, who is a Conservative candidate and former MP, is clearly not as enthralled with the debate as the rest of us.

He's busy watching the Georgia vs Portugal game in the Euros (we won't spoil the score here).

But he's clearly unhappy with the standard of the officiating - something that can't be said about Mishal Husain.

Audience member Tasnim has a question on young people - and it will be the last question of this BBC debate.

Young people are losing hope, she says, so what will the candidates do to keep them in the UK?

Sir Keir Starmer says he will ensure that there are new homes built and high-paid jobs available to young people.

"We've got to build the houses," he says, noting high rent and house costs pricing younger generations out.

He bemoans Rishi Sunak's record on housing.

The prime minister says he will reintroduce a new form of help-to-buy to save on deposits, and to "effectively abolish stamp duty" for first-time buyers.

"Your question is fundamentally why I got into politics," he says.

He says those are two "practical" examples of what he can do to help young people get homes.

He doesn't address jobs as Sir Keir did, and the Labour leader attacks the Tories' record on housing targets and funding for future building.

Next is a question from Julie, who asks how the UK can mend a broken trading relationship with Europe.

Rishi Sunak begins by apologising for difficulties she has faced in her small business since the UK left the EU.

He says "in order to help" he plans to cut tax on business rates, which he claims is the thing "everyone talks about" on the ground.

Mr Sunak says the Conservatives will continue to have "good relationships with Europe" - but the best way to help is to cut taxes like national insurance.

Our chief political correspondent Jon Craig says the PM was clearly dodging the question.

"On Brexit, the PM is like a cracked record," he adds.

Starmer vows to get 'better deal'

The Labour leader says the UK will not go back to the EU but he "doesn't accept" that "we can't get a better deal".

"We want to arrange to get a better deal... I think Boris Johnson botched it," he adds.

Mr Sunak questions what the price of this would be, saying this could be the free movement of people.

"Free movement by the back door - this is the choice for you at this election."

Sir Keir says: "We are not accepting freedom of movement."

Mr Sunak asks again what this deal will cost, saying: "You're taking people for fools."

The Labour leader says it is "important when you start these negotiations the lines you will not cross".

He clarifies that he would not accept any increased migration as part of a deal with the EU.