A memorable campaign for all the wrong reasons
Welcome to the daily ITV News digest direct from the campaign trail. Each afternoon we'll bring you analysis and insight from across the nation as the General Election 2024 gathers pace.
Hi, Shehab Khan, ITV News Political Correspondent here on another difficult day for Rishi Sunak and his party.
Two parliamentary candidates and one of his police protection officers find themselves under investigation for alleged bets they placed on the election date, days before Sunak stood on the steps of Downing Street to call the election.
One of those candidates, Laura Saunders, is married to the Party's director of campaigns, who, in the middle of the campaign, is now having to take a leave of absence. It's an extraordinary situation but so far nothing about this campaign has been ordinary.
From standing in the rain, to his D-day disaster, to telling the country he had to live without Sky TV as a child - the Conservative campaign is likely to be remembered for these moments, instead of one where policy really cut through.
With two weeks to go, there's not very long left for the PM to turn this around.
For more analysis on the day’s events, check out Talking Politics, our daily podcast from the campaign live from 4pm on ITVX, hosted by News at Ten presenter Tom Bradby, with Robert Peston and Anushka Asthana and special guest, Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis. Or watch on demand on ITVX or where you listen to your podcasts.
Thanks for reading and enjoy some of the best content brought to you by the rest of the ITV News team below.
Four people connected to PM face election bet investigations
Rishi Sunak is under pressure as four people with close connections to him are being investigated for allegedly betting on the date of the election before it was announced.
The prime minister is facing calls to suspend two of his election candidates with links to Downing Street - Laura Saunders and Craig Williams are both facing investigations by the betting watchdog.
Saunders previously worked at Conservative Campaign HQ, and is married to the party's director of campaigning, Tony Lee, who is also being investigated by the Gambling Commission. Lee took a leave of absence from his role on Wednesday.
Sunak's parliamentary private secretary, Craig Williams - who is also the Conservative candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr - was revealed to be under investigation by the commission, after he "put a flutter" on when the election would take place.
Furthermore, the Metropolitan Police said on Wednesday that one of the prime minister's protection officers had been arrested over alleged bets after it was contacted by the gambling watchdog.
You can keep across the latest developments on our website or on the ITVX streaming platform.
Fight for ‘24: How age is a defining factor in which way you’ll vote
In our Fight for ’24 series, ITV News UK Editor Paul Brand has been looking at the people and places that are key to winning this election.
And, never before has there been such a yawning age gap in how different generations intend to vote.
Drawing on exclusive data and analysis provided to us by the British Election Study, you can see how rapidly the oldest and youngest age groups have diverged over the past 20 years.
ITV News has tracked support for the various parties among two groups: 18-30 year-olds and over 65 year-olds. The results are hugely revealing…
You can read more from Paul on our website or watch his report on ITVX. And you can keep across the latest political news on social media by following @itvpolitics on Instagram and TikTok.
‘We’re not in Fergie time yet,’ says Gove after bleak opinion polls
The Conservatives are not defeated yet, Michael Gove has said as he insisted the election had not entered “Fergie time”.
Four major polls this week have suggested the party is on course for its worst result ever.
Mr Gove told ITV’s Good Morning Britain that if the polls were accurate, the election result would deliver an 'unchecked' and 'arrogant' Labour government.
His colleague, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, said the Conservatives were not pretending that winning election is “the most likely outcome” and said his own political future is “too close to call”.
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, meanwhile, was in North Yorkshire to talk about his party’s plans for house building. He denied reports a party official said a future government should “flatten the whole green belt”.
“We will get on and do the building we need to do,” he said, “but we’d of course protect the countryside, as you’d expect.”
Just down the road in Sheffield, Sir Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, trying to win back Sheffield Hallam from Labour - the only one they’re trying to take from Labour.
He was due to speak about potholes but found himself getting back to nature…
Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, focused his attentions in the north west, specifically Blackpool, as the party tries to improve on their recent third place by-election result.
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‘No magic wand’ - Robert Peston puts Starmer in the hot seat
There's no "magic wand" that can "fix all the country's problems" if Labour win the election, Sir Keir Starmer has told ITV.
In an exclusive interview for ITV's Peston programme, the Labour leader said: "I know what austerity feels like... but in the end, there's no magic wand that we can wave the day after the election and fix all the country's problems. And nobody would believe us if we said there is."
Speaking during a visit to a Morrison's supermarket in Swindon, Starmer said "what we can have is a serious plan for growth - and we can start that on day one".
You can watch the full Peston Show on catch-up on ITVX or see the best of the Starmer interview with Robert Peston here.
What are the concerns of the young, first-time Welsh voters?
Camille Valere, a first time voter and student from Cardiff University, has a lot of questions for political leaders.
How on earth will she and her generation ever hope to buy their own home?
She and her peers will bear the brunt of climate change as they get older, she says. What promises can the parties make to tackle it?
And she asked that as, according to an ITV News poll, the majority of young Welsh people disagreed with leaving the EU, how can the various parties make the UK a success after Brexit?
You can see and read what they had to say to Camille on the ITV Wales News website.
What’s coming up…
Thursday June 20: Question Time Leaders’ Special to air on BBC1 with Rishi Sunak, Sir Keir Starmer and a representative from the Liberal Democrats and SNP.
Friday June 21: ONS data on public sector borrowing published.
Saturday June 22: Windrush Day - introduced in June 2018 on the 70th anniversary of the Windrush migration.
Monday June 24: Institute for Fiscal Studies presenting analysis of parties’ election manifestos.
Wednesday June 26: Deadline to apply for a Voter ID certificate or a proxy vote for General Election. A proxy vote is for someone to vote on your behalf.
And finally… away from the national hurly-burly
While the national General Election picture is dominated by immigration, the NHS and the cost of living, on a more local level, the battle lines are drawn on just as pressing matters such as the future of the fishing industry and second homes.
In St Ives, Cornwall, holiday lets is a key issue for many in this marginal constituency.
There are nine candidates competing for votes - and ITV News West Country’s Charlotte Gay took at look at one of the most competitive races in this election.