Yahoo News Wednesday briefing: Scramble to finish line in final day of campaign
Good morning. This is it, the last day of the campaign, the end is in sight, but not before one final flurry of campaigning effort from all the parties. Herein we bring you the election news and the best of the rest – and of course you should follow the day’s live political news here.
What’s going on?
Labour and the Conservatives are in a frantic scramble for votes as the last day of campaigning begins. Both parties have labelled Thursday’s vote the “most important in a generation” .
The Guardian’s election editorial shares this view, saying “Britain has not faced a more critical election in decades than the one it faces on Thursday”. It urges people to back Labour and “candidates who can defeat the Tories in constituencies where Labour is an also-ran” – asking them to “think of the electrifying impact of relieving Mr Johnson of high office”.
Neither Boris Johnson nor Jeremy Corbyn is wasting a moment of this last day. The prime minister will be crisscrossing the country from Yorkshire to the Midlands, Wales and London, delivering his message that the Conservatives need only another 12 seats to win a majority and that only his party can “get Brexit done”.
Corbyn will start his day in Scotland before visiting at least five key seats in a whirlwind tour across England – calling for those who are undecided to “vote for hope in this election”.
Both sides insist the election remains closely fought and that polls giving the Conservatives a lead could be wrong. The release of YouGov’s second and much-hyped constituency-by-constituency poll suggests that this is not just a campaign line from the parties and we could be in for a nerve-jangling finish. Compared with the first poll, Labour is two points up, meaning Johnson’s notional majority has been cut from 68 to 28 as his party’s predicted seat count falls by 20 to 339, while Labour’s improves by the same amount to 231. The SNP takes 41 and the Liberal Democrats 15, with some particularly surprising Lib Dem gains predicted.
At a glance
A woman has claimed her Facebook account was hacked after it was used to post false information claiming a photograph of an ill boy on the floor of a hospital was staged for political purposes.
Corbyn has dismissed as “banter” a recording of Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, saying Labour would not win the election.
Jo Swinson has accused Boris Johnson of showing “an empathy bypass” in his attitude to other people.
How was a PM on day release for nicking a phone allowed in a JCB, asks John Crace.
Want to vote tactically? We have a region-by-region guide.
Huw Edwards has said “the stakes are very high” for the BBC’s general coverage amid Conservative threats to examine the licence fee and Channel 4’s broadcasting remit after the election.
The health secretary, Matt Hancock, won’t talk to us, say “bullied” doctors at his local hospital in Suffolk.
The Conservatives have opened a second investigation into the party’s Hastings candidate, Sally-Ann Hart – this time for alleged Islamophobia.
The day ahead
A busy day all round. Johnson will be travelling from Yorkshire to the Midlands, Wales and London.
Jo Swinson will be making appearances at a series of rallies. She is targeting Lib Dem seats around Surrey and the London area.
Nigel Farage is back on the campaign trail and will be in Yorkshire backed by local Prospective Parliamentary Candidates.
Nicola Sturgeon will join SNP candidates on the final day of campaigning in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Stirling and Dunbartonshire.
Sign up here to receive Andrew Sparrow’s afternoon round-up from the campaign trail – direct to your email inbox.
Best of the rest
> A coroner has warned theme park operators about the risk of future deaths unless safety measures are adopted after an inquest into the drowning of Evha Jannath. The 11-year-old girl was propelled from a vessel on the Splash Canyon river rapids ride at Drayton Manor in Staffordshire in May 2017. The inquest jury found that Evha died accidentally. Jurors heard there had been no safety warnings given to guests boarding the ride, warning signs were incomplete or illegible, CCTV was not adequately monitored and no water rescue equipment or training was available to staff.
> The decline of the British pub may be at an end, according to figures showing that their number has increased for the first time this decade. The UK ended March 2019 with 39,135 pubs, which is 320 more than a year earlier, says the Office of National Statistics (ONS). It is the first net increase since 2010 and contrasts with the previous nine years during which pubs closed at a rate of more than 700 each year. The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), though, cautions that its own statistics – due in the new year and covering a higher number of pubs – may not be as bubbly.
> Labelling food and drinks with how much walking or running is needed to burn them off could help tackle the obesity crisis, researchers say. While nutritional information such as calorie count is mandatory, there is limited evidence it makes people choose healthier food. A study led by Daley calls for small symbols showing how much physical activity is needed to compensate for consuming the item. A fizzy drink containing 138 calories, for example, would take 26 minutes of walking or 13 minutes of running to burn off. “If I tell you something is going to take you 60 minutes of walking to burn, I think most people understand that and know that 60 minutes of walking is a long way,” says Professor Amanda Daley of Loughborough University.
Today in Focus podcast: Britain’s homelessness epidemic
A record number of homeless people died in 2018 and charities are warning this year could be worse. Simon Hattenstone and Daniel Lavelle have been delving behind the statistics into the lives of those sleeping rough. Also today: Haroon Siddique on how British Hindus are being targeted in this election.
Lunchtime read: Footballer’s pad or stately house?
Rightmove’s annual top-five properties include a Downton Abbey-like castle and a star striker’s Towie pile, writes Patrick Collinson.
Sport
Jürgen Klopp said Mohamed Salah’s self-belief was instrumental in Liverpool reaching the knockout stage of the Champions League as he became only the second player in the club’s history to score 20 goals in the competition. At Stamford Bridge, Chelsea took a 2-0 lead and were cruising into the Champions League knockout stage before Lille gave them a scare. Carlo Ancelotti has been sacked as Napoli manager despite leading the Italian side to the knockout stages, while last season’s beaten semi-finalists Ajax were the big casualties from the group stage. Howard Wilkinson and Harry Redknapp have led tributes to Jim Smith, the former Birmingham, Oxford, QPR, Newcastle, Portsmouth and Derby manager, who has died at the age of 79.
A highly respected British member of the World Anti-Doping Agency’s athlete committee is questioning her future after condemning what she called the “spineless and appalling” decision not to issue an outright ban on Russia from international sport. Liverpool have supported calls by human rights groups for thorough investigations into the deaths of migrant workers in Qatar, before the club flies to the Gulf country next week to play in Fifa’s Club World Cup. The Featherstone Rovers Ladies and England international rugby league forward Natalie Harrowell has died, aged 29. The British Olympic Association has entered into a legal dispute with its own athletes as a row over marketing rights looks set to overshadow the countdown to Tokyo 2020. And New Zealand’s wait for a new All Blacks head coach is over after Ian Foster, Steve Hansen’s former assistant, was promoted to the position on a two-year contract.
Business
Asian stock markets have been mostly higher. Shanghai and Hong Kong gained while Tokyo’s Nikkei retreated. In South Korea the Kospi gained, as did the S&P-ASX 200 in Sydney, and Taiwan and Singapore advanced while New Zealand retreated. Reports say Donald Trump might delay a weekend $160bn tariff hike on Chinese goods while investors are looking ahead to Fed’s interest rate decision today and the ECB’s on Thursday. The pound is worth $1.314 and €1.184 while the FTSE is tracking a few points higher at time of writing.
The papers
The extraordinary sight of Aung San Suu Kyi fronting the international court of justice provides the front page picture for the FT, which says she is “poised to defend generals against human rights charges”– and the Guardian – “Our collective humanity is being put on trial”. The Guardian’s splash is the “most important election in a generation” while the FT says Boris Johnson is “ready to shake up overseas aid” if the Conservatives win. The Telegraph declares Johnson would “get tough on serious criminals”.
Others lead with the state of the polls. “Tory lead narrows ahead of final election rallies” says the Times. The i goes with “Corbyn closes on Johnson as race tightens”, while the Mail really pours it on: “Britain’s future down to the wire”.
The Express revels in the sideshow after a Labour shadow minister said he “can’t stand” Jeremy Corbyn. The Sun officially endorses the PM: “Boris ticks all the boxes”. Dave Merritt, father of London Bridge victim Jack, is on the front page of the Mirror: “Johnson saw my son’s death not as a tragedy but as an opportunity”.
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