STV Scottish leaders' election debate LIVE: John Swinney, Douglas Ross, Anas Sarwar and Alex Cole Hamilton debate the NHS, economy, North Sea oil and gas, independence and more
Party leaders John Swinney, Douglas Ross, Anas Sarwar and Alex Cole-Hamilton are going up against each other in the Monday night STV debate
No surprise that host Colin Mackay is referencing today's YouGov poll
And he is repeatedly quizzing Scottish Tories leader Douglas Ross to defend what the poll is saying about his party’s fortunes.
Ross is using keywords such as the ‘NHS’ to explain it’s the public’s views that matter, not his
Now we're hearing from Alex Cole-Hamilton...
...and straight away he’s mentioning the bread-and-butter issues of seeing your GP and schools
A reminder there is no representative from the Scottish Greens at this TV debate - something co-leader Lorna Slater was not happy about at all
The message from Sarwar is clear
The Scottish Labour leader has focused on terms like ‘mortgages’ and preached the need for ‘change’ - it’s a clear message directed around practical cost of living issues
Interestingly enough, John Swinney is also zeroing in on cost of living - but has firmly blamed Brexit from the get go
The format tonight
Each party leader is being given one minute to set out their priorities
It’s the Scottish Tories Douglas Ross first - and he’s talking about it being a direct fight with the SNP in a majority of constituencies across Scotland
I suspect Anas Sarwar will have a couple of things to say about that...
What do we make of the debate backdrop?
Fair to say it’s not the most dynamic backdrop for a TV election debate.
In good news, however, each of the leaders will be allowed to challenge each other directly during the exchanges. It is often the most interesting part of these debates - will Douglas Ross be the man to quiz John Swinney? That should be worth watching
Your host for tonight is...
...Colin Mackay. The experienced political editor will be the person to quiz each of our party leaders live in moments.
What did John Swinney have to say in the debate build-up?
The new SNP leader and First Minister was again confronted over his position on gender ID policy. The questions came think and fast at an appearance on the campaign trail in Stirling after Kemi Badenoch, the UK women and equalities minister, said her party would move to make gender recognition a matter reserved to Westminster while seeking to clarify the Equalities Act.
Mr Swinney said: “This is just another step in the Conservative attempts to erode the powers of the Scottish Parliament. It’s been going on for some time.”
He added: “I want the Scottish Parliament to be a parliament that can address all of the issues that affect the lives of people in Scotland. So, what the Conservatives are doing today is part of a deliberate strategy to undermine the powers of the Scottish Parliament.”
Our full report is here.
Nigel Farage properly enters the election fray
There was another mini shockwave this afternoon for Rishi Sunak and the Conservatives, with Nigel Farage announcing that not only had he become Reform UK’s new leader, but that he is now standing as a candidate in the constituency of Clacton.
Not sure exactly what that means? Our Westminster correspondent Alexander Brown provides a full breakdown here
Key topics for tonight's debate
We’re expecting independence to be raised as always - but there are some other crucial talking points in this election battle.
Our political team have assessed the NHS and the economy, gender identity and North Sea oil and gas as the other key battleground themes we expect to be raised during the debate. Expect the answers from our party leaders to say a lot about their priorities.
One TV debate not enough for you?
If tonight doesn’t whet the appetite enough, there are plenty more leaders’ debates to come - including some that are head-to-head affairs between just Rishi Sunak and Sir Keir Starmer.
Here is a full breakdown of all the TV debates announced to date - and who is hosting them.
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