News in Picture

A leading independent think tank has today accused all of the main parties of unwillingness to grasp the nettle when it comes to Britain's enormous deficit.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies said voters were being deprived of an "informed choice" as neither Labour, the Conservatives or Liberal Democrats came "anywhere close" to identifying where the savings necessary to cut the deficit would be made.

IFS director Robert Chote said: "Repairing the public finances will be the defining domestic policy task of the next government. For the voters to be able to make an informed choice in this election, the parties need to explain clearly how they would go about achieving it. Unfortunately, they have not."

Tonight, Paul Mason will be crunching the numbers and Mr Chote will face senior politicians from those three parties in the studio as Kirsty Wark leads them in a debate about whether any of them are being honest with the electorate.

The Court of Session in Edinburgh has begun hearing a case brought by the Scottish National Party, challenging its exclusion from Thursday's final prime ministerial debate.

The court is still sitting as we speak - we'll be joined live by the SNP leader Alex Salmond.

Labour this week promised to "up the tempo" of their campaign - David Grossman is following the prime minister in Glasgow where Gordon Brown has been meeting voters.

But is the prime minister in danger of being side-lined - packed off around the country for a series of photo ops, while Lord Mandelson runs things in London?

Michael Crick is in Bolton assessing how David Cameron's latest Big Society speech has gone down with voters in a Tory target seat.

And we have the second Memo to the Minister from the writers of Yes Minister. Tonight Sir Humphrey grapples with the Lib Dem manifesto.

Join Kirsty at 10.30pm on BBC Two.