:00:00. > :00:00.There are just 49 days, 12 hours and 32 minutes
:00:00. > :00:19.The countdown to the General Election has officially begun.
:00:20. > :00:24.Tonight, two former party leaders tell us they're ready
:00:25. > :00:28.Former deputy prime minister Nick Clegg will stand
:00:29. > :00:37.Labour's Ed Miliband wants to stay in Doncaster.What do you want
:00:38. > :00:43.Surely it is not like to turn our venerable democracy in Westminster
:00:44. > :00:45.into a plaything for one person at number ten?
:00:46. > :00:47.What do you want from this election campaign?
:00:48. > :00:52.We hear from Yorkshire's youngest voters and older voters too.
:00:53. > :01:01.What should they be up talking about in this election? Don't ask me, I am
:01:02. > :01:05.sick of it. Last year I was 17 so I could not vote for the exit vote,
:01:06. > :01:06.now it is my chance to get my voice heard.
:01:07. > :01:09.Also tonight: Bowling them over - the Yorkshire bowler who's taken
:01:10. > :01:13.And, we'll speak to the Strictly champion about her new challenge
:01:14. > :01:24.Slightly milder conditions to come tomorrow, join me for the detailed
:01:25. > :01:26.forecast. Tonight, MPs have backed
:01:27. > :01:33.the Prime Minister's call It means there are just seven weeks
:01:34. > :01:38.and a day until we go The next election
:01:39. > :01:41.wasn't due till 2020. To make it happen,
:01:42. > :01:43.two-thirds of MPs had to agree to a change
:01:44. > :01:45.in the date. And already, two former party
:01:46. > :01:51.leaders based here in Yorkshire have Our political reporter James Vincent
:01:52. > :01:58.joins us live from Doncaster. James, the opposition parties
:01:59. > :02:12.aren't going to take this Not at all. The news from Doncaster
:02:13. > :02:15.where we are tonight is that all three Labour MPs in the town will
:02:16. > :02:23.stand for re-election. That includes Ed Miliband in Doncaster. He let us
:02:24. > :02:27.know earlier today that he would be standing again. He has not given any
:02:28. > :02:32.interviews today, saying there was never any doubt that he would stand
:02:33. > :02:34.again as Doncaster North MP. One other politician who kept us
:02:35. > :02:39.guessing right until the last minute was Nick Clegg. We were in Sheffield
:02:40. > :02:44.earlier to find out if he would stay, or if he would go. Our liberal
:02:45. > :02:48.conservative government will take Britain in an historic new
:02:49. > :02:54.direction. Seven years ago, Nick Clegg was in a posh garden. It was
:02:55. > :02:58.Downing Street, and he was the new Deputy Prime Minister. Cut to 2017,
:02:59. > :03:03.and he is in a lovely, but more modest garden in Sheffield to tell
:03:04. > :03:09.us whether he is standing or not in this surprise general election. Once
:03:10. > :03:12.you knew there was going to be a general election, the next decision
:03:13. > :03:17.was whether you would stand. Was it an easy decision? I thought about
:03:18. > :03:20.it, as everyone should either way. It is a great honour and one should
:03:21. > :03:24.never be flippant about putting yourself forward. It is a very
:03:25. > :03:30.solemn thing to do, to put yourself before thousands of your fellow
:03:31. > :03:34.citizens and say I want to try and represent your interests as best I
:03:35. > :03:39.can. I have always taken that duty very seriously in Parliament. There
:03:40. > :03:45.have been some ups and downs for Nick Clegg. In 2010 he was the man.
:03:46. > :03:50.He had all the best hash tags anti-ulcer had the support of
:03:51. > :03:55.students because he made a promise on tuition fees. Then... He paid for
:03:56. > :04:00.it when, in the eyes of the students, that promise was broken.
:04:01. > :04:04.There were some furious rewriting of placards and some pretty big
:04:05. > :04:09.protest. Politically, Sheffield Hallam is the only bit of yellow in
:04:10. > :04:15.Yorkshire's flowerbed of red. Two people here still agree with him? He
:04:16. > :04:20.promised they would not increase fees at all, but that first promise
:04:21. > :04:24.he broke it. I don't know who will believe in him. I am excited to hear
:04:25. > :04:31.what kind of policies he will bring, what kind of things can be done for
:04:32. > :04:35.the EU and Brexit. With what he said about students last time, and how he
:04:36. > :04:40.sold them out, that was diabolical. But looking at the choices we have
:04:41. > :04:50.got, better the devil you know. What are the issues for you? It is the
:04:51. > :04:55.third big election in three years. Nick Clegg has a majority of over
:04:56. > :04:59.2000 in Sheffield Hallam. It was cut significantly last time, but in an
:05:00. > :05:03.area where it is estimated more people voted to remain in the EU
:05:04. > :05:10.than leave, he will be hoping to get votes from both Labour and the
:05:11. > :05:14.Conservatives. MPs voted overwhelmingly in favour
:05:15. > :05:19.of a general election. Just one MP from our area was against it.
:05:20. > :05:24.Absolutely. Only 13 MPs in the whole country decided they did not want an
:05:25. > :05:30.election. In our part of the world it was Dennis Skinner, who has been
:05:31. > :05:35.MPs in 1970. A thorn in the Conservative's side ever since, and
:05:36. > :05:46.again today. Will the Prime Minister give a guarantee that no Tory MP who
:05:47. > :05:52.is under investigation by the police and the legal authorities over
:05:53. > :05:59.election expenses in the last general election be a candidate in
:06:00. > :06:06.this election, because if she won't accept that, this is a most squalid
:06:07. > :06:12.election campaign that has happened in my lifetime. Big personalities
:06:13. > :06:17.there. What else do we know about who is standing in the election? We
:06:18. > :06:21.have had journalists with sewn in one hand and e-mail in the other,
:06:22. > :06:26.try to work out who is standing and who is not. Most of our MPs are
:06:27. > :06:32.standing again, but we have not heard from Dennis Skinner or Natasha
:06:33. > :06:36.Engel, MP for North East Derbyshire. The rest of the parties will now
:06:37. > :06:40.start that process very quickly of getting their candidates in place to
:06:41. > :06:44.challenge those incumbent MPs. We are starting to hit a few things
:06:45. > :06:49.about who is standing by. It will be a few days before everything is in
:06:50. > :06:56.place. So, seven weeks and one day to go. What happens now? Well, it is
:06:57. > :06:59.all going to be a bit of a mad scramble because there will be
:07:00. > :07:03.politicians and parties trying to scramble to make sure they have got
:07:04. > :07:06.candidates. There will be news crews try to make sure they can cover
:07:07. > :07:10.them. You will probably see things like politicians in hard hats going
:07:11. > :07:16.round factories, you will see placards of every colour, and a few
:07:17. > :07:20.babies being kissed. That is the cliche. Get ready for those because
:07:21. > :07:23.they are on their way. It is an election, and it is happening in
:07:24. > :07:25.about 50 days' time. Thank you, James.
:07:26. > :07:28.The last time we all voted was in the EU Referendum last year.
:07:29. > :07:31.Then, many younger people voted to remain in the European Union,
:07:32. > :07:32.while more older people voted to leave.
:07:33. > :07:35.So will there be a generation gap this time?
:07:36. > :07:37.We've been canvassing opinion with some first-time voters
:07:38. > :07:40.Heidi Tomlinson is in Leeds and Abi Jaiyeola is in Malton.
:07:41. > :07:42.Heidi, is there a sense of excitement among
:07:43. > :08:02.Yes, I think they were excited. The students I spoke to today were
:08:03. > :08:04.surprised at being given the opportunity to vote for the first
:08:05. > :08:10.time so soon. We have come to millennium Square, the heart of the
:08:11. > :08:15.Leeds Central constituency. This is one of Labour's safest seats. Hilary
:08:16. > :08:21.Benn has been MP here since 1999. A real mix of people live here. There
:08:22. > :08:25.are deprived amenities, the financial industry in the heart of
:08:26. > :08:27.the city centre, there are two hospitals and two universities, and
:08:28. > :08:35.that is where we turned our attention today.
:08:36. > :08:41.Sixth form politics students on the cusp of A-levels, and their first
:08:42. > :08:45.vote in a general election. What issues came to the forefront of your
:08:46. > :08:51.mind? I think I am excited about being able to vote for the first
:08:52. > :08:55.time. I was worried about exit. I am glad to have a chance to vote now I
:08:56. > :09:01.am 18. I was concerned about austerity. I am shocked because she
:09:02. > :09:07.said she would not hold one. Last year I was 17 so I could not vote in
:09:08. > :09:11.the Brexit vote, so now it is my chance to get my voice heard. There
:09:12. > :09:15.is the chance, but it is also a shock election. Usually you would
:09:16. > :09:20.have five years to choose who to vote for and we have got seven
:09:21. > :09:24.weeks. You going to make the effort to vote? It is important that young
:09:25. > :09:29.people turn out because this is a chance for us now to pick up where
:09:30. > :09:32.we may have not got what we wanted with the Brexit referendum. I was
:09:33. > :09:37.not happy with the Brexit result, so now it's my chance to express how I
:09:38. > :09:40.felt them. The election has been called not only to build on the
:09:41. > :09:45.Conservative majority in the House of Commons, but also to ensure that
:09:46. > :09:50.Brexit can go through. Your first vote, can account in this election,
:09:51. > :09:54.given the circumstances? I think it is the first time many people our
:09:55. > :09:57.age will be voting, this is a new generation that has been punished
:09:58. > :10:04.particularly badly by the Conservatives. We have had strangled
:10:05. > :10:08.youth mental health services, the coalition hurt us with tuition fees,
:10:09. > :10:13.and this is the first time to hold them to account. I am going to put
:10:14. > :10:17.you all on the spot now and ask you will vote for. Conservative or
:10:18. > :10:23.liberal Democrat. Liberal Democrat. Labour. Labour. Conservative.
:10:24. > :10:28.Labour. So, a real range of opinion there,
:10:29. > :10:31.as you would expect in such a diverse constituency. Some hesitancy
:10:32. > :10:35.there as well over who people were going to vote for. You would expect
:10:36. > :10:40.that kind of thing, given the fact that a quarter of the population
:10:41. > :10:44.here are aged between 18-24. There are a lot of young people, so their
:10:45. > :10:48.views will be important in this election. Let's go to a constituency
:10:49. > :10:54.in North Yorkshire now to hear about other people's views.
:10:55. > :11:02.I am in the heart of the Thirsk and Malton constituency, eight save
:11:03. > :11:06.Conservative seat. The MP has a majority of more than 19,000.
:11:07. > :11:12.Traditionally, voter turnout is high. It is an area that has quite a
:11:13. > :11:16.low population of 18-24 -year-olds, but a higher percentage of over
:11:17. > :11:21.55-year-olds. Around 40% of the population here for into that age
:11:22. > :11:22.bracket. I have spoken to them today about their hopes for the
:11:23. > :11:29.forthcoming election. In seven weeks' time, shoppers here
:11:30. > :11:33.will be making what might be a more difficult choice. What colour
:11:34. > :11:37.political party to vote for. How do you feel about the election? I am
:11:38. > :11:42.sick to death of hearing about it already. What should they be talking
:11:43. > :11:47.about in this election? Don't ask me, I am sick of it. For potential
:11:48. > :11:51.voters here, there is one issue they expect to dominate the agenda.
:11:52. > :11:58.Brexit. And her having a strong mandate. That is what it is all
:11:59. > :12:03.about. They should be concentrating more on Brexit it is not just about
:12:04. > :12:09.Brexit, it is what we are going to get out of it. 55% of people in this
:12:10. > :12:16.area voted in favour of leaving the EU. This is an area that is a
:12:17. > :12:20.traditional safe Conservative seat, but there is still a range of views
:12:21. > :12:24.about what people would like to see from the next government. On this
:12:25. > :12:29.occasion, I am hoping that there will be a bit more power to whoever
:12:30. > :12:36.is in government to sort out the NHS. I would like to see something
:12:37. > :12:43.done about the ?13 billion, ever increasing, which are sent abroad.
:12:44. > :12:46.Send money abroad by all means, but directed more cavalry. We have to
:12:47. > :12:51.look at low pay and housing. If you have low pay, you can't afford your
:12:52. > :12:55.housing. I am from a farming background, and what will have
:12:56. > :12:58.happen with regard to the farms? There is one issue that everyone
:12:59. > :13:03.here is agreed on. Who will vote in the general election?
:13:04. > :13:06.One question you've asked us today, with just seven weeks
:13:07. > :13:08.left until the electio, is how do you actually
:13:09. > :13:20.What was turnout like at the last election? At the last election, a
:13:21. > :13:25.lot more people voted than usual so turnout was just over 66%, more than
:13:26. > :13:30.in 2010, and more than any time in the last 20 years. Compare it to the
:13:31. > :13:36.EU referendum, where voter turnout was 72%, which was huge am not quite
:13:37. > :13:39.as many. That really did get people politically engaged. As Heidi
:13:40. > :13:45.mentioned, it is young people, the under 25s that need to vote.
:13:46. > :13:49.Crucially, if you are not registered, how do you go about it?
:13:50. > :13:54.It is so easy, just go on the website, sign up and it just takes a
:13:55. > :13:59.couple of minutes. All you need is your National Insurance number. If
:14:00. > :14:02.you are registered to vote in local elections in May, you do not need to
:14:03. > :14:07.register again. But if you have moved house you will need to. And
:14:08. > :14:10.the key bit of information, when is the deadline? The 22nd of May, so
:14:11. > :14:13.not long now. Thank you. We'll catch up with last
:14:14. > :14:17.year's Strictly champion as she takes her dancing skills
:14:18. > :14:28.to the stage in Leeds. A 30-year-old man has been arrested
:14:29. > :14:30.on suspicion of murder Derbyshire Police were called
:14:31. > :14:34.to a collision between a motorbike The incident took place
:14:35. > :14:38.near the Boot and Shoe Inn in Grassmoor, near Chesterfield,
:14:39. > :14:40.and police said an altercation A 74-year-old man was taken
:14:41. > :14:44.to hospital, where he later died. after the deaths of six people
:14:45. > :14:57.in Yorkshire in apparent class Three men and a woman were found
:14:58. > :15:01.dead at separate addresses around The following day two men
:15:02. > :15:04.died in West Yorkshire. Police forces in both areas
:15:05. > :15:06.are liaising but the deaths Sheffield's Jess Ennis-Hill has been
:15:07. > :15:13.made a Dame today in a ceremony The Olympic gold medal winning
:15:14. > :15:16.heptathlete received the honour She's been recognised
:15:17. > :15:22.for services to athletics. The redevelopment of Headingley
:15:23. > :15:24.stadium in Leeds is a step closer after a financial deal was approved
:15:25. > :15:27.by Leeds City Council A deal brokered by the Council
:15:28. > :15:31.which will see an unnamed private investor provide ?35 million
:15:32. > :15:34.towards the project. Yorkshire County Cricket Club had
:15:35. > :15:36.warned that without redevelopment, they would lose the chance
:15:37. > :15:38.to host international matches. Leeds Rhinos has pledged
:15:39. > :15:53.?5 million toward the cost. We have gone through in fine detail
:15:54. > :16:00.the economic benefit of having these major sporting events, World Cup
:16:01. > :16:05.rugby as well, coming to Headingley, and the contribution to the economy
:16:06. > :16:07.and the jobs created is phenomenal. We are talking millions of pounds.
:16:08. > :16:09.On the field, there's a lot of excitement about Yorkshire's next
:16:10. > :16:12.match on Friday away to Hampshire, and the new star
:16:13. > :16:15.Yes, Ben Coad is the name on everyone's lips.
:16:16. > :16:17.He's a North Yorkshireman, with a big future.
:16:18. > :16:20.And as Paul Ogden reports, Yorkshire are hoping to keep a firm
:16:21. > :16:26.Not long ago, Ben Coad would have been playing in today's Yorkshire
:16:27. > :16:30.second-team match at a chilly Headingley against Gloucester.
:16:31. > :16:33.But now he is a first-team starter, getting ready to face Hampshire
:16:34. > :16:39.on Friday after taking 18 wickets already from their
:16:40. > :16:45.I don't think there's any real secret, it has just been hard
:16:46. > :16:51.It has just been waiting for that break to come.
:16:52. > :16:54.It is never good to have injuries in the team, but when they come,
:16:55. > :16:58.you have got to take your chance and I think I have done that.
:16:59. > :17:00.I felt really good in the preseason, and I felt really
:17:01. > :17:03.good about all of it, the rhythm and the action.
:17:04. > :17:06.I thought it would be a good season but I could never
:17:07. > :17:09.A product of Studley Royal and Harrogate Cricket clubs,
:17:10. > :17:12.Ben Coad now finds himself at the very top of the County
:17:13. > :17:13.Championship's most valuable player rankings.
:17:14. > :17:17.With a new contract extension at Headingley to reward him.
:17:18. > :17:19.It has been massive, massive encouragement from the crowd.
:17:20. > :17:23.They can be critical at some points, but no, they have been great to me.
:17:24. > :17:26.These last two weeks have been surreal.
:17:27. > :17:29.So maybe there is just one bit of bad news today for Ben Coad.
:17:30. > :17:45.Our next guest needs little introduction.
:17:46. > :17:47.Joanne Clifton, won the nation's hearts in winning Strictly Come
:17:48. > :17:50.dancing with her partner, TV presenter, Ore Oduba.
:17:51. > :17:53.And the professional dancer now has a new challenge on her hands.
:17:54. > :17:56.She's starring in Thoroughly Modern Millie at Leeds Grand Theatre.
:17:57. > :18:00.Before we talk about her new challenge, let's remind
:18:01. > :18:07.ourselves how she found out that she'd won Strictly.
:18:08. > :18:21.I have got good goose pimples now, watching it!
:18:22. > :18:28.I think you can see that from our faces.
:18:29. > :18:32.Our goal was to get to Blackpool in week eight or nine,
:18:33. > :18:35.and if we got to Blackpool we would have Nutella waffles.
:18:36. > :18:41.We got to a few dance-offs and then we reached the final.
:18:42. > :18:44.We thought we are never going to win it because Louise
:18:45. > :18:47.is amazing and we have been in all the dance-offs and they haven't.
:18:48. > :18:53.We just went out there and we did not put any pressure
:18:54. > :18:57.You were up against your brother Kevin, how was that?
:18:58. > :19:03.But you know what, as you saw on the clip, he picked me up,
:19:04. > :19:06.spun me around, and I actually said "I'm sorry" to him.
:19:07. > :19:09.He has been in the final four times now and never won it.
:19:10. > :19:12.Then I came in, I didn't have a partner last year,
:19:13. > :19:16.I said sorry, and he said, "Don't ever say that again
:19:17. > :19:18.because there is nobody in this room who could be prouder of
:19:19. > :19:23.So you are a professional dancer and your brother is,
:19:24. > :19:26.and your mum and dad - how much of an influence did they play
:19:27. > :19:32.They were world number one and British champions,
:19:33. > :19:48.What my dad used to teach us the most is the performance side
:19:49. > :19:51.of it and getting the audience to be moved by your performance, rather
:19:52. > :19:57.And it was your mum who persuaded your dad to get involved.
:19:58. > :20:03.Yes, he was a non-dancer, but my mum knew his family
:20:04. > :20:06.because my auntie was a dancer as well, and they basically knew
:20:07. > :20:08.each other through his sister, fell in love, and wanted
:20:09. > :20:13.They must be enormously proud of your success.
:20:14. > :20:16.Oh, yes, they have got the glitter ball on the mantelpiece in Grimsby.
:20:17. > :20:19.Of course now you have got a new role appearing on stage
:20:20. > :20:26.It's amazing, this is a childhood dream.
:20:27. > :20:30.I wanted to do musical theatre as a kid, and I did have
:20:31. > :20:33.singing and acting lessons when I was still in Grimsby.
:20:34. > :20:37.But then I decided to just go with the dancing and not
:20:38. > :20:40.to musical theatre school, so I went with the dancing,
:20:41. > :20:43.I moved over to Italy and studied there for 14 years,
:20:44. > :20:46.came back to do Strictly, and then I thought I would take up
:20:47. > :20:50.I have been doing it since 2014, having private lessons.
:20:51. > :20:53.I have done two smaller musicals while I have been back in England,
:20:54. > :20:57.but this is my first big UK tour, and it is just everything
:20:58. > :21:05.One final question, what is Craig Revelhorne
:21:06. > :21:29.Do you like a dance? I do, I like a good number.
:21:30. > :21:34.We'll talk later about that. I have seen you on the dance floor.
:21:35. > :21:38.I thought I was bad! An absolute shocker.
:21:39. > :21:41.I think you both would look fabulous in lycra.
:21:42. > :21:50.Let me show you that three pictures that have come in in the last 24
:21:51. > :22:00.hours. This is looking towards York Minster. Thank you for that. The
:22:01. > :22:02.bluebells are out. I bet Harry wishes he was hit with that sunrise
:22:03. > :22:11.in Scarborough, absolutely beautiful.
:22:12. > :22:22.Do send us your pictures. We have got a new Instagram address.
:22:23. > :22:28.Let's show you the headline for the next 24-hour. Rather cloudy and
:22:29. > :22:32.mild. Milder air is on its way temporarily. This is Saturday's
:22:33. > :22:37.chart, somewhat cooler air behind theirs. A night frost on Saturday
:22:38. > :22:40.night, and next week we get a proper northerly and there will be
:22:41. > :22:46.widespread frost. The showers next week could be wintry, with even some
:22:47. > :22:52.sleet or snow. That is next week, not now. We are looking at the clout
:22:53. > :22:56.that has been pushing down slowly, it is moving slowly south eastwards,
:22:57. > :23:03.but it may well bring some light rain or drizzle to the Yorkshire
:23:04. > :23:06.Dales. Pretty quiet overnight with a light breeze. Patchy light rain or
:23:07. > :23:10.drizzle developing, especially later. They could be some misty nets
:23:11. > :23:17.over the top of the Yorkshire Dales, and we will see temperatures,
:23:18. > :23:23.certainly frost free in Thirsk and Bradford. So, the sun rises at
:23:24. > :23:36.5:55am. It is a slow start in the morning.
:23:37. > :23:41.The cloud they can asked to produce a little drizzle in places. That
:23:42. > :23:46.weather front moves southwards, misty nets over the hills at first,
:23:47. > :23:49.and gradually improving food the morning, leaving a generally dry
:23:50. > :23:52.afternoon, but hopefully some writers bells coming through at
:23:53. > :23:58.times. The breeze will be in the West. Dash-macro some writers bells.
:23:59. > :24:09.Temperatures not looking too bad at all.
:24:10. > :24:15.Friday, another fairly quiet day, quite breezy from the north-west,
:24:16. > :24:20.but a dry day, Rather cloudy with brighter spells coming through.
:24:21. > :24:25.Cooler but brighter conditions over the weekend with some sunshine,
:24:26. > :24:26.variable cloud, and proper cold air coming next week.
:24:27. > :24:39.Thank you. I view dancing? Are you asking?
:24:40. > :24:44.I'm asking. Well, I can't refuse. Good night!