General election: High Court to hear legal challenge against TV debate excluding some party leaders

The Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party (SNP) are launching legal action against ITV for their leaders being excluded from election debates.

Their case will be heard in the High Court on Monday, ahead of a planned head-to-head between the Conservatives' Boris Johnson and Labour's Jeremy Corbyn on ITV on Tuesday.

Ian Blackford, the SNP's Westminster leader, claimed not including other party leaders was depriving voters of the chance to make their own decisions.

"Our politics have a plurality to them. We are the third party in Westminster, we're the party of government in Scotland, we've won every election in Scotland over the course of the last few years," he told Kay Burley @ Breakfast.

"Many people that are not heavily engaged in politics will make their minds up based on those debates.

"It's simply not on that there is a stitch up that the Conservative and Labour leaders are represented on this programme, and the party that leads in Scotland is not being represented."

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Lib Dem President Sal Brinton also complained leader Jo Swinson was being excluded from the BBC's TV debate.

She said the move was "clearly unlawful", adding: "Voters of this country deserve to hear from a Remainer on the debate stage, not just from the two men who want to deliver Brexit."

A YouGov poll last week found 53% of the public backed Ms Swinson being invited to the main televised debate between Mr Johnson and Mr Corbyn, versus 26% who feel she should not.

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