United Kingdom

David Cameron is under pressure to start negotiations on TV election debates with the other party leaders after Labour and the Liberal Democrats accused him of trying to sabotage the programmes.

In the run-up to what has been billed as the most important piece of televised political theatre in Scotland’s history, Alex Salmond and Alistair Darling have been polishing their soundbites, honing arguments and rehearsing ad-libs.

The debate about when, how and where to stage prime ministerial debates at the next election has just taken another turn. YouTube, the Telegraph and the Guardian are making a joint bid to stage an online leaders' debate.

YouTube, the Daily Telegraph and the Guardian have announced they are making a joint bid to host a leaders' debate before next year's General Election. Such a debate, broadcast online, would be free of the rules on balance which broadcasters such as the BBC, ITV and Sky have to follow.

It would be "disgraceful" if all the hosts of the 2015 general election TV leaders' debates were white, Labour's shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan has said. In 2010 the three clashes between Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Cleggwere refereed by the BBC's David Dimbleby, ITV's Alastair Stewart

Broadcasters should consider a more diverse line-up of moderators to host future UK election debates, peers say. The three leaders' encounters in 2010 had been "disappointingly uniform" in terms of the gender and ethnicity of the anchors, a Lords committee said.

Ed Miliband last night demanded that Nigel Farage is barred from the leaders’ debates at next year’s General Election. His call came the day after Ukip leader Mr Farage trounced Nick Clegg in a second debate on Europe.

Sky News has confirmed it will broadcast live coverage of LBC’s ‘ Clegg vs Farage In Or Out Of The EU?’ debate on Wednesday 26th March.

Next year’s general election could feature four televised leaders’ debates, after Channel 4 said it had secured agreement from other broadcasters that it should be involved.

Channel 4 wants to host one of the televised party leader debates in the run-up to next year's UK general election for the first time - after feeling "excluded" from the 2010 broadcasts by the BBC, Sky and ITV.

Election debates should help people in deciding how to vote without necessarily "changing minds", the head of the organisation which organises US presidential debates has told peers. Janet Brown [ CPD] said debates must have "educational value" as well as being a major television news event.

Nick Clegg risks being shut out of TV debates ahead of the 2015 general election under Labour plans for a head-to-head battle between the only two men who can be Prime Minister. Labour said it wanted to see straight fight between David Cameron and Ed Miliband, in an apparent shift from previous