Vince Cable

The first televised election debate kicks off on Channel 4 tonight, with a predictable focus on the state of the economy.

Alistair Darling, George Osborne and Vince Cable have kicked off the election campaign with a live televised debate on the economy which saw them trading blows on issues including the national debt, financial services regulation and long term care.

The Liberal Democrats have proposed creating a national infrastructure fund, open to institutional and retail investors, to replace Private Finance Initiatives (PFI).