Here’s a roundup of the key developments from the day: Since the introduction of the two-child policy – which limits benefits payments to the first two children born to the poorest households –exactly five years ago today, the fertility rate for third and subsequent children born to poorer families has barely fallen. Instead, the main impact of the policy has been to become the biggest single driver of child poverty. The financial pressures on many UK households and businesses have intensified today, as national insurance rates are lifted to raise funds for the NHS and social care. Despite the cost of living crisis, the government has pressed on with its manifesto-busting 1.25 percentage point rise in national insurance, announced last September. The increase in national insurance payments for millions of people already struggling to deal with the cost of living crisis is both right and fair, the health secretary has said. Sajid Javid said the levy of an extra 1.25 percentage points, due from Wednesday, was needed to pay for health and social care as a result of the Covid pandemic. Keir Starmer says the national insurance rise is “the wrong tax at the wrong time”. The Labour leader said: People are really, really struggling to pay their bills. And this is just going to impact on them very, very hard. Increasing national insurance for millions of workers is unfair and comes at the wrong time as the nation faces a cost-of-living crisis, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey has said. He told BBC Breakfast that “the NHS and the care system does need money but it needs to be done in a fair way”. Boris Johnson said he had “absolutely no problem” with hiking national insurance to help fund the NHS. He did, however, acknowledge households would face choices to help make ends meet. Rishi Sunak’s popularity with voters has plunged amid continuing debate over the government’s reaction to surging living costs, according to a poll. His net favourability was down 24 points since just before his spring statement on 23 March, to reach minus 29, the survey by YouGov found. Hospitals and ambulance services across England are under “enormous strain” fuelled by “heavy demand”, “severe” staff shortages and soaring Covid cases, health leaders have warned after NHS trusts covering millions of patients declared critical incidents. Dr Layla McCay, director of policy at the NHS Confederation, which represents the whole healthcare system, said the situation had become so serious that “all parts” of the health service were now becoming “weighed down”. The Scottish Conservatives today diverged from the Westminster party as they committed to voting for a ban on conversion practices – including a ban on trans conversion therapy – in forthcoming Holyrood legislation. Divisions in the Conservative party over the privatisation of Channel 4 are bursting into the open, with the plans likely to face a bumpy ride in parliament. After the government made the announcement, it became clear that privatisation plans were not sitting well, not only with media personalities but also with senior figures in the Conservative party. Sewage has become a major battleground in the local elections in so-called “blue wall” seats, where the Liberal Democrats are challenging the Conservatives, from Guildford to Cambridgeshire. The Lib Dems have put eliminating sewage dumps at the heart of their campaign, with the party leader, Ed Davey, launching their fight today in Wimbledon. Chronic worker shortages in the food and farming sector as a result of Brexit and the coronavirus pandemic could push food prices even higher and lead to more having to be imported, MPs have warned. Parliamentarians on the environment, food and rural affairs committee reported that the sector had half a million vacancies in August last year, representing an eighth of all roles. The government will unveil its long-awaited energy strategy tomorrow, with rising bills one of the main pressures on household finances. Boris Johnson told reporters in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, that there was a “limit to the amount of taxpayers’ money” that could be used to address the problem. The job of keeping the UK’s electricity and gas flowing will be returned to public control by 2024, under government plans for the effective nationalisation of a division of National Grid. A new public body, the “Future Systems Operator” will have responsibility for planning and managing energy distribution, with a focus on the challenges posed by decarbonisation. That’s it from me today. Thanks for joining me. For the latest news on Ukraine, follow our dedicated live blog: