Election debates agreement reached

Broadcasters say a deal over the TV election debates has been reached, with PM David Cameron taking part in one with seven party leaders but no head-to-head with Labour's Ed Miliband.

The live debate with the seven leaders will take place on ITV on 2 April, moderated by Julie Etchingham.

A debate on 16 April on the BBC will involve five opposition party leaders.

The PM and Mr Miliband will separately take part in a live question and answer programme on Channel 4 and Sky News.

The 90-minute programme presented by Jeremy Paxman and Kay Burley will take place on 26 March.

The BBC, ITV, Sky and Channel 4 said the announcement follows talks with the parties.

"Highly valued"

A spokesperson for the broadcasters said: "We're delighted that there will be a debate with all the party leaders during the election campaign. The debate on 2 April will build on the success of the 2010 TV debates which were so highly valued by viewers."

The debate involving opposition party leaders will be moderated by David Dimbleby.

It will feature Mr Miliband, UKIP's Nigel Farage, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon, Natalie Bennett from the Greens and Plaid Cymru's Leanne Wood. The BBC says it will ensure fair representation of the Northern Ireland parties, the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats to ensure impartiality.

There will also be a special Question Time on BBC One, a week before polling day, with David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg appearing separately on the programme to answer questions from a studio audience.

The prime minister previously said he would not participate in a debate after the start of the campaign on 30 March, but indicated he had signed up to a "formal offer" for a new format of TV election programmes, including the one multi-party debate.

The Labour leader, however, had challenged him to agree to the head-to-head debate, claiming the prime minister was going to "any lengths" to avoid it.

The schedule

• 26 March: Live question and answer programme on Channel 4 and Sky News featuring David Cameron and Ed Miliband, presented by Jeremy Paxman and Kay Burley

• 2 April: Debate with seven party leaders on ITV, moderated by Julie Etchingham

• 16 April: Debate between five opposition party leaders on the BBC, moderated by David Dimbleby

• 30 April: BBC Question Time programme with David Cameron, Ed Miliband and Nick Clegg, presented by David Dimbleby