These are the policy pledges and stances of the parties who could be in the mix to form a coalition after the General Election on 7 May.
The main parties:
The Conservatives
Health: Ring-fence the NHS budget and meet the health service's funding needs in full by providing £8bn a year of funding by 2020.
Immigration: Four years before migrants can claim benefits like tax credits.
Education: Protecting schools budget and creating three million apprenticeships
Housing: 100,000 new homes for first-time buyers and extending Help to Buy to 2020.
Energy: Backing for nuclear power and shale gas extraction.
Welfare: Freezing working-age benefits for two years from April 2015 and lowering benefits cap to £23,000.
Inheritance Tax: Family homes will be taken out of inheritance tax by introducing a new allowance which effectively increases the threshold for tax to £1m.
Tax: Pledge to raise income tax threshold to £12,500.
Defence: After severe cuts, no more reductions in the size of the regular Army. Trident to remain.
EU Referendum: Pledged an in-out referendum in 2017.
Transport: Rail fares frozen in real terms for five years.
Volunteering: Fifteen million people will be able to take three days' paid leave a year to do voluntary work
Labour
Health: Guaranteed GP appointment within 48 hours, a dedicated midwife before and after childbirth, and prioritise mental health issues. Extra £2.5bn a year funded through 'mansion tax'.
Immigration: New migrants to get no benefits for at least two years and tougher border controls.
Education: A drop in the tuition fee ceiling from £9,000 to £6,000 annually.
Housing: Building 200,000 homes each year by 2020, with rent reforms banning letting fees.
Energy: Freezing gas and electricity bills until 2017 and reform the energy market.
Welfare: Give working parents 25 hours of free weekly childcare for three- and four-year-olds.
Tax: Will scrap non-dom status. Also plans to crackdown on tax-dodgers, hoping to cut avoidance and evasion by at least £7.5bn a year.
Defence: A commitment to renewing the Trident nuclear deterrent.
EU Referendum: No referendum pledge unless significant treaty change proposed by EU.
Economy: The minimum wage would rise to £8 an hour over the next five years
Liberal Democrats
Health: Extra £1bn each year for the NHS with a priority on mental health
Immigration: Exit checks at borders and English language tests for Jobseekers' Allowance
Defence: Push to reduce the number of Trident nuclear submarines
Education: Guaranteed qualified teachers, with a curriculum set by independent experts
Housing: Build 300,000 houses a year by 2020 and cap rent increases. A Help to Rent scheme to help young people leave home with a government-backed loan. A Rent to Own scheme in which first-time buyers can build up a share in their home through renting
Welfare: Withdraw free TV licence and Winter Fuel Payment from 40% taxpayers and a ‘yellow card’ system for benefit claimants who break rules
Tax: Have set out their tax plans, promising "light at the end of the tunnel" with moves to eliminate Britain's deficit by 2017/18.
Energy: Legal targets for clean air and water to be introduced, plus a full charging network for electric cars
EU Referendum: Support a referendum on whether Britain remains an EU member next time there is a large new treaty proposal. Support Britain remaining in the EU
Online privacy: A Digital Rights Bill to protect people's data
SNP
Immigration: Supports a Canadian-style citizenship system to attract high-skilled immigrants
Health: Cut NHS bosses by a quarter and meet the £8bn funding requirement through increases in government spending
Defence: Campaign for the removal of Trident submarines from Scotland
Education: Keep tuition fees at zero in Scotland and build and refurbish schools
Housing: Oppose the bedroom tax and help to build new homes
Welfare: Extend paternity leave while protecting benefits for older people in Scotland
Energy: Wants better support for marine renewables and a nuclear-free future
EU Referendum: Wants Scotland to have a veto over a future referendum on EU membership
Economy: Increase minimum wage to £8.70 per hour by 2020
Plaid Cymru
Immigration: Push for the closure of detention centres and allow asylum seekers to work in Wales while waiting for case decisions
Health: Hire 1,000 doctors in Wales and increase research and development funding
Defence: Pass an act to support health of military personnel
Education: Compulsory foreign language GCSE and teach more Welsh history and culture
Housing: Written tenancy agreements to be compulsory. Oppose the bedroom tax. A VAT cut for the construction industry to 5%
Welfare: Living pension for those aged 80 or over, and no means testing for child-related benefits
Energy: Reduce emissions by 40% below 1990 levels by 2020. Opposition to nuclear power stations in Wales
EU Referendum: Agreement with the SNP that each UK nation should have its own vote
UKIP
Immigration: Australian-style points policy system and a priority lane for UK passport holders
Health: £3bn extra each year for the NHS paid for by EU withdrawal. Visitors and migrants must have medical insurance
Defence: Deport any migrant who has committed a terrorist act, create a Veterans Department and spend 2% of GDP on defence
Education: Scrap sex education lessons for the under sevens and have more grammar schools
Housing: Protect greenbelt land and have local referenda for major planning decisions
Welfare: Child benefit for first two children only, increase Carers' Allowance, scrap bedroom tax
Energy: Abolish Department of Energy and Climate Change and scrap green energy subsidies
EU Referendum: Key policy is in-out EU referendum
Greens
Immigration: Non-dangerous illegal migrants allowed to stay in the UK if they have been here for five years or more
Health: End to all types of NHS privatisation and promotion of tobacco and alcohol products
Defence: Immediate and unconditional nuclear disarmament, limit military so adequate to ensure security "but no more"
Education: End performance-related pay, abolish SATS, and raise school starting age to six
Housing: Build 500,000 social rented homes by 2020 and scrap Right to Buy
Welfare: Citizens' Income of £72 a week paid whether someone is in work or not, ban zero-hours contracts and scrap welfare cap
Energy: Insulation for all, investment in renewable energy, and ruling out nuclear and gas power
EU Referendum: Referendum on membership is backed by the party
Transport: Cut rail fares by 10% and spend £30 a head on walking and cycling measures
And the other parties:
Respect
Immigration: "Colour-blind" points-based immigration system weighted to Commonwealth countries
Health: Raise pay for NHS staff and introduce free care for the elderly
Defence: Campaign against war, abandon Trident nuclear programme, and withdraw from NATO
Education: Abolish tuition fees and give free school meals to all children
Housing: Comprehensive programme of council house building and end to Right to Buy scheme for council homes
Welfare: Stop using Atos as benefit claim assessors, and introduce a living wage
Energy: Invest in alternative energy and support public investment in home insulation
EU Referendum: Hold an in-out referendum on Europe during the next parliament
Sinn Féin (Refuse to take their seats in Parliament)
Immigration: No policy position
Health: Wants extra money for health services and backs free at point of use NHS system
Defence: Party believes in Irish neutrality
Education: Supports the rights of the Irish language community in the education system
Housing: Opposes bedroom tax and wants a programme to build new homes
Welfare: Opposes austerity and the "welfare cuts agenda"
Energy: Opposes fracking and supports exploring alternative energy sources
EU Referendum: Wants separate referendum in Northern Ireland
Democratic Unionist Party
Immigration: Supports tightening immigration laws
Health: Increase care in the community while cutting hundreds of millions of pounds of alleged waste in the NHS
Defence: Wants a commitment to maintain defence spending
Education: Remove cap on number of students in Northern Ireland and create specialist technology institute
Housing: Introduce a register for private landlords, and fund new builds while maintaining existing social homes
Welfare: Simplify the social security system and pilot automatic payment of benefits
Energy: Aim to secure 40% of energy from renewable sources by 2020
EU Referendum: The party supports an EU referendum
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
Immigration: Ensure UK holds up its obligations to look after refugees, and have rational immigration debate
Health: Reduce reliance of accident and emergency services and focus on illness prevention
Defence: The party opposes Trident’s renewal
Education: Additional funding for children on free school meals and sex education in schools
Housing: Create a free and cheap insulation programme and put together an affordable homes programme to help first-time buyers to buy a home
Welfare: Repeal the bedroom tax
Energy: Develop a climate change act for Northern Ireland and invest in renewables
EU Referendum: Supports UK’s continued EU membership and opposes any membership referendum
Social Democratic and Labour Party
Immigration: Committed to international co-operation and the principle of free movement of citizens
Health: Has a plan for shorter waiting times and more hospital beds. Opposes privatisation
Defence: Will continue to vote against unnecessary military intervention abroad
Education: Improve parent choice for early years education with more funding for nurseries and primary schools
Housing: Supports increasing the supply of social housing. Wants a private landlord register
Welfare: Generally backs the welfare state to eradicate poverty
Energy: Sceptical about whether fracking should be allowed. Supports renewable energy investment
EU Referendum: Pro-Europe and against an in-out EU referendum
Ulster Unionist Party
Immigration: Zero-tolerance approach to racism coupled with a "transparent and fair" immigration policy
Health: Offer mental health solutions and improve access to GPs and support for the elderly
Defence: Secure implementation of military covenant in Northern Ireland and grow the reserve and cadet forces
Education: Supports a single education system for all religions
Housing: Wants a mortgage-relief scheme and incentives for house building
Welfare: Improve the accuracy of benefit eligibility assessments, and support the working poor
Energy: Increased penalties for fuel laundering and exploiting renewable energy sources
EU Referendum: Believes the relationship between the UK and EU should be reviewed and renegotiated
