Jeremy Corbyn has insisted he “absolutely” has the health and stamina to serve a five-year term as prime minister.
The Labour leader, 70, said he was “very healthy, very fit and very active” as the election campaign entered its final days.
Speaking to BBC Breakfast on Tuesday morning, Corbyn dismissed concerns he was personally unpopular with voters.
“It’s not a presidential election,” he said. “It’s a parliamentary election in which we elect members of parliament.
“I’m the leader of the Labour Party and I’m very proud to have that position.”
Asked about his age, Corbyn added: “I’ve travelled more than any other party leader in this election, I’ve attended more events than any other party leader in this election, and I’ve still not finished yet – we’ve got another two days to go, and I’ll be out on the road the whole time – right up till 10 o’clock on Thursday night.
“And I eat porridge every morning – if that’s a help.”
Boris Johnson today will tell supporters there is a “clear and present” danger of another hung parliament unless voters back the Conservatives on Thursday.
The prime minister, under fire for his apparent lack of empathy for a four-year-old boy left sleeping on a hospital floor, say the opposition parties need to gain just 12 seats to put Jeremy Corbyn in Downing Street.
“There are sophisticated and well-financed attempts under way to prevent a Conservative majority through tactical voting,” he will say.
“Jeremy Corbyn and his Lib Dem, nationalist and Green allies need only 12 more seats than last time to make Jeremy Corbyn prime minister and continue the chaos of a hung parliament.”
The opinion polls have consistently shown the Tories on course for an overall majority, but senior figures – including Johnson’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings – have warned the race is much tighter.
A leaked memo from Tory pollster Michael Brooks to campaign director Isaac Levido seen by The Daily Telegraph said the “major risk” for the party was “the belief that the Conservatives are indeed on course to win a comfortable majority”.
At the same time the Remain United campaign – which opposes Brexit – said polling it had commissioned from Savanta ComRes showed the Tory lead was down to 7%, which it projected would give them a majority of just two in the new parliament.