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The Dutch Foreign Minister, Stef Blok, says it is important for the Netherlands that a Brexit agreement is reached.

"We are doing our utmost because we have to. We are one of the largest exporters to the UK, we are the main point of entry to Europe for British goods, for British citizens. We are not without hope that we can in the end avoid a no-deal Brexit. It isn't the 29th of March yet, but the clock is ticking on."

Facebook says it is "aware that some people are currently having trouble accessing the Facebook family of apps. We’re working to resolve the issue as soon as possible".

Sterling has moved higher as currency traders look towards another Commons vote on Brexit, with MPs voting on whether to rule out a no-deal Brexit.

The pound was up over 1% versus the US dollar at $1.321 at the London market close, and up a similar amount against the euro at 1.169 euro.

Despite the ongoing uncertainty around Brexit, the London stock market has just about eked out a positive finish.

At the close of trade the FTSE index of bluechip stocks was up 8 points, or 0.11%, at 7,159.19.

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HMRC announced as part of the Spring Statement that it received information on 5.67 million offshore bank accounts in 2018, more than treble the 1.63 million accounts it received information on in 2017.

Clive Gawthorpe, partner at accountants UHY Hacker Young, said: “HMRC is making it clear that if you have an offshore bank account, you are firmly in its sights.”

“The only thing holding them back is how long it will take to deal with six million bank accounts, work out which ones are legitimate, and which are involved in criminal tax evasion.”

“There is no longer anywhere to hide for UK citizens with undeclared offshore assets."

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Jonathan White, UK head of infrastructure, building and construction at KPMG, said: “Firms will welcome the chancellor’s review of how we fund Britain’s infrastructure projects, not least for the government’s commitment to being more flexible in the way they are financed.

"The UK has led the way on financing models in the past and the consultation will put the onus on businesses in the sector to help find new ways of fuelling investment in infrastructure. This in turn will have a real benefit for the infrastructure market and help to attract investment into the UK. Everyone benefits if the industry has more certainty about the way in which projects will be funded and structured in the future.

"Meanwhile, it seems as though transport and energy are set to be priority areas, which chimes with some of the country’s most pressing needs."

Sports Direct raises stake in Game Digital to 28.43% from 25.75%.

In early afternoon trade in New York,, the Dow is ahead by 0.60%, the S&P by 0.78%, and Nasdaq by 0.84%.

Police forces in England are to be given money to pay for overtime to tackle knife crimes.

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One of the biggest stories this week, the crashing of a Boeing 737 Max 8 plane in Ethiopia, has not gone away, with fresh developments each day.

Now Canada's Transport Minister Marc Garneau is to restrict the commercial use of Boeing 737 Max 8 and 9 jets from arriving, departing or overflying Canadian airspace.

He says it is based on new information received on Wednesday.

Air Canada and rival WestJet Airlines operate a total of 37 Boeing 737 MAX jets.

"The government’s decision to renew the Affordable Housing Guarantee scheme is a welcome announcement, this initiative will support the building of more desperately needed social and affordable homes," said Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter.

“While this is good news, it has to be noted that we can’t deliver social housing on the scale we need on borrowing alone. 3.1 million social homes are needed in the next 20 years to tackle the housing crisis at its root and lift thousands of families out of homelessness.

"We need much more grant funding for social housing in this year’s spending review to get a grip on our ever growing housing emergency."

Conservative Edward Leigh asks for confirmation that, regardless of the vote this evening, the government will not take no deal completely off the table.

"Otherwise how will we get a better deal," he says.

Michael Gove tells MPs that he will vote for the motion tonight but notes that it does not take the no deal option off the table entirely.

That can only be done by revoking Article 50 or approving a deal, he says.

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Reacting to the Spring Statement,. Rain Newton-Smith, CBI Chief Economist, said: "Against a hugely uncertain political backdrop the Chancellor has made an admirable attempt to set out a long-term vision for the UK economy, yet remains shackled by Brexit.

"This year’s forecast downgrade brings the danger of no deal to the UK economy sharply into view. It must be avoided."

Tom Kibasi, Director of IPPR, a left-leaning think tank, points out that high employment doesn't always mean high wages or secure work.

No-deal Brexit debate about to get under way

The Spring Statement is over and MPs are about to begin debating whether the UK should leave the EU without a deal, ahead of this evening's vote.

Paul Hodges, chairman of ReadyforBrexit, a consultancy set up to advise small businesses on Brexit, says it would have been nice for businesses to have been asked about tariffs before this slew of planned new ones.

“If any one in business still thought they were going to get proper guidance any time soon from politicians on what they need to do to ready themselves for Brexit, they must now realise that they are being left totally on their own," he says.

But the main thing is all the other work that needs to be doe, he says.

The borrowing forecasts by the Office for Budget Responsibility give Philip Hammond an extra £11bn of spending power.

However, KPMG says the money won't go far enough in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

“The much anticipated Spending Review will have room for governmental spending to rise by 3% if Brexit goes smoothly and if the Chancellor decides to spend all of his savings pot. That will be better than he’s promised so far, but may not be enough to address UK twin challenges of low productivity and inequality completely," says KPMG chief economist Yael Selfin.

Whose assessment is best? Is the Chancellor being conservative in his predictions, asks Professor Costas Milas of the University of Liverpool.