We're now hearing from Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall.

She says the decision to enact a means-tested winter fuel allowance was made "to fix the foundations of our economy" as one of the first steps to "rebuild Britain".

The past government was "spending like no tomorrow", she adds, mentioning the £22bn "black hole" in public finances - including overspends on the asylum system and transport budget.

Labour's Neil Duncan-Jordan says that he rejects "the crude attempt" by the Conservatives to "divide working people" by claiming that union pay rises are being funded by cuts to pensioners' winter fuel payments.

He says that many pensioners are not taking up the pension credit for which they are eligible. Some are not able to answer the many questions required to access the benefit, he says, and others are hesitant about the stigma associated with taking up the pensioner credit.

He calls on the government to think seriously about delaying this cut, forming a taskforce, and looking at ways to tackle pensioner poverty long-term.

We've just heard from Labour's Rachael Maskell, who told BBC Radio 4's Today programme this morning she will be abstaining in today's vote.

She says the government has to protect vulnerable pensioners and commends the efforts to get all 880,000 eligible for pension credit signed up.

Maskell warns of the risk of respiratory diseases if the elderly aren't supported and the impact this will have on the NHS.

"It is with my conscience that I cannot vote for these measures but I am determined to work with the government to find crucial mitigation," she tells the Commons.

"Lets delay and get this right. We can't afford not to."

The SNP's Kirsty Blackman calls scrapping the winter fuel allowance a "political choice" because they are "desperate to meet their self-imposed fiscal targets".

The government is "balancing the books on the backs of pensioners," she says.

This is a key test for Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar, she adds, adding that Sarwar had said there would be no austerity under Labour. "If that's what the Scottish Labour MPs were voted in on, how can they possibly back the government today?" she asks.

Blackman says this is not what the people of Scotland voted for, and "they will be devastated if their Scottish Labour MPs support the government today".

Tory MP Dr Caroline Johnson says that if winter fuel payments are taken away from vulnerable people, some elderly people will die as they won't be able to adequately heat their homes.

As the home temperature falls, risks increase, she says, adding that there's plenty of medical evidence on the effects of the cold weather on health.

She highlights the lack of an impact assessment by the government for the plans, saying that her "terrified constituents" know what the impact of the policy will be.

Next up is Labour's Andy MacNae who says there are many older people, including some in the Commons, who are happy to say that they do not need the winter fuel payment.

He underscores that the poorest pensioners will still get the payment and points to other government support in place for those at the margins of the threshold.

But none of these steps will address the fundamental issue of pensioner poverty, he says, adding that this should be a national embarrassment.

Tory MP Esther McVey says Labour is "so out of touch with the public", accusing the party of "breath-taking hypocrisy".

She says that the policy to cut winter fuel payments has nothing to do with economics, and everything to do with a cynical political calculation.

She asks: where is the government impact assessment on removing winter fuel payment from pensioners?

Labour MP Anna Dixon says that the Labour Party is not to blame for today's cut, and the former chancellor Jeremy Hunt and the Conservative Party that should take responsibility for the winter fuel payment cut proposed today.

Dixon says the previous government pursued what she calls a "scorched earth policy" when it came to the country's finances.

She says she's worried that some pensioners are going to be left in cold, damp and poorly insulated homes and she urges housing associations and local authorities to encourage eligible older people to apply for pension credit.

"This cut is simply wrong," says Liberal Democrat MP Wendy Chamberlain.

She says winter fuel payments provide vital support in the coldest months, and the chancellor's decision will leave two million people worried about how they will afford their energy bills.

"The way we treat the most vulnerable reflects who we are as a society," she adds.

Chamberlain says the Lib Dems will be voting with the opposition today.

Conservative Edward Leigh - the longest serving MP in the Commons - says he accepts that spending more and more every year on pensioners will eventually "bankrupt the country".

He says he is willing to have a debate about "why people like me" should get the winter fuel payment, but points to individuals who have "served their country" and will only just miss out on the payment. They will face hardship, he adds.

Leigh says the winter fuel change raises a question of public trust because it was not in Labour's manifesto, and says ministers are carrying out a "punishment beating" against pensioners.

He also says the £22bn budget shortfall described by Labour as a "black hole" is actually a relatively small amount of money, describing it as an "accounting device".

Dame Meg Hillier continues, highlighting the difficulties faced by those at the margins of the new thresholds for the winter fuel payment.

She says that "cliff edges" like this one need to be addressed by the government.

Hillier adds that that while she will be supporting today's cut, poverty needs to be tackled in the round, and she expects and trusts the government to enact new policy to do just that.

Hillier goes on to say 880,00 pensioners under the previous government didn't get pension credit who deserved it.

She adds that these pensioners have lost out on £3,900 a year because the last government "protected some pensioners and not all".

These are crocodile tears, she says, adding that this government is making sure the poorest pensioners get money.

Dame Meg Hillier, the new chair of the Treasury Select Committee, is speaking in the Commons now. She says the winter fuel cut is a difficult one, "sadly not the only" difficult decision which Labour will have to take - and points out that her husband is among those who will lose the benefit.

She takes an intervention from Tory MP Mark Francois, who says the winter fuel changes could increase pressures on the NHS if it impacts the health of the elderly.

Hillier points out that many of those who will lose the benefit are the same people already stuck on NHS waiting lists, and the government must find the money to address problems in the health service.

Stride concludes with an impassioned plea, asking the House to "look to your conscience" as they vote on today's motion to cut winter fuel payments.

"You know in your hearts" that the cuts will cause untold hardship for millions, he says.

He calls on MPs to join with the Conservatives and "put a stop to it".

The DUP's Jim Shannon tells the Commons that cutting the winter fuel payment doesn't conform with the Labour policies he's known in the past.

He says pensioners in his constituency of Strangford in Northern Ireland are worried that the threshold to be eligible to keep the fuel allowance is too low.

Mel Stride says he agrees with "every single word" Shannon says. He commends the Conservative party record on pensions and calls his party "the party of triple lock plus".

For context: Under an arrangement called the "triple lock", the state pension goes up each year by either 2.5%, inflation, or earnings growth - whichever is the highest figure.

Mel Stride continues. An intervening MP mentions the so-called £22bn "black hole" left by Tories and asks Stride if he will apologise.

The deputy speaker calls for order after a lively response to the remarks.

"All politics is about choices," says Stride, accusing Labour of caving into "trade union paymasters" on the backs of vulnerable pensioners.

For context: Government ministers have repeatedly used the £22bn figure to justify the decision to cut the winter fuel payment. BBC Verify has looked into the claim about the UK's public finances.

While the debate in the Commons gets under way, we've just heard there are no plans to expand the eligibility criteria for the winter fuel payment going forward, according to Downing Street.

The benefit will still be available to people in receipt of pension credit or other benefits, and No 10 is encouraging eligible pensioners to sign up.

Asked whether encouraging people who are eligible but not yet signed up for pension credit could wipe out the savings from restricting the allowance to the country's poorest pensioners, a No 10 spokeswoman said: "The issue is that this policy has not been targeted previously... in line with that as well, it is right that anyone eligible for income-related benefits or pension credit is receiving it, and that's why we're making efforts to ensure that those who are eligible are converted on to it."

The spokesperson would not be drawn on whether the prime minister has spoken directly to MPs about the policy ahead of the vote.

Stride describes the winter fuel policy as "absurd" and "shocking" and accuses the government of pushing it through without carrying out full economic and impact assessments.

He says the government's simultaneous drive to get eligible pensioners to sign up for pension credit will cost £3.8bn - over twice what the winter fuel cut is forecast to save.

Stride says the "haste with which this is being carried out is simply jaw-dropping".

The debate in the Commons begins with Mel Stride, the shadow secretary of state for work and pensions.

He says that the Conservatives are standing full square behind the elderly, who should have security and dignity in their later years.

Stride says Labour said they had no plans to make change to the winter fuel payment, but within a matter of short weeks, they have introduced this cut.

"Integrity and transparency have gone out of window," Stride says.

Little evidence unions have influenced Labour leaderspublished at 13:34 British Summer Time 10 September

13:34 BST 10 September

Iain Watson
Reporting from the TUC conference in Brighton

It seems the prime minister took two approaches in his speech today at the TUC conference.

First, to play to the audience in the room. He assured the crowd that workers' rights are on the way, with the new deal for working people to be unveiled next month.

And second, he spoke to the wider public - talking of pay and difficult decisions which lie ahead.

Though he didn't specifically mention the winter fuel payment, he said he won't apologise for those difficult decisions he had to make.

He stressed his party is pro-worker and pro-business. And his message of partnership may appeal to some people who voted Labour for the first time.

And while some unions have been vocal about differences they have with Labour's direction, so far there is little evidence that they have yet influenced Keir Starmer or Rachel Reeves.