Image source, UK Parliament

David Lammy, who is covering PMQs for Keir Starmer today, gets to his feet in the Commons to cheers from the Labour backbenchers.

The deputy prime minister begins by explaining Starmer is on his way to Brazil for the COP conference. He also pays tribute to those impacted by the series of stabbings on the LNER train in Cambridgeshire over the weekend.

"We thanks our emergency services for their outstanding professionalism," Lammy says. He also recognises that Remembrance Sunday falls this weekend.

Brian Wheeler
Reporting from the House of Commons

Rishi Sunak is in the Commons for PMQs.

The former PM is rarely seen on the Tory benches at these sessions. He is all smiles as he chats with backbench colleagues.

His former deputy Oliver Dowden is in the row behind. Moral support for debutant James Cartlidge perhaps.

Although some Tories seem to be giving the session a miss. There are a few gaps on their benches as it’s about to get under way.

Sunak is trying to catch the Speaker’s eye to ask a question.

David Lammy and James Cartlidge are in the Commons, signalling the start of PMQs.

We'll bring you text updates of the pair's back and forth when it gets going, and you can also watch live at the top of the page.

Our political colleagues will also bring you analysis, so stick with us.

Peter Barnes
BBC political analyst

Image source, Reuters

The UK signed a treaty in May to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while preserving UK control of the Diego Garcia military base for at least 99 years.

A bill is passing through Parliament to implement the treaty in UK law. It’s already gone through the House of Commons.

On Tuesday, the bill had its second reading in the House of Lords and this passed, normally enough, without a vote. The next stage for the bill is committee stage but, unusually, the government pulled the motion to send the bill to committee.

Typically such motions pass without any discussion but the Conservatives had tabled an amendment to delay committee stage until the government had conducted a consultation of Chagossians about the impact of the treaty on them, and published a report. The government was apparently worried it would lose a vote on the amendment – they don’t have a majority in the House of Lords – so they withdrew the motion instead.

So now the bill is stuck. The government says the amendment would effectively have blocked it because it didn’t allow enough time to conduct a proper consultation, but they’ll need to find a way to convince enough members of the House of Lords to allow the bill to proceed.

Brian Wheeler
Reporting from the House of Commons

Kemi Badenoch sometimes likes to keep everyone guessing over the choice of a “deputy” to stand in for her at prime minister’s questions when the PM is away.

Robert Jenrick, seen by many as a potential leadership challenger to Badenoch, would no doubt have relished the chance to strut his stuff on the PMQs stage.

And as a shadow justice secretary, he is David Lammy’s opposite number on the Tory benches, even if he is not the shadow deputy prime minister.

But today, we understand, it is shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge who will get his turn in the spotlight.

That’s because the Conservatives will most likely want to put pressure on the government over the £3.4bn deal to hand over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius. This falls under Cartlidge’s brief because one of the islands, Diego Garcia, is home to a US-UK Military base.

The Tories scored a bit of a coup on Tuesday, when they forced the government to put legislation ratifying the Chagos deal on hold.

It came after Tory peer Lord Callanan tabled an amendment that would have made the government consult the Chagossians before going ahead.

Image source, Getty Images

At the Conservative Party conference in Manchester, Kemi Badenoch unveiled a big announcement - that the Tories would pledge to abolish stamp duty for primary residences in England and Northern Ireland.

Stamp duty raises a lot of money for the Treasury, so scrapping it would leave a gap in the public finances.

The IFS said that the direct cost of the Conservative policy might be around £10.5bn to £11bn in 2029-30, although the Tories' own estimate is about £9bn.

Badenoch also pressed Keir Starmer at PMQs last week on why the prime minister would not follow her party's plan to scrap stamp duty - to which the PM retaliated by hitting out at the Tories' record in government.

Separately, Badenoch has also hinted that her party would have a new economic "golden rule" - that half of savings made would be used to reduce the deficit and the other half being used to boost growth.

Image source, EPA

Shadow defence secretary James Cartlidge has just been named as Deputy PM David Lammy's opponent in the Commons ahead of PMQs.

Cartlidge has been the Conservative MP for South Suffolk since 2015.

Image source, Getty Images

We've told you all about Rachel Reeves's pre-Budget speech, but what about the actual Budget itself?

The chancellor's Autumn Budget statement will outline government plans for taxes, and also includes big decisions about spending on public services such as health, education and police.

The statement will be made to MPs in the House of Commons on Wednesday 26 November.

While we do not yet know specifically what will be included in this year's Budget, we got some indications yesterday with the chancellor vowing to do what is necessary - not what is popular - to protect families.

Labour pledged not to increase income tax, VAT or National Insurance in its election manifesto - but Reeves is widely expected to raise taxes in the face of weak growth and higher borrowing costs.

Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch responded to Rachel Reeves' speech by branding it "one long waffle bomb" and a "laundry list of excuses".

"She blamed everybody else for her own choices, her own decisions, her own failures," Badenoch added.

Badenoch accused Reeves of delivering "a masterclass in managed decline" that left business leaders and investors "confused" because "Labour doesn't have a plan to get Britain working".

You can watch a clip below of Badenoch's response.

Image source, Reuters

This is David Lammy's first time in the hotseat filling in for the prime minister during PMQs.

The last time a deputy prime minister stood in for Keir Starmer at the dispatch box on a Wednesday was when Angela Rayner filled the role.

Rayner resigned as deputy prime minister and housing secretary after admitting she did not pay enough tax on the purchase of a new home.

Her departure in early September triggered a cabinet reshuffle that saw Lammy replace her as Starmer's deputy.

Rachel Reeves repeatedly declined to rule out raising taxes in this month's Budget when she delivered an unusually timed Downing Street speech yesterday.

Labour pledged during the election not to hike income tax, VAT or National Insurance, but speculation has been mounting that could break that promise.

Reeves said on Tuesday she would prioritise "national interest" over political expedient decisions.

As well as blaming Brexit and previous Tory government policies, she said tariffs and lingering inflation had thrown up additional obstacles since last year's Budget.

She warned the UK would have to bring its national debt - sitting at £2.6tn - under control, adding that "we will all have to contribute to that effort".

Angus Thompson
Live reporter

Image source, PA Media

Welcome as we start our live coverage ahead of today's PMQs.

It's David Lammy's first time fielding questions for Keir Starmer during the Wednesday ritual, after he took over as deputy prime minister following Angela Rayner's departure over a stamp duty row in September.

Starmer is travelling to Brazil for the COP30 climate summit, and we don't yet know who the Conservatives have picked to grill Lammy.

Lines of attack are likely to focus on Rachel Reeves's pre-Budget speech on Tuesday that heightened speculation the chancellor is preparing to raise taxes.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accused her of "a masterclass in managed decline".

It follows a brief upset for Reeves over revelations she did not have a licence to rent out her residential property, leading to her letting agent taking the blame for the error on 30 October.

A mass stabbing on a London-bound train on Saturday also dominated the news agenda earlier in the week.

Let's bring you up to speed on the details ahead of the midday kick-off.