MPs have been returning to Westminster following last week's election. There are new school vibes aplenty as the 2019 intake got to grips with Parliament's procedures and protocol.

Here's what happened today:

• In a minor reshuffle, Boris Johnson reappointed Nicky Morgan as culture secretary - she stepped down as an MP in last month's election but was made a Tory peer so she could continue in her government role. Simon Hart was also made Welsh secretary. Never heard of him? Here's a speedy bio.
• The prime minister also addressed his 109 new Tory MPs in Westminster Hall, thanking them for their "incredible achievement" in changing the political map of the country. He reiterated: "We must repay the trust of the electorate, that's what we're going to do. Flat out, after Christmas."
• Labour's Emily Thornberry has begun legal action against a former colleague who claimed that she called some Leave voters "stupid". She said Caroline Flint's claim she had told an MP from a Leave-voting area "I am glad my constituents aren't as stupid as yours" was "a complete lie". Ms Flint, who lost her seat at the election, has stood by her remarks. Read the full story here.
• In Labour leadership news, Sadiq Khan ruled himself out of the race, saying he is more interested in his current job of Mayor of London. Labour MPs Lisa Nandy and Clive Lewis say they're considering running, but no-one has officially thrown their hat into the ring. Here we discuss the likely contenders.
• Elsewhere, there's been a day of talks between Northern Ireland's five biggest parties and the NI Secretary Julian Smith, with the aim of restoring the Stormont Assembly. Mr Smith said so far the meetings had been "positive" and there's a recognition that voters have had enough of the Stormont stasis, which has gone on for almost three years. Read today's full story here and recap on why NI doesn't have a government here.

• And finally, the PM's official spokesman confirmed that Boris Johnson has now cleared a much-anticipated report into Russian covert actions in the UK for release. Our security correspondent Gordon Corera explains what's in the report and why it matters.

Thanks for joining us today. Tomorrow, MPs will be sworn into the House of Commons. See you then.

As we heard earlier, Boris Johnson spoke to his MPs in Westminster Hall and they posed for a photo.

Now, the prime minister has been spotted celebrating with his colleagues - and, as captured by the MP for Walsall North, his predecessor Theresa May.

We've just been told of some other more minor government appointments:

• Anne-Marie Trevelyan will become a minister at the Ministry of Defence
• Jeremy Quin will become a parliamentary secretary at the Cabinet Office
• David TC Davies will become a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Wales Office and an assistant government whip
• James Heappey will become a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Ministry of Defence
• Kevin Foster will become a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Home Office
• Robin Walker will become a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Northern Ireland Office solely

And the following have left government:

• Mark Lancaster, previously a minister at the Ministry of Defence
• Nick Hurd, previously a minister at the Northern Ireland Office
• Seema Kennedy OBE, previously a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Home Office
• Colin Clark, previously a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Scotland Office and government whip

Chris Morris
BBC Reality Check

Boris Johnson is promising to do all sorts of trade deals after Brexit, including one with the United States.

But most pressing of all is sorting out a new relationship with the European Union, by far the UK’s largest trading partner.

The prime minister has promised to do that by the end of next year, which is a very ambitious timetable for negotiating and ratifying a trade agreement of such size and complexity.

The negotiations will take place during the post-Brexit transition period, when the UK will remain in the EU’s customs union and single market.

And Mr Johnson has guaranteed that the transition will not be extended beyond December 2020 – hence the tight deadlines.

Expect to hear a lot about a basic "zero tariffs zero quotas" trade deal, which could in theory be done quite quickly, as long as the prime minister agreed to the EU’s terms - to align with rules made in Brussels on social and environmental policy and on things like state aid for business.

If Mr Johnson wants to diverge from those rules, as he insists, an agreement becomes more difficult.

And even if such a deal were to be done, it would cover only goods and not services, which form a larger part of the UK economy. It would also not provide the completely frictionless trade that many companies that do business with Europe rely on at the moment.

So when the prime minister comes to focus on the detail of his trade policy, he has some big choices to make. He may find he can’t have his cake and eat it.

In an unexpected turn for a political live page, football legend Brian Clough is trending on Twitter... because a lot of people think he looks strikingly similar to the newly appointed Welsh Secretary Simon Hart.

Clough, who died in 2004, managed Hartlepool, Derby, Brighton, Leeds and Nottingham Forest. He also won the league cup four times.

Judge the similarity for yourselves...

Image source, Getty Images

Image source, Getty Images

The prime minister has just welcomed new Conservative MPs to the Houses of Parliament.

Addressing 109 new Tory MPs "from every part of the United Kingdom" in Westminster Hall, he thanked them for their "incredible achievement" in changing the political map of the country.

He pledged to deliver for all people and change the country for the better, telling his new colleagues: "We must repay the trust of the electorate, that's what we're going to do. Flat out, after Christmas."

But he also highlighted the government's intention to bring the Withdrawal Agreement Bill - the legislation that will enable Brexit to happen - back to the Commons before Christmas.

Glenn Campbell
BBC Scotland Political Correspondent

Image source, UK Parliament

Breaking away from reshuffle news for a minute, Scottish Labour's deputy Lesley Laird says she is stepping down from her role after losing her seat in the election.

In a statement, the former MP for Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath urged a period of “calm reflection” and kindness.

She also warns colleagues to stop “washing our differences” in public through “self-promotional or destabilising” briefings to the media.

Ms Laird, who served as shadow Scottish secretary in the last Parliament, lost her seat to a candidate who had been suspended by the SNP over controversial social media posts.

Reacting to the announcement that she'll be staying on as Culture Secretary - this time as a peer in the Lords, rather than an MP in the Commons - Nicky Morgan tweets:

Meanwhile, tweeting about her appointment, external, Liberal Democrat culture spokeswoman Layla Moran says: "Que? This is why need reform of the House of Lords. Lib Dems would create an elected upper house where this kind of sycophancy wouldn't be rewarded."

And Labour MP Chris Bryant, a former shadow culture secretary, tweets, external: "It stinks. You abandon your constituents, eschew the tough work of representing a constituency but remain in the cabinet. That really is two fingers up to democracy."

Nicky Morgan's reappointment as culture secretary may not last long, says our political editor, as a bigger reshuffle is expected in February.

Image source, Getty Images

As expected, Boris Johnson has addressed his new Conservative MPs, telling them they have changed the party for the better.

Our political correspondent has snapped them at a photocall in Westminster Hall.

New MP for North Devon, Selaine Saxby, has also shared a photograph of the moment.

The new Welsh Secretary, Simon Hart, has said it's great to have the opportunity to serve in cabinet.

Speaking as he left the Cabinet Office this evening, he said: "It's great to have this opportunity. I've got my orders and I'm going to try and do it as best I can."

Image source, Getty Images

Nicky Morgan's reappointment to her cabinet position comes despite her decision to stand down as an MP. She will instead become a peer, as convention dictates that government ministers must be a member of one of the Houses of Parliament.

Ms Morgan resigned as an MP when the election was called, citing the abuse she faced and the "clear impact" her role had on her family.

As a Remain supporter, there had been speculation she disagreed with Boris Johnson's Brexit stance, but she told BBC Radio Leicester she wanted to make clear she was not standing down "for any reasons of disagreement with the prime minister or the direction of the government at all".

She continued to campaign for her party throughout the campaign.

Ms Morgan was first made Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport when Mr Johnson became prime minister in July.

Read more about today's minor cabinet reshuffle.

Image source, Reuters

Simon Hart, the new Welsh Secretary, succeeds Alun Cairns, who resigned at the start of the campaign amid a row over what he knew about an aide's role in the collapse of a rape trial.

The Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire MP is being promoted from a junior ministerial post in the Cabinet Office.

Mr Hart came to Parliament with a background in rural affairs as chief executive of the Countryside Alliance and a former master of the South Pembrokeshire Hunt.

A chartered surveyor by profession, he served on the backbenches until July when Boris Johnson took power and appointed him as a junior minister at the Cabinet Office.

Read more from BBC Wales.

Nicky Morgan has been confirmed as Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

She will be made a Tory peer.

Image source, Reuters

The British and Irish governments will work “night and day” over the next few weeks to restore devolution, Tanaiste Simon Coveney has said.

The Irish deputy prime minister was speaking after a meeting with Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith at Stormont.

Fresh efforts are being made to restore the Northern Ireland Assembly, with the five main parties engaged in new talks.

The Northern Ireland Assembly has been inactive since January 2017, when its two biggest parties, the DUP and Sinn Féin, split in a bitter row.

Mr Coveney said there would be “intensive” discussions between the five parties over the course of this week.

He will hold his own meetings with them on Monday night and Tuesday, ahead of a roundtable discussion scheduled for Wednesday.

He said the two governments did not “want to bounce” the parties into an agreement – but said they had been discussing the same issues for many months now.

“This is not about trying to force the parties into a space they don’t want to move into,” he added.

“But we’ve had a reality check with the nurses’ strike, and I think it’s a reminder to everyone that now is the time to get this done.”

Nurses in Northern Ireland have been striking for their pay to be bought into line with that of their colleagues in the rest of the UK.

And here it is. Conservative MP Simon Hart is the new Secretary of State for Wales.

The post was left vacant after the resignation of Alun Cairns at the start of the election campaign.

Mr Hart tried to rubbish rumours of his imminent appointment earlier, but it turns out they were true.

We've been waiting all day for the mini reshuffle of the cabinet and it sounds like it's coming, finally...

Image source, Reuters

Senior members of the pro-Brexit European Research Group of Tory MPs have spoken following a meeting with the chief whip.

Leaving Downing St this evening, MP Mark Francois said: "We were talking about some of the arrangements for later in the week."

He said the group was "utterly supportive" of the prime minister because, in supporting Brexit, he was backing the policy they had campaigned for "collectively for most of our adult lives".

"We're now going to leave the European Union, so the view of the ERG is that he's actually played a bit of a blinder."

Bernard Jenkin MP said he'd had a "very positive" meeting with the chief whip and "we're all on the same page."

Image source, Reuters

We learned earlier from the PM's official spokesman that Boris Johnson has now cleared a report into Russian covert actions in the UK - particularly in the country's democratic system - for release.

A row broke out during the election campaign when it was blocked from publication - the government insisted holding it back was "perfectly normal" but critics accused them of stalling to avoid negative publicity.

Our security correspondent Gordon Corera explains what's in the report and why it matters.