Zac Goldsmith acknowledges it is "probably true" that if a system of recall is in place MPs would "think twice about making undeliverable pledges", which in his view is not a bad thing.

Concluding, he argues that recall will "empower people to hold MPs to account" and "embolden us as a parliament".

Urging perspective, Zac Goldsmith says that to reach the point of recall 20% of 14,000 people would have to make a journey in person to sign a petition within an eight week period, so "there would have to be a very, very good reason" for doing so.

He also stresses that recall would rarely be used, telling MPs that in California, "the most active recall state in the US", only one governor in 100 years has been recalled.

Conservative Nick de Bois MP tweets, external: Excellent argument being made in Commons by @ZacGoldsmith for "Real Recall" amendments to the Bill before the House

Deputy Speaker Dame Dawn Primarolo asks Zac Goldsmith to sum up his remarks, noting that he has been speaking for more than 20 minutes. She says there are many other MPs wishing to speak in the debate.

But before that peers begin the day welcoming two new members to the House of Lords.

Baroness Smith of Newnham - a councillor in Cambridge - will join the Lib Dem benches; and Lord Cooper of Windrush - the former Conservatives' Director of Political Strategy, now with the opinion pollster Populus - will join the Conservatives.

Our live coverage of the House of Lords is about to begin.

Labour peers are sharpening the knives for Lord Freud, the under-fire Work and Pensions Minister, who is due to make his first appearance in the House of Lords since a recording of him emerged saying some disabled people are "not worth the full wage".

Labour has called for him to resign and there are plans to table a motion of no confidence in him in the House of Commons later this month.

Tory Charles Walker expresses concern about the 5% initial threshold being proposed by the Richmond MP, and suggests that instead it should be set at 10% of those who voted at the previous election. Zac Goldsmith stands by the 5% figure, but says he is open to MPs' amendments.

After an intervention from Labour MP Frank Dobson, Zac Goldsmith says it is "simply inconceivable" that the system he is proposing would be abused by vexatious campaigns, from minority groups or pressure groups for example.

The Sun newspaper's Steve Hawkes ‏tweets, external: Recall champion @ZacGoldsmith being grilled by Tories in the Chamber - the word was they would be the ones who support him !

Zac Goldsmith dismisses the government's recall bill as a "shabby pretence at reform", and urges that it is "profoundly" amended.

His goal is to put voters in charge and allow them to initiate the recall process, with enough checks and balances to prevent abuse, he explains. He objects to the government's proposals to put the trigger for a recall petition in the hands of MPs.

Conservative backbencher Heather Wheeler - who used to sit on the Standards Committee - calls for a "very high threshold" to trigger a recall to avoid "vexatious complaints" against MPs.

Zac Goldsmith says it is "unsustainable" that MPs are "inviolable" once elected until the time of the next election, noting that they can switch parties, refuse to attend parliament or "systematically break every promise they made" to get voted into Parliament. Mr Goldsmith notes that recall exists in 30 countries and five different continents, and welcomes that the government "finally accepts that".

The government and opposition front speeches have concluded, meaning the floor is now open to backbench MPs. First up is Zac Goldsmith, the Conservative MP for Richmond Park, who has devised a rival plan of recall, which he says will give constituents more power. He wants MPs to be recalled if 5% of voters in a constituency sign a "notice of intent to recall", and 20% then sign a "recall petition".

Plaid Cymru MP Jonathan Edwards asks the Labour front bench if it agrees that the devolved institutions in the UK should be allowed to bring in their own system of recall. Stephen Twigg says he understands there have been discussions in Scotland, and says it should be a matter for the devolved bodies.

Addressing the proposals by Conservative MP Zac Goldsmith to put the power of recall solely in the hands of voters, Stephen Twigg says that while the "simplicity" of it is "attractive" it could "give enormous power to well-funded and wealthy groups who could run concerted campaigns to pressure MPs to act in a certain way".

Plaid MP Jonathan Edwards tweets, external: Seems from Recall debate so far that neither Conservative or Labour front benches support a Recall system which fully empowers electors

Stephen Twigg says Labour supports recall, arguing that MPs "should be no different" from members of the public who face the sack for misconduct.

"If we're going to regain the trust of the people we cannot place ourselves outside or above this basic principle," he adds.

But the Labour front bencher cautions that the recall system must reflect the job of an MP: "For misconduct recall makes sense, for holding MPs to account for their voting record general elections are, in my opinion, the appropriate mechanism."

Mr Twigg informs the House that Labour will support the bill at second reading, but seek to strengthen it in committee.

UKIP MP Douglas Carswell MP tweets, external: Andrew Lansley MP wants lay members to decide if recall sld be triggered. Yes, Andrew. Those lay members are called constituents

Following an intervention, Stephen Twigg says he believes recall is a "correct mechanism for dealing with misconduct" but is "more questionable" for dealing with MPs' voting, and cautions that it could "undermine the independence" of MPs.

Shadow political and constitutional reform minister Stephen Twigg is addressing the Commons on behalf of Labour, and highlights voter anger and disenchantment with politicians and politics, citing the 2009 expenses scandal.