David Cameron has welcomed to Downing Street China's President Xi Jinping, who is on day two of his state visit to the UK.

The prime minister has said he will raise the issue of Chinese steel during talks with Mr Xi, amid job losses in the UK steel sector, with cheap Chinese imports among the factors being blamed.

Image source, Reuters

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

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An excited Tory MP who tried to ask the prime minister about electricity prices was cut off by the Speaker who did not allow the question to be answered. 

In a noisy House of Commons, John Bercow told Chris Philp: “We don't need to waste time on this, it has nothing to do with government policy."  

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Discussing the steel price, security minister John Hayes is asked what Europe has done to ameliorate Chinese steel dumping. Presenter Andrew Neil says China is selling 100 million tonnes a year of steel at below cost price which, he, says is now cheaper than a ton of cabbage.

Mr Hayes says it's a worldwide problem and the UK has been and will continue to press Europe on the issue.

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg says it's an "almost impossible" situation for the government which is restricted in terms of what it can do. But, politically, it has to be able to say something, she adds.

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David Cameron took a swipe at the stance of the Labour leader over nuclear weapons when questioned by a Tory MP. 

Iain Stewart cited Russia and North Korea, and said it was no time to campaign for nuclear disarmament. 

The prime minister mentioned the 1980s Back To The Future film series - which included a look forward to the future on 21 October 2015 - when he joked that Jeremy Corbyn should, according to Labour backbenchers, "get in his Delorean, go back to 1985, and stay there.” 

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David Cameron said the Crossrail project in London was using "almost exclusively British steel" when asked about a strategy for the industry. 

He set out plans to help the UK steel industry after job losses were announced at plants in western Scotland and northern England. 

He was responding to Jeremy Corbyn, who claimed it was time for the prime minister to "walk the walk rather than talk the talk about an industrial strategy".  

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John Hayes, security minister, says the PM made clear the Lords should be a revising chamber, and should not block financial matters such as the tax credits cuts.

Put to him there was no mention of tax credits in the Conservatives' election manifesto, Mr Hayes says the welfare reform programme - of £12bn cuts - was central to it "and that's part of this strategy".

BBC political editor Laura Kuenssberg, pictured above with the day's political guests on Daily Politics, says there's no indication of a government change on tax credit cuts. The Treasury is "digging in" but many think there will have to be some movement as the backlash from Tory MP grows.

She says there are two comparisons being made with the policy: the 10p tax rate fiasco, which saw Gordon Brown cave in, and George Osborne's child benefit cuts policy - when he stood firm despite opposition.

She thinks there may be "a shift in emphasis", such as raising the personal income tax threshold more quickly to compensate for the losses resulting from the cuts.

But, she says, it won't help a lot of people who stand to be affected by the cuts - and it is expensive to do.

House of Commons
Parliament

PMQs is over and Labour MP Geraint Davies is introducing his private members' bill on sugar content in food and drink. After a ten munite rule bill, MPs will debate the Cities and Local Government Devolution Bill - which is at the centre of George Osborne's plans for a Northern Powerhouse in England.

Click here to follow live coverage of the House of Commons from Westminster Live.

Labour MPs Anna Turley and Nic Dakin pressure the PM over job losses in the the steel industry, accusing the government of failing to protect the industry and questioning whether Mr Cameron will raise the issue of Chinese steel "dumping" with the country's president during his state visit to the UK.

"We will do everything we can to help", promises David Cameron. But he stresses the government "can't set the world price of steel" and says Labour must "engage" with the fact that the SSI plant has lost £600m "this Parliament".

He says he has begun discussions with Chinese President Xi, and then launches an attack on Labour, who he says oversaw a halving of steel production and employment when it was in office.

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Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn questions the prime minister on tax credits, highlighting Conservative divisions over the policy. 

David Cameron said it is part of a package including a higher living wage and tax reductions, and how he was "delighted" the measure was approved by MPs in Tuesday's vote.  

James Morris, Conservative MP, raises a question on extremism. He says the UK needs to redouble its "efforts to address the scourge of extremism". David Cameron responds by pointing out what the government is doing in this area. This is going to be the struggle of our generation," he tells MPs.