Asked by foreign affairs committee chairman Crispin Blunt when he believed all diplomatic and other peaceful initiatives had been exhausted before the 2011 military intervention took place, Mr Blair says that political evolution is always preferable to revolution because of the "chaos" and instability that tends to happen when a long-standing regime is overthrown. 

He says he believes the use of force was largely inevitable in this case as the Gaddafi regime was unlikely to accommodate any change but he did try to effect change.

Mr Blair is asked about his links with Saif Gaddafi, one of Colonel Gaddafi's sons. 

He says that he met him once or twice, saying he is happy to "justify" such meetings and the wider benefits of engagement. 

He tells MPs that it was a "reasonable assumption", before the Arab Spring, took place, that Saif might play a key role in a future transition. 

However, he says he was under no illusion that, even if this did happen, Libya needed to be fundamentally transformed to make its governance "compatible with the 21st Century". 

Mr Blair makes clear at the start that he has no business interests in Libya and all his conversations over the country have related to its place in the world and the nornalisation of relations. 

He says the tragedy of the country is that it has huge commercial potential, with some "tremendous assets", adding that Tripoli was regarded in the 1970s as Dubai is now. 

Committee chairman Crispin Blunt opens by saying he wants to reflect on Mr Blair's "deal in the desert" with Colonel Gaddafi which paved the way for a wider international agreement on nuclear disarmament and an opening up of commercial links between the two countries, saying it was a "signal achievement" of his time in power.

Mr Blair agrees, saying that it was important to bring Libya "into the international community" and to ensure it was no longer isolated. 

He says that the decision was difficult but he believed that it was justified in terms of the UK's and international security. 

Tonyt Blair has arrived for his session and is welcomed by Tory chairman of the committee Crispin Blunt. The committee room is very crowded for the one-off session.

Tony Blair is the fourth person to give evidence in person to MPs during their Libya inquiry, external. Former foreign secretary William Hague and ex-defence secretary Liam Fox appeared earlier this month while Sir Dominic Asquith, a former UK ambassador to Libya and chairman of the British-Libya Business Council, kicked things off in October. 

Tony Blair’s appearance before MPs on the Foreign Affairs Committee today comes after he stood down from his role as Middle East peace envoy in May, a role he took role just hours after leaving Downing Street in 2007.

The chair of the committee, Conservative MP Crispin Blunt, recently told the Independent, external that the Mr Blair was responsible for a “reset” in relations with the country during his time as prime minister, which led to former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi being able to “buy himself out of a sanctions regime”.

MPs have been looking into UK relations with the country, particularly in the context of the government’s decision to join air strikes against the Gaddafi regime in 2011.   

Mr Blair has defended his decision to re-open diplomatic links with the country in 2004.

Lord Adonis, who chairs the government's National Infrastructure Commission says jobs and growth will be in "jeopardy" if there are further delays beyond summer 2016 on airport expansion.

He said he welcomed the fact the government has "accepted the case for an extra runway at Heathrow or Gatwick" and added it was "right" the government would complete work on the "environmental impact" by the next year.

Victoria Derbyshire

Conservative MP and London Mayoral candidate Zac Goldsmith says the government is now in "the right place" over airport expansion and the case for expanding Heathrow is "in tatters". 

He says he is proud of the role he has played in ensuring a new runway at the UK's busiest airport is "off the menu" and says he has lobbied ministers about the decision. 

Asked about the impact his pledge to quit as an MP if a third Heathrow runway was given the go-ahead, has had on the government's decision, he says he regrets making the pledge seven years ago but "promises matter" and there cannot be any wriggle room. 

However, he says the situation will be different if he is elected London mayor next year and he would not step down from that role. 

He adds that he would not be "particularly thrilled" at having to quit any role as there is a strong argument for staying in post to fight your corner. 

There is some useful background on Tony Blair and the UK's foreign policy in Libya in this story. The former PM is due to appear before the foreign affairs committee at 10:30 GMT.

UKIP Leader Nigel Farage has described the calls for Donald Trump to be banned from coming to the UK as "clearly a massively over the top reaction".

He said: "People want to ban Donald Trump. That strikes me as being a massive overreaction. Love him or hate him, Trump is now part of a democratic process in the West."

However, he did strike a cautionary note:

LBC

Nigel Farage says Angela Merkel has made a "disastrous error of judgement" by allowing in so many refugees but he says "it will take some doing" for her party to ditch her in Germany.

Moving onto the success of the National Front in France under Marine Le Pen he says "I've never been a fan of the National Front... it's been deeply anti-semetic".

She says Le Pen is "reaping the reward" of trying to "put the party on a sensible footing". He says if she became president the country would become a "mess" as he economic policy is far-left. 

LBC

Nigel Farage says UKIP is not "an extremist organisation that is against all of sort of people because of their religion or their colour... we are none of those things. We are a very very inclusive political party."

LBC

On David Cameron's threats to campaign to leave the European Union if his renegotiation demands aren't met, Mr Farage says "I don't really believe him when he says if I don't get anything I might campaign to leave, but - you know what - this is politics. You never know."

LBC

UKIP leader, Nigel Farage is on LBC in his weekly slot. 

Speaking about the row over the boxer Tyson Fury being nominated BBC's Sports Personality of the Year, Mr Farage says people "should be able to have their views".

He says "it's all going to backfire" and predicts Tyson Fury will win.

The UKIP leader says he does not support Fury's views and "wouldn't make abortion illegal,!" adding "social attitudes change over time".

He says the same of Donald Trump over his comments that Muslims should be banned from the US but adds that it would be wrong to ban him from the UK as he is part of a democratic process.

Negotiators at the Paris climate summit aim to wrap up a global agreement to curb global warming on Saturday - a day later than expected, hosts France said.

"Things are moving in the right direction," said French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who is chairing the summit.

But more compromise is needed if an agreement is to be reached, a BBC correspondent at the talks says.

A deal signed in Paris would come into being in 2020.

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The row over Donald's Trump's comments on banning Muslims from entering the US continues.

The UK e-petition, external to ban Mr Trump from entering the UK has reached over half a million signatures. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton said his comments were "dangerous" and "plays right into the hands of the terrorists".