Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

Theresa May has been urged to seek "retribution and justice" over Sir Philip Green's "plundering" of BHS.

The call was made by the chairman of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, Frank Field. Mr Field said Sir Philip should suffer punishment "way beyond losing his knighthood".

Mr Field said Mrs May now faced "a great challenge" to ensure Sir Philip Green's behaviour was "not tolerated".

He pointed out that Mrs May had promised to tackle corporate irresponsibility as part of her leadership bid.

Mr Field also raised the question of whether the Pensions Regulator now needs more powers and whether there should be an overhaul of corporate governance laws.

Commenting on the report by MPs on BHS, a government spokesperson said:

Susana Mendonca
BBC Radio London Political Reporter

Labour leadership candidate Owen Smith has told BBC Radio London that he's not interested in "internal little spats" between Labour MPs.

Mr Smith was responding to an accusation from former shadow minister Seema Malhotra that staff working for party leader Jeremy Corbyn and the shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, entered her office in the House of Commons without permission.

Speaking to the Vanessa Feltz Breakfast show this morning, Owen Smith said:

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Labour MP Frank Field alleges that Sir Philip Green is "much worse" than Robert Maxwell, the late media tycoon who took money from his companies' pension schemes to keep his businesses afloat.

The Work and Pensions Committee chairman argues that Sir Philip now "has it in his power to do things" about the plight of pensioners, adding: "Maxwell didn't have it in his power. The music stopped while there was no money there."

Today Programme
BBC Radio 4

Labour MP Frank Field, who chairs the Commons Work and Pensions Committee, has called on Sir Philip Green to "make good the pension deficit" for BHS staff.

A report by Mr Field's committee has said Sir Philip's failure to resolve BHS's £571m pension deficit was a major factor in the firm's demise.

Asked whether Sir Philip should "write a cheque" to cover the £571m deficit, Mr Field says the retailer's former owner should contribute "at least" that much.

"The deficit is growing," the MP tells BBC Radio 4's Today. People "will continue to suffer pension cuts if they are put into this lifeboat operation, the Pension Protection Fund, external".

Image source, Reuters

Sir Philip Green and others who "got rich" from BHS have been blamed for the retailer's collapse in what MPs called the "unacceptable face of capitalism".

A damning MPs' report, external found Sir Philip, the billionaire former owner of BHS, extracted large sums and left the business on "life support".

His failure to resolve BHS's £571m pension deficit was a major factor in the firm's demise, the report added.

Sir Philip vowed to MPs last month that he would sort out the pensions "mess".

Read more.

Theresa May has said the UK's exit from the European Union "must work for Northern Ireland" ahead of her first visit since becoming prime minister.

Mrs May will travel to Belfast later on Monday to meet Stormont's first and deputy first ministers.

Speaking before she left London, she said she viewed Northern Ireland as a "special and valued part" of the UK.

She added: "Peace and stability in Northern Ireland will always be of the highest priority for my government."

Read more.

Here's a summary of the political stories of the day:

Labour leadership challenger Owen Smith has criticised Jeremy Corbyn over intimidation and abuse of Labour MPs, claiming it has been effectively "licensed" since Mr Corbyn became leader. 

Chancellor Philip Hammond has signalled that he may "reset" economic policy, if necessary, in his Autumn Statement

Taoiseach Enda Kenny says there must be no "hard border" between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, post-Brexit

It has emerged that, for four days, cabinet minister Greg Clark was given the wrong job by mistake as Theresa May's new government was formed 

And Unite boss Len McCluskey has done an interview with the Guardian, external, in which he suggested MI5 could be using "dark practices" to "stir up trouble" for Jeremy Corbyn

Twitter continues to respond to the Guardian's interview with Len McCluskey, in which he suggests the security services might be behind abuse of Labour MPs on social media.

It's now sparked its own hashtag #CorbynSpyFilms ...

More than 40 female Labour MPs have signed a letter to Jeremy Corbyn calling on him to do more to condemn "threats, undue vilification, intimidation, abuse and vitriolic rhetoric" directed against MPs.

The letter, tweeted by Labour MP Paula Sherriff, external, notes that women are "disproportionately affected" and condemns "rape threats, death threats, smashed cars and bricks through windows".

It urges a "significant shift" in the party about the way it is dealt with and urges Mr Corbyn to condemn demonstrations outside MPs' offices and constituency surgeries, to "actively challenge" behaviour and to ensure "senior figures" are accountable for attendance at events where threatening behaviour or slogans are used.

"Jeremy, this is being done in your name," the letter ends.

Mr Corbyn earlier condemned harassment and urged people to "lower the temperature" of the debate.

The Labour leader, who launched his official re-election campaign on Thursday, said he had put in place a "very clear" code of conduct for how he and his supporters should behave during the two-month leadership contest - to be decided on 24 September.

Image source, Getty Images

Cabinet minister Greg Clark was given the wrong job by mistake during the appointment of Theresa May's new government, it has emerged. 

Mr Clark heads up the new Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy. 

He was also appointed President of the Board of Trade before officials realised International Trade Secretary, Liam Fox, should hold the title. 

Mr Clark lasted just four days in the historic role. 

Once officials realised the mistake, Mr Fox was formally appointed to the position at a meeting of the Privy Council.

Read more here

Unite leader Len McCluskey's comments in The Guardian, suggesting that the security services could be behind the abuse and intimidation of Labour MPs on social media, are now "trending" on Twitter.

The trade union has put out a statement saying: "He was making an observation based on his own experiences working in the trade union movement and of the fights people have had pursuing justice."

His comments have prompted some amusement on social media:

The SNP is the latest to publish membership figures, saying more than 4,000 people have joined the party in the wake of the Brexit vote - putting overall membership at 120,203.

Party spokesman Derek Mackay MSP said: "That membership has grown substantially since the EU referendum vote is testament to the strength of feeling in Scotland that we must not be dragged out Europe against our will - and the SNP in government will continue to explore every option to maintain our EU status."

All the main opposition parties at Westminster have seen a membership boost, since the EU referendum. 

The Lib Dems have seen an extra 17,500 members join, taking overall membership to 76,000, while Labour have added a hefty 129,726 members to their total.

Image source, PA

Unite trade union leader Len McCluskey has suggested in an interview with The Guardian, external, that the security services could be behind the abuse and intimidation of Labour MPs on social media.

Mr McCluskey claims MI5 could be using "dark practices" to "stir up trouble" for Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, arguing that spies had infiltrated trade unions in the past, and that the truth about it had been suppressed for 30 years, under the rule on keeping classified documents out of the public domain.  

A Whitehall source told the newspaper: "MI5 are focused on protecting the country and its people from the very real threat of terrorist attacks and would never -  and could never - engage in this type of activity."