House of Lords
Parliament

The Lords begins shortly, when ministers face questions on: 

• the detention and execution of dual nationals in Iran
• reuniting of refugee children in the camps of Calais and Dunkirk with their families in the UK 
• ensuring tests set out by the Committee on Climate Change with regard to shale gas exploitation by fracking are met 
• ensuring a better service for all customers of Southern Rail. 

Peers will then complete report stage of the Cultural Property (Armed Conflicts) Bill.

That's followed by a motion to approve the Neighbourhood Planning (Referendums) (Amendment) Regulations 2016, and a debate on the report from the Committee on the Equality Act 2010 and Disability.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

News of Keith Vaz's resignation came ahead of his planned meeting with fellow members of the Home Affairs Committee. 

David Burrowes, a Conservative member of the committee, said Mr Vaz had done an "excellent job" as chairman but the newspaper allegations meant his resignation was inevitable. 

Labour leaders don't often get to hang out with pop legends - at least not since the days of Cool Britannia. 

Anyway, commentators have been having a bit of fun with Jeremy Corbyn's appearance alongside UB40. Here's a selection of Twitter comment. 

In the past hour, Jeremy Corbyn has appeared on stage with some of the founding members of UB40, who have endorsed his re-election bid.

Sadly the reggae band, who have sold 70 million records in a near forty-year career, did not perform Red, Red Wine with Mr Corbyn on backing vocals but they did all sit behind the same table. 

Discussing the challenge that free downloading of music presented to recording artists and the future of the music business, Mr Corbyn said Labour was considering how best to "protect" the incomes of up-and-coming musicians who weren't able to make large sums of money by touring.

Asked about Keith Vaz's resignation, Mr Corbyn said it was the Labour MP's decision and now it was time "to thank him for his work and move on".

Asked by the BBC's Ron Brown whether he intended to stay on as a member of Labour's National Executive Committee, the party's powerful ruling body - Keith Vaz replied "yes of course I'm going to stay". 

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Pressed on his plans for the NHS, Mr Smith says the UK should be spending as much as 10% of its annual GDP on the health service, in line with the European average.

The phone-in ends with Mr Smith saying he regrets comments he made during this year's Scottish election campaign when he tweeted pictures of a sweet shop in North Ayrshire and suggested an ideal gift for Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon would be "the world's biggest gobstopper". 

"Perhaps I shouldn't have said it," he concludes.  

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Mr Smith says Labour has been providing "weak opposition" not just under Jeremy Corbyn but under his predecessor Ed Miliband - with both men failing to provide a credible opposition and prospective alternative government. 

Labour faces another decade out of power if it doesn't change tack, he says, recalling the wilderness years between 1979 and 1997 and the fact that he was 28 year old before a Labour government was elected. 

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative MP for the City, Mark Field, rises to support the government's changes, specifically around taxing "carried interest" wholly as income.

Carried interest is the cut of profits — often one-fifth — that private equity managers share with their investors when deals come to fruition.

Historically, carried interest has been considered capital rather than income, which attracts a higher tax rate. This preferential treatment has attracted criticism from politicians on both sides of the Atlantic.

Mr Field argues the changes is "doing the right thing to reward genuine entrepreneurs" and preventing them become "effectively financiers" who sit on their money rather than take risks. 

House of Commons
Parliament

First up, there is a series of Labour amendments to prevent the cut to Capital Gains Tax (CGT) from 28% to 20%, and from 18% to 10% for basic-rate taxpayers.

CGT is charged on the annual profit made from the sale of assets - such as a business, a second home or shares - if that total profit is greater than an individual's current CGT allowance.  

Shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Rebecca Long-Bailey argues that "at a time when our public service are stretched to breaking point...it seems frankly obscene to give a tax break of £2.7bn to the richest people in our society".

Labour are also calling for a "broader review of Entrepreneur’s Relief" to see if it delivers value for money.

Green co-leader Jonathan Bartley and Breitbart commentator James Delingpole looked at Nazi references in UK politics today.

The pair debated with Daily Politics presenter Jo Coburn, who explained Godwin's Law, after Boris Johnson, Ken Livingstone and Paddy Ashdown invoked war-time references.

Conservative Peter Lilley and Green Caroline Lucas on UK preparations to leave the European Union.

They spoke to Jo Coburn on the Daily Politics about what preparations have been made, the timetable to leave, and the calls for a second vote on UK-EU relations after Brexit Secretary David Davis outlined the future direction for Britain.

The World at One
BBC Radio 4

Image source, PA

Owen Smith is taking calls from members of the public on the World at One. Asked about his call for a second EU referendum, he says we don't know what Brexit will mean and the public was "lied to" by Leave campaigners over more money for the NHS and "easy answers" on immigration. If Brexit is going to make life worse for working people, he says politicians should have the courage to call this out and seek a second vote either to "rubberstamp the deal or reject it". 

Mr Smith says the situation is "much more fluid" than the Conservatives are presenting and the government should be talking to other EU nations about the likely terms of trade after Brexit before triggering Article 50.

Another caller suggests that Owen Smith has less chance of becoming prime minister than Jeremt Corbyn since he is a "fervent supporter of liberal metropolitan values" which is out of step with most Labour voters The Labour MP says he does not recognise the description, saying he is deeply rooted in the working class community that he represents and has put forward a programme on the NHS, schools and housing which has been variously described as left-wing and radical.

Reflecting further, he says he would think of himself as a liberal but not as a metropolitan politician. 

Green Party leader Caroline Lucas and Labour's Peter Kyle debate electoral reform, but do not seem close to working together on an electoral pact.

The Brighton MP said voters want candidates who have policies in common to be "a bit wiser" at elections.

But her neighbouring Hove MP told her there were "red lines that your voters would not cross" and that voters would see an "Establishment stitch-up".

House of Commons
Parliament

Will Quince's bill passes without a vote.

MPs now move on to the final stages of the Finance Bill, which introduces measures announced in the 2016 Budget.

Today's debate will focus around changes to capital gains tax and insurance premium tax.

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative MP Will Quince is presenting his Ten Minute Rule Bill to introduce a statutory right to two weeks paid leave for parents who lose a child.

Mr Quince tells MPs that when he lost a child, who was stillborn in 2014, he was "extremely comforted" to know he would be granted two weeks paid leave under the paternity laws in the UK.

"However you are not entitled to leave if you lose a child or an older baby, surely that cannot be right."

"I have no idea how I would be able to deal with losing a child at seven months," he argues.

The change would allow employers to "recover some of their costs", he says.

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative MP Tom Pursglove suggests that it is "essential that the BBC give the same prominence to the regulator's response as to the original claims made".

Nick Hurd replies: "Panorama has served an extremely important function in this country in throwing a spotlight on important issues and throwing up challenging questions."

Yesterday's edition on Sellafield was "no exception to this rule".

House of Commons
Parliament

Shadow energy minister Barry Gardiner tells MPs that as recently as five days ago a formal notice was sent to the management raising concerns about "critical manning levels".

Is it true the cost estimates for the clean up of the site have increased from £25.2m to £47.9m? he asks.

He asks if there is "total confidence" in the Sellafield management, including Dr Rex Strong Head of Nuclear Safety at Sellafield and John Clarke, the chief executive of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority.

Nick Hurd replies that he has complete confidence in the management and regulatory teams, before adding that the national nuclear clean up cost is £2bn a year - including Sellafield.

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour MP Jamie Reed says he "welcomes the Panorama investigation".

"Visibility and accountability for the work there should be welcomed" and also "insisted upon".

He asks the government to give ONR the powers they have requested.

Mr Reed argues the "renewed focus" on Sellafield should be used as an opportunity to acknowledge Sellafield as a national asset, and turn it into a "centre of excellence for the nuclear industry".

House of Commons
Parliament

Energy and Industrial Strategy Minister Nick Hurd says "there is no safety risk to site staff or the public" from the Sellafield nuclear processing plant.

Sellafield is a "uniquely challenging site" as the site of the UK's earliest nuclear plant "when nuclear waste was dumped with no plan of how to clean it up".

The Office for Nuclear Regulation, external - which monitors Sellafield - has confirmed that "none of the issues raised in the Panorama programme are new", he adds.