Image source, HoC

The new chair of the inquiry into child sexual abuse Alexis Jay faces the Home Affairs Select Committee's questions.

Prof Jay is the fourth person to chair the troubled inquiry. 

House of Commons
Parliament

Shadow culture secretary Tom Watson goes on to agree with the call in the charter for greater diversity in the BBC, including more class diversity. 

He says he's old enough to remember when the likes of Michael Caine, Glenda Jackson and Julie Walters were "giants of popular culture".

He has "nothng against" Harrow educated Benedict Cumberbatch and the old Etonian Eddie Redmayne, they are "great ambassadors". But he says we need more "Julie Walters and Christopher Ecclestones".

Minister Matthew Hancock intervenes saying he wants to "underline the cross party support for this direction of travel" and that the BBC "knows it has a lot more work to do."

Image source, PA

Select Committee
Parliament

The inquiry was established to investigate those institutions (such as the NHS and the BBC) which failed to protect children from sexual abuse.

However, the inquiry has had a rocky start. Its first two chairs had to resign over concerns about their impartiality.

Then in August a third chair, Dame Lowell Goddard resigned. It has since been alleged that staff working on the inquiry had concerns about the judge's aggressive behaviour and racist language. Dame Goddard has denied such allegations.

Next, two of the lawyers working on the case, Elizabeth Prochaska and Ben Emerson, quit the inquiry.

The inquiry has also been criticised for being too wide in scope. However, the latest chair, Alexis Jay, has said there will be no reduction in scope.

Image source, Getty Images

Richmond Park MP Zac Goldsmith is set to resign and fight a by-election as an independent anti-Heathrow candidate if the airport wins approval for a third runway.

And now the Evening Standard reports, external that Mr Goldsmith's local party has met and voted to support him as an independent candidate, even if an official Conservative Party candidate were to run.

Dr Tania Mathias, Conservative MP for the neighbouring Twickenham constituency, is also said to be supportive of Mr Goldsmith's position. 

Mr Goldsmith, who came second in this year's London mayoral election, has been a long standing opponent of expansion at Heathrow. 

The Guardian

Vicky Foxcroft, Labour MP for Lewisham Deptford, has written about her decision to speak in a commons debate on child deaths.

Ms Foxcroft describes her speech as "the hardest I have ever had to write."

During the debate Ms Foxcroft recounted the story of her daughter Veronica, who died only five days after being born. 

Read more: Why I spoke out about losing my newborn daughter, external

You can watch Vicky's speech below.

Select Committee
Parliament

The Home Affairs Committee inquiry entitled: "The work of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse" will begin shortly.

The witnesses are:

• Professor Alexis Jay OBE, Chair of the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse
• Ivor Frank, IICSA Panel member
• Drusilla Sharpling CBE, IICSA Panel member
• Mark Sedwill, Permanent Secretary, Home Office 

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour's new shadow culture secretary Tom Watson is making his debut at the despatch box in his new role.

He says the party welcomes the new charter and goes on to praise the BBC. But he says the party has some "misgivings". He mentions specifically the fact that the BBC will take on responsibility for paying for free TV licences for the over 75s, which he says will be equivalent to a 20% revenue cut for the corporation. 

He says that "the BBC is not an arm of government, it should not be asked to take on the cost of government policy".

House of Commons
Parliament

Culture Secretary Karen Bradley tells MPs that the new agreement is strong and puts the BBC on a stable financial footing.

Labour's Chris Bryant intervenes to disagree arguing that "forcing" the BBC to pay for the TV licence for over 75s is "a complete disgrace".

Karen Bradley disagrees and points out that the BBC had, through negotiations and discussions agreed the settlement.

Image source, AFP/Getty Images

The prime minister's spokeswoman has defended a £448 million government programme after a report claimed it had made "no significant impact".

Downing Street said that it was "absolutely committed" to the Troubled Families Programme, which was set up by former PM David Cameron in the wake of rioting in 2011.

The report by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research said the programme had made no discernible difference in areas affecting disadvantaged families' lives, including child welfare, employment and school attendance.

Read more: Troubled families scheme has made 'no significant impact'

House of Lords
Parliament

Today's business in the Lords kicks off with the introduction of a new Conservative peer, as David Cameron's former spokewoman Gabrielle Bertin takes her place in the Upper House.

Questions to the government follow and are on topics including the UK's economic growth following the EU referendum and on the incidence of hate crime.

Today's legislation is the detailed, report stage scrutiny of the Children and Social Work Bill, which concerns the welfare of children and the regulation of social workers.

There will also be a short debate on a question tabled by shadow foreign affairs spokesman Lord Collins of Highbury. He will ask ministers "what assessment they have made of the potential effect on peace and stability in Europe and around the world of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union".

UKIP's chairman calls the resignation of MEP Steven Woolfe from the party a "side-issue", saying the focus is on finding a new leader.

House of Commons
Parliament

Now on the agenda is a debate on BBC charter renewal. 

The motion being debated states that the Commons approves the new draft Royal Charter agreement between the BBC and the Culture Secretary.

The Royal Charter sets out the BBC's constitution and is renewed approximately every 10 years.

The SNP has tabled an amendment calling on the government and the BBC to deliver "maximum devolution of broadcasting".

In the week of Theresa May's first EU summit, Gavin Hewitt assesses the challenges facing those who will eventually negotiate Brexit.

Norman Smith
Assistant political editor

Downing Street have confirmed that it is "very likely" that MPs will be allowed a vote on any Brexit deal after it is agreed.

This follows comments by government lawyer James Eadie who suggested  in the High Court this morning that parliament would have to ratify any deal arising from negotiations with the EU.

Asked about his comments, No 10 said: "It is the Government view that is being represented."

The move to allow a vote after a deal has been negotiated is unlikely to satisfy Mrs May's critics.

They are pressing for a vote before Mrs May begins negotiations.

It also raises the possibility that any deal negotiated by Mrs May could be rejected by parliament. 

Such an outcome would threaten to plunge the arrangements for Britain's departure from the EU into chaos.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, Press Association

The urgent question comes to an end and MPs move to the ten minute rule bill.

Today's motion comes from Conservative Bill Wiggin who is introducing his NHS Staff (Reporting and Registration) Bill.

The bill makes provision for the central reporting and registration of agency staff employed by NHS trusts.

The purpose of the bill is to ensure that absence from work by permanent NHS employees is recorded centrally.

A former special adviser to Michael Gove, Dominic Cummings, has published a series of tweets linking to a 2014 blog post he wrote on the Troubled Families Programme (TFP), launched by former Prime Minister David Cameron in 2012.

In the tweets, Mr Cummings claims that Mr Gove questioned the figures the programme was based on, but was ignored. 

In a tweet, external critical of the ex-PM and Cabinet Secretary Jeremy Heywood, Mr Cummings said: "Gove tried & tried to make No10 see sense, said ‘these numbers are a joke’, & was criticised by DC & Heywood."

"When [Michael Gove] finally gave up in despair, me & Private Office ditched it so DfE wd not be distracted by the farce", he added, external. 

Mr Cummings reserved strong criticism for the former prime minister, saying, external: "[TFP] Was classic Cameron - all about briefing the lobby, policy never thought thro cos [Cameron] ‘bored’ as he used to say."

He painted a more positive image of his former boss, Surrey Heath MP Michael Gove, saying, external: "If No10 had listened to Gove >£1BILL wd have been saved & god knows how much official time."

Mr Cummings also criticised the working culture of Whitehall, saying , externalthat "Ppl like Gove’s team are labelled ‘crazy’" for opposing projects such as the TFP. 

The TFP is the subject of a report, released today, which claims the programme has had "no significant impact" on its goal of supporting disadvantaged families in England. 

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative MP (and former international development minister) Sir Desmond Swayne believes the current Iraqi government is "incapable of delivering reform" and suggests Iraq will split into ethnic parts.

Michael Fallon recalls, referring to the Sykes-Picot agreement, that a century ago a different Conservative backbencher had tried to draw up Iraqi-Syrian boundaries.

He advises his colleague not to try a similar feat or "question the integrity of Iraq".

He acknowledges that progress is slow and frustrating but says the current Iraqi government is democratic and representative of ethnic groups. 

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour's Ruth Smeeth expresses concern that "industrial use" of IEDs (improvised explosive devices) could endanger Mosul residents trying to move back into their homes.

She notes that the UK has specialist knowledge in this area and asks what support the government is offering.

Michael Fallon says British troops are providing training to help Iraqi forces recognise and remove IEDs.

BBC Scotland's Andrew Kerr looks at the reasons for the changes to Westminster constituencies - and what they could mean for Scottish MPs.

Tom Bateman
Political Correspondent, Millbank

Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has described ministers overseeing Brexit as "a nest of singing birds". 

He was responding to a Commons question about the government's approach to Britain's future in regards to the single market. 

Mr Johnson told MPs he was "in constant exchange of views with my friends and colleagues" at the departments for international trade and for exiting the EU. 

He said: "We are a nest of singing birds."