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Conservative Lord Framlingham calls for more urban trees to be planted and overseen by experts in cities.

He says that at a recent conference it was announced by the government's chief plant health officer, Professor Nicola Spence, that there are many new and foreign threats to British trees and woodland.

He criticises the "environmental disaster" that is HS2 which will "gouge its way through our countryside", adding that the line will serve as a reminder of the gap between the government and the people.

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Labour's Viscount Hanworth says that carrier bag charges should have been made mandatory across all shops, rather than larger stores, from the first day the rules were introduced.

Rather than working on the self-serving interests of the consumer, he says there should be work from the government on forming a selfless social view on the role we can all take in dealing with excessive packaging.

He adds that he does not believe the current government can work on such a social consensus.

House of Commons
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Conservative former defence secretary Sir Michael Fallon hails the bill, which he says will "show anybody that the armed forces are modern employers" and mean they "recognise people's changing expectations" over a lifetime.

He highlights in particular his hopes that it will improve the recruitment and retention of women and ethnic minorities.

He goes on to say: "I'm not going to comment on how successful or not the reshuffle was but I regret there's no female defence minister."

He tells the chamber he lobbied for a female minister when Penny Mordaunt was moved to the Department for International Development and it's a "mistake" there isn't one now.

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The bill has now moved on to third reading.

Shadow defence secretary Nia Griffith says that Labour will be supporting the bill tonight, as it allows personnel to take part time work or move hours at times when it is needed for them.

She says that she shares the minister's view on the worries caused in decreasing personnel numbers.

Ms Griffith says that Capita is already costing the government £54m more than anticipated on Army recruitment services, and is not working effectively.

She argues the government must look at whether it is best to bring recruitment back in house with experienced officers.

Pay restraint in the armed forces has had an effect on staff, she states, andd just under a third of Army staff are satisfied with the amount they are paid.

House of Lords
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Debate on the environment strategy resumes, as crossbencher Lord Oxburgh raises "the major decline" in insect numbers.

Studies point to "population declines of over 75% during the last three decades", he tells his fellow peers.

Lord Oxburgh recalls that, when stopping for petrol when driving 20 years ago "we had to clean the summer insects of the screen with every fill-up.

"Today, that is a rarity."

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Defence Minister Tobias Ellwood says the government will "listen carefully" to what is going on in each constituency.

Different parts of the armed forces recruit in different ways, meaning that local and national recruiting are used alongside each other, he states.

He brands the work done by cadets in recruitment as a "success story" for growing numbers in the forces.

Recruitment remains "a great challenge" for the government, especially with offers from other employers, he adds.

Mr Ellwood says that allowing women to serve in close combat roles alongside men from 2016 is a good illustration of change in the armed forces.

"This is an ongoing journey of change" which proceeding at a "steady" pace, he adds.

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Debate on the environmental strategy pauses while Cabinet Office spokesman Lord Young of Cookham repeats the answer to an earlier Commons urgent question on contaminated blood.

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Labour peer Lord Judd says Environment Minister Lord Gardiner is "winning a lot of Brownie points" for getting out and talking to "people in the field".

However, he says the environment plan, while being "a good read", is "short on detail".

Lord Judd says Tory peer Lord Heseltine once observed that "the environment is, for many people, the block of flats in which they are living".

There is a need to improve "the urban environment", not just rural areas, he argues.

With "a great drive" for affordable housing, residents of those homes will need "space and green" and young people will need areas for recreation, he says.

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Labour's Ruth Smeeth says that there is an operational deficit of 5% "which is beginning to undermine our ability to deploy".

46% of Armed Forces personnel say that a lack of flexible working is a reason why they want to leave, she states.

She says that introducing flexible working at a time when staff numbers are too low risks exacerbating the problems that already exist.

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SNP armed forces and veterans spokeswoman Carol Monaghan says that unless measures are taken alongside it, the bill risks becoming "a paper exercise".

According to recent figures, 35% are unhappy with armed forces life, she states.

She introduces the SNP amendments to the Bill, which would mean more publication of statistics, she says these would give Parliament more scrutiny over management of the armed forces.

More effort needs to be made in attracting female recruits to the Army, she adds.

The SNP welcomes the measures in the Bill, she states, but there is an opportunity to do "far more" for defence personnel and their families.

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Green Party peer Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb says the environmental plan talks about the effects of climate change but not about the causes.

"What you're talking about is damage limitation... and we can't allow that," she says.

"We just don't have the time."

With the EU Withdrawal Bill due in the Lords tomorrow, Baroness Jones says the government "must get its legislative proposals in order" for post-Brexit environmental protection - or face amendments to the bill in this area.

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MPs now move on to remaining stages of the Armed Forces (Flexible Working) Bill, external, after it went through committee stage without amendment.

The bill makes provision for members of the regular forces to serve part-time or only in certain geographic areas, with the aim of improving recruitment and retention.

Shadow defence minister Gerald Jones kicks off proceedings by introducing Labour amendments designed to produce more accurate statistics on who is serving in the armed forces, in the name of "transparency and clarity".

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Labour's Lord Hunt of Chesterton, a Professor in Environment Modelling at University College London, says that international co-ordination on the environment is essential and must go beyond environmental bodies and government agencies.

Many government bodies "have been frustratingly slow" in dealing with problems, he says.

He calls for increased investment in helping communities, especially in rural areas, so they can improve the environment around them.

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Shadow Cabinet Office minister Cat Smith calls the length of time families have had to wait for an inquiry "unacceptable", adding "'as soon as possible' isn't good enough".

She asks for a timetable from the government.

Cabinet Office Minister Chloe Smith reiterates that the government will name the chairing judge "as soon as possible" and that she has "a personal interest in seeing this happen".

House of Lords
Parliament

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Crossbencher and former Chief Executive and Chair of the National Environment Research Council Lord Krebs says some of our beaches and water bodies "have improved in recent decades".

However, he says that one fifth of English water bodies are in good condition, and one third of English sites of special scientific interest are in favourable ecological condition.

He warns that this proportion is declining.

56% of 8,000 species recorded in the UK have seen a decline in their population, he says. The UK rates 189th in the world for maintaining its biodiversity, he adds.

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Back to the environment debate in the Lords where the Bishop of Salisbury, the right reverend Nicholas Holtam says a deposit scheme for drink bottles, which operates in many other countries, increases plastic bottle returns by 90%.

He raises concerns that any new regulator formed by the UK government on environmental matters may not be able to fine the UK government for non-compliance, as the EU currently can.

He says that the vague wording of "avoidable plastics" is not helpful in the government's aim to tackle plastic waste. He says that the EU, while having less ambitious targets, has been specific in saying that all plastic packaging must be recyclable by 2030.

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Diana Johnson says that "six and a half months have passed" since the inquiry was announced.

She calls on the minister to set out "a clear timetable" for appointing a chair and agreeing terms of reference, which should be set independently by the chair.

Ms Johnson also calls for "a families-first inquiry", adding: "This is a treatment disaster of huge proportions, in which the government is implicated."

For many victims, "justice delayed is justice denied", Ms Johnson tells the House.

Cabiner Office Minister Chloe Smith says she understands "the imperative importance of getting this inquiry underway as soon as possible", insisting that it will be judge-led and "independent of government".

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Labour's Diana Johnson is asking today's third urgent question - on an inquiry into the contaminated blood scandal.

It was announced last year that a UK-wide inquiry would be held into the contaminated blood scandal that left at least 2,400 people dead.

Thousands of NHS patients were given blood products from abroad in the 1970s and 1980s that were infected with hepatitis C and HIV.

Cabinet Office Minister Chloe Smith says what happened was "an appalling tragedy" and the families of those affected "deserve answers".

She tells MPs consultation with families is ongoing but she hopes it will conclude "as quickly as possible".

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The SNP's Chris Law adds his party's condemnation of the killings in Afghanistan, asking what is being done to address the situation, to end these attacks and provide humanitarian assistance.

Foreign Office Minister Mark Field tells MPs "we do feel progress is being made" even though it is "slow", and it is their understanding that 13 provinces are under Taleban control.

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Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry says Saturday's attack was one of "horrific savagery".

She adds: "There are no depths of depravity and evil to which the jihadis will not sink."

She asks what the government is doing to support aid agencies in the country and also raises the cases of Afghan interpreters who worked for UK armed forces.

Mark Field says he hopes forthcoming peace talks in Kabul will "bring all sides together" and pays tribute to "all of our courageous staff who are on the ground in Kabul".

Turning to interpreters, he says that Afghanistan needs to hold on to skilled and able people but urges Ms Thornberry to bring individual cases to his attention.