House of Lords
Parliament

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Peers move on to debate two reports from the European Union committee relating to Brexit - one on agriculture and one on farm animal welfare.

The report on farm animal welfare, published in July, found that the UK has some of the highest farm animal welfare standards in the world.

The report on Brexit and agriculture found that the EU Common Agricultural Policy has had "a fundamental impact on UK agriculture".

Opening the debate, Lib Dem Lord Teverson says the UK is a big food importer and this should give us "leverage" to attract free trade agreements who want access to our market.

House of Lords
Parliament

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Culture Minister Lord Ashton of Hyde reaffirms the government's commitment to a "publicly-owned future" for Channel 4.

The BBC part-relocation to Salford demonstrates that the television industry doesn't have to be "all about London" but that this cannot be a direct comparison with Channel 4, he argues.

The minister says Channel 4 is a "vital public asset" and must "play its part" in a country that works for everyone.

House of Commons
Parliament

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Labour's Chris Evans is opening his debate on regulating the sale of puppies.

He warns that people assume when they buy a puppy it has been bred in humane conditions, but "sadly this is not always the case".

He says this is a particular problem for online sales and that the current legislation is out of date.

House of Commons
Parliament

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Foreign Office Minister Mark Field agrees that what has happened to the Rohingya is "appalling" and on "an unprecedented scale", but he has resisted using the term "ethnic cleansing" for diplomatic and personal reasons.

He tells MPs his own mother was ethnically cleansed from Germany and the term has a "finality" about it, but goes on to say he accepts ethnic cleansing is "an increasingly accurate description" of the Rohingya in Myanmar.

He acknowledges Members' disappointment in Aung San Suu Kyi, but cautions that we must recognise the pressures she faces and "to weaken her is to strengthen the military".

House of Lords
Parliament

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Labour's shadow culture spokesman Lord Griffiths tells peers that Channel 4 commissions its work from many outside bodies and as a result employs 3,000 people "across the nation" to contribute to its programming.

He says there is "no familiar place" for Channel 4 to relocate to.

House of Lords
Parliament

Crossbencher Baroness Kidron, a film director, says there is a presumption that "all the talent is in London", when in reality "all the talent works in London".

A "vast number" of UK citizens are "underrepresented both on screen and behind screen", she tells peers.

Baroness Kidron, who directed Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason, says that unless one of the large organisations in the cultural industry moves to the north, it will be "perpetually out of balance".

She insists that it is a matter for Channel 4 to decide.

House of Commons
Parliament

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Winding up the debate for Labour, shadow Foreign Office minister Helen Goodman says there have been "grave and serious human rights violations" and the "scale of violence inflicted on civilians cannot be justified as a proportionate response" to actions by the Rohingya militia.

She calls Aung San Suu Kyi's reaction to the situation "very disappointing".

The UK has a "special duty" to do more given its historic ties to the region, she says, and warns in reference to the foreign secretary that "reciting Kipling is not appropriate".

House of Commons
Parliament

Green MP Caroline Lucas stresses how important it is for the House to speak out but claims the government has "not shown the same level of urgency".

She says people outside Parliament find this hard to understand.

"The danger of inaction is not only more terrible suffering but potential radicalisation here," she warns.

House of Lords
Parliament

Ex BBC director general Lord Birt says Channel 4, because it doesn't have a profit motive, has been "innovative, experimental, risk-taking" since its foundation.

But he says the channel "dropped the ball" when it acquired Great British Bake Off from the BBC, which he calls a "grievous failure" of management and governance. Chasing ratings isn't Channel 4's role, he says, nor should it compete with other public service channels.

Great British Bake Off has been a ratings success for Channel 4. Last week's episode was seen by 6.3m people, according to official overnight ratings, beating every other channel in its timeslot.

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour's Naz Shah says it is time for the UK to "show some strength and protect people globally".

"The eyes of the world are on this situation," she emphasises.

She presses for targeted sanctions against the Myanmar military, urging: "Look at their business interests - there's no reason why we can't do this."

House of Lords
Parliament

Crossbencher Lord Best says that Channel 4 should not be privatised because of its "innovative" work, citing particularly the channel's coverage of the London and Rio Paralympic games.

He also says the channel's headquarters should not be moved from its current Westminster base.

He says that because of the relatively small number of staff employed directly by Channel 4 (in this case, 800) "relocating its HQ would be unlikely to bring together a new hub for the creative industries elsewhere" and would represent "poor value for money".

The BBC's Salford base, for instance, has almost 3,000 staff.

He says C4 could instead ask for an increase in the threshold of the money that it needs to spend in commissioning from outside London to demonstrate its commitment to representing audiences from outside the capital.

Select Committee
Parliament

Yvette Cooper thanks the Home Secretary for her time and closes the evidence session.

We'll be back with more action from the committee rooms tomorrow morning.

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative Nusrat Ghani, like others, criticises the conduct of Aung San Suu Kyi.

She says: "The Nobel Peace Prize should be stripped from Aung San Suu Kyi.

"It is tainted with the blood of the Rohingyas."

House of Lords
Parliament

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Peers are taking part in a debate on the future of Channel 4, prompted by a report by a Lords committee on the possibility of privatising the publicly owned network.

Earlier this year Culture Secretary Karen Bradley indicated that the government would not sell Channel 4 off, but is considering options for moving it outside of London. Only 30 of its 800 staff are currently based outside of London.

Channel 4 does not make any of its own programming, it commissions everything it broadcasts from outside providers.

Currently 35% of Channel 4 content must be made outside London and, although funded by advertisements, it must fulfil certain public service broadcasting obligations.

Select Committee
Parliament

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Conservative MP Christopher Chope asks about the Home Office's deterrents for illegal migrants in the UK.

Ms Rudd tells him there is "more confidence" at border control and has been a reduced number of "over-stayers" in the past five years.

The home secretary says "voluntary returns" are much more humane and preferable to what she calls, "forced returns".

She says voluntary returns of illegal migrants are implemented by making it difficult for them to rent a flat or to own a bank account, therefore making it harder for the individuals to remain in the UK.

Asked about the EU divorce bill, Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson asks Labour benches: "Would you cough up 100bn euros?"

House of Lords
Parliament

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Peers are currently responding to David Davis's earlier statement on Brexit negotiations.

Crossbencher and former Cabinet Secretary Lord Butler says the negotiations are "very important for our country" and asks minister Baroness Goldie if it's not time for the opposition to stop "carping" and "get behind our negotiators instead of undermining them".

The minister says the government has the "national interest at heart" and agrees that Labour's stances aren't "helpful".

She says disagreements in the UK give the impression that "everyone's fighting like ferrets in a sack".

Select Committee
Parliament

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Chair Yvette Cooper calls on the home secretary to fill the remaining 280 places under the Dubs amendment by Christmas.

Amber Rudd says the government are "committed" to the legislation and to the children.

In a fiery exchange between the two, the committee chair says the home secretary's remarks are "very unconvincing" whilst the places remain unfilled.

The Dubs Amendment is a scheme launched in the UK to help unaccompanied refugee children in Europe to come to live here safely.

Image source, Reuters

On 25 August, Rohingya insurgents armed with knives and home-made bombs attacked more than 30 police posts in northern Rakhine, the government said.

Huge numbers of Rohingya civilians then began fleeing over the border into Bangladesh.

Many of them say that Burmese troops, backed by local Buddhist mobs, began burning their villages and attacking and killing civilians in response to the 25 August attacks. Some of those who have arrived in Bangladesh have bullet or other wounds.

Observers on the ground and satellite images confirm many razed Muslim villages across northern Rakhine state.

Read more.