Summary

  • Day in Commons starts with culture questions

  • Urgent question on hormone pregnancy tests

  • Business statement follows

  • Commons leader statement on sexual harassment

  • Main business backbench debates, including one on universal credit

  • House of Lords began questions at 11am

  • Several debates in the Lords this afternoon, including one on universal credit

  1. Paradise Papers: Everything you need to know about the leakpublished at 13:43 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Media caption,

    Paradise Papers: How to hide your cash offshore

    Today's emergency debate follows the release of the Paradise Papers, a huge leak of financial documents that throw light on the top end of the world of offshore finance.

    You can read more about the leak - and who is being exposed - here.

  2. Tax avoidance and evasion are utterly wrong - Treasury ministerpublished at 13:34 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Paradise Papers debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Mel Stride

    "Aggressive tax avoidance and evasion are utterly wrong," says Financial Secretary to the Treasury Mel Stride.

    "Those who pay their tax fairly should not be penalised by those who avoid paying tax fairly."

    The minister says the government has "a very strong track record... we have raised £160bn in additional revenues" since 2010.

    The government is investing in HMRC and "trebling the number of investigations of the wealthy", he adds.

  3. We need to know who owns what and where - Hodgepublished at 13:28 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Paradise Papers debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Dame Margaret Hodge calls for public registers of "beneficial ownership, showing who owns what and where" in the UK's overseas territories and crown dependencies.

    She asks: "Would Bono have invested in tax havens if he thought we would all know?"

    Dame Margaret says former PM David Cameron understood the need for transparency when he called on overseas territories "to rip aside the cloak of secrecy".

    However, she accuses the government of having "watered down" the commitment to public registers over the last two years.

    "Transparency can and does change behaviour," she argues, and adding that the UK government has acted over the use of death penalty in overseas territories and against discrimination against gay people.

  4. Tory MP asks about Dame Margaret Hodge's own tax affairspublished at 13:14 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Paradise Papers debate

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Conservative MP David Morris challenges Dame Margaret Hodge and alleges that her family company, Stemcor, "paid virtually no tax".

    "My father and his cousins were refugees from Germany and my father was then a refugee from Eqypt," Dame Margaret replies.

    She adds that her father told her as a child "you will never feel safe in this country" and advised her to "always have your suitcase packed".

    The Labour MP says that, when her family discovered he had had money invested abroad, "we closed those funds and put it into a charity".

    One of Dame Margaret's Labour colleagues calls Mr Morris "a pathetic little man".

    In 2012, Dame Margaret told the BBC that allegations about the Stemcor firm were "completely wrong", adding that they were "scurrilous and defamatory".

  5. Does the magic money tree grow offshore?published at 13:01 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Debate on tax avoidance and evasion

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Dame Margaret Hodge

    Labour's Dame Margaret Hodge opens the emergency debate on tax avoidance and evasion.

    She describes the revelations in the Paradise Papers as "a national and international disgrace".

    Her Labour colleague Jack Dromey comments that Prime Minister Theresa May said "there is no magic money tree" during the general election campaign,, external yet "they grow on the Cayman Islands, in Bermuda and in Jersey".

  6. MP raises concerns over funding for the abolition of car park chargespublished at 12:56 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Ten minute rule bill

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Under a ten minute rule motion, an MP has up to 10 minutes to make a speech in support of a bill and, if they wish, an MP can speak in opposition to it.

    Conservative MP James Duddridge rises to oppose it with, he says, "some trepidation" as he knows the cause of abolishing hospital parking charges in England is a popular one.

    However, Mr Duddridge says he is concerned about how the abolition of car parking charges would be funded, arguing "we would be better spending [money] on hospital care".

    Mr Duddridge does not force a vote, however, and Robert Halfon is able to introduce his bill.

  7. 'Time to end the hospital car parking rip-off'published at 12:47 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Ten minute rule bill

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Robert Halfon

    Before the emergency debate on the Paradise Papers, there's just time for a ten minute rule bill.

    Conservative MP Robert Halfon introduces a bill to prohibit charging for car parking at NHS hospitals in England for patients, staff and visitors - a subject on which he has campaigned for a number of years.

    "This bill will give peace of mind to patients and visitors when they need it most," Mr Halfon says.

    He adds: "It's time to end the hospital car parking rip-off once and for all."

  8. And it continues...published at 12:28 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Health questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Conservative MP Tim Loughton tries to get revenge on behalf of his colleague David TC Davies, saying: "Thank you, Mr Officer Dibble Speaker."

  9. Speaker invites 'David Top Cat Davies' to speakpublished at 12:22 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

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  10. Does Brexit mean an NHS staff shortage?published at 12:22 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Health questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    The SNP's Chris Stephens asks about the impact of Brexit on the health and social care sector.

    He says there is "a clear trend" of more people from other EU states leaving the NHS and a fall in the numbers taking up jobs, since the 2016 referendum.

    This "should ring alarm bells in Whitehall", he adds.

    Health Minister Philip Dunne concedes that the NHS has been "reliant for much of the increase" in staff on people from elsewhere in the EU.

    However, he says "the latest figures" from June showed there were "3,193 more clinicians" working in the NHS in England than in the previous year.

    The Department of Health decides policy for the NHS in England, with health policy devolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

    Conservative MP Philip Hollobone, a supporter of leaving the EU, says: "It is always the case that the NHS has recruited from outside the EU and will continue to do so after Brexit."

  11. Make do and mendpublished at 12:09 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Parliamentary service tweets

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  12. Labour calls for pay cap to be scrapped in the Budgetpublished at 12:08 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Health questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Jonathan Ashworth

    Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth asks whether Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt agrees with Simon Stevens, the boss of NHS England, that the 1% public sector pay cap for nurses should end.

    He presses Mr Hunt to agree that "it would be an own goal not to fully fund the scrapping of that pay cap in the Budget next week".

    Mr Hunt says "the government is willing to be flexible" but wants reforms to contracts in exchange for an improved pay deal.

    Mr Ashworth calls for the chancellor to support Mr Stevens' calls for more funding and "allocate an extra £6bn a year" for the NHS.

    Mr Hunt retorts that Labour "refused to back" calls for more funding before the 2015 election.

    He adds that "Labour's run on the pound" would be worse for the NHS - a reference to comments by the shadow chancellor that Labour was doing "war-game-type scenario-planning" for events such as "a run on the pound".

  13. Minister accuses Labour of 'seeing privatisation fairies'published at 11:48 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Health questions

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Philip Dunne

    Health questions begin with a clash over subsidiary companies set up by NHS trusts.

    Shadow health minister Justin Madders says trusts are "so strapped for cash they are creating private companies to get around VAT laws".

    He calls the creation of wholly-owned subsidiary companies "another step down the road towards privatisation" and asks whether they will be sold "to the highest bidder" in the future.

    Health Minister Philip Dunne accuses his Labour opposite number of engaging in "the tired, old weaponising of the NHS" and "seeing privatisation fairies where there aren't any".

    He argues that subsidiary companies can allow trusts to increase efficiency by, for example, combining back office operations.

  14. What's on today?published at 11:25 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

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  15. What's behind London stabbing deaths?published at 11:24 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Home Affairs Committee

    Select Committee
    Parliament

    Sarah JonesImage source, HoC

    Sarah Jones, Labour MP for Coydon Central, asks what's driving recent a increase in stabbing deaths. Last week when Metropolitan Police Commissioner Cressida Dick appeared before the committee she said that 25 teenagers had been murdered in London this year, 21 of them black and four Asian.

    Last night a 21-year-old man died after being stabbed in Hackney., external

    Sadiq Khan says London's age profile is partly behind the problem. He goes on to say that he's "not blaming cuts to local services but, you can't not see the link" between cuts to services like youth centres, which he says means young people "end up hanging around on street corners" with nothing to do.

    He adds that the internet "glamorizes certain lifestyles" and calls for companies like YouTube to start taking down gang-related videos, which sometimes involve "goading" rival gangs, leading to more violence.

  16. Commons to debate Paradise Papers and EU billpublished at 11:20 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    House of Commons
    Parliament

    Parliament and EU flagImage source, EPA

    The House of Commons sits shortly to begin what is set to be a long day.

    It begins with questions to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and his ministerial team.

    At around 12:30pm, MPs have up to two hours to debate tax avoidance and evasion, in the light of the Paradise Papers leak. MP Dame Margaret Hodge secured this emergency debate yesterday, with the backing of her Labour colleagues.

    But the main event is detailed scrutiny of the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill at committee stage. The bill transfers EU laws into UK law in preparation for Brexit.

    There are over 100 pages of amendments tabled.

    The debate is set to last for two days this week, with six more days of debate at a later date.

    You can read more about the bill here.

  17. Prevent strategy is 'only show in town'published at 11:04 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Home Affairs Committee

    Select Committee
    Parliament

    Conservative Rehman Chishti asks the mayor about levels of confidence in Prevent, the government's anti-radicalisation programme. The programme is controversial, particularly among Muslim groups.

    Sadiq Khan says that "some of the community do [have confidence], a significant minority don't". But, he adds, "Prevent is the only show in town" and needs to be improved rather than scrapped.

    He goes on to add that Islamic extremists are twice as likely to have been referred by their friends and family than white far-right extremists in the programme are which, he suggests, shows some level of confidence among Muslims.

  18. Sadiq Khan: Met Police approaching 'tipping point'published at 10:40 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Home Affairs Committee

    Select Committee
    Parliament

    Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is now in front of the committee. Among his roles is responsibility for the Metropolitan Police. He says that they're approaching a "tipping point" when it comes to "keeping our city safe".

    He says the Met has to save £400m before 2020, and it is "inconceivable" that it won't compromise the safety of Londoners.

    BBC Reality Check says the cuts are not cuts to the budget, but will come as a result of flat funding and rising costs.

    He says the Metropolitan police will have to cut police officers to numbers last seen in 2001, at a time when crime more is complex and the terror threat now more severe.

    He goes on to call for an increase from the government in real terms funding and the abandonment of the current funding formula, otherwise he's "extremely worried".

    Sadiq KhanImage source, HoC
  19. PCC: people want bobbies on the beatpublished at 10:39 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Home Affairs Committee

    Select Committee
    Parliament

    Conservative MP Tim Loughton asks the PCCs how their ability to fulfil the desires of the electorate that voted for them is compromised by funding challenges.

    Nottinghamshire PCC Paddy Tipping says that almost everywhere he goes "they want to see a uniformed presence on our streets", this is a "really strong view".

    Tim Loughton says that so-called 'bobbies on the beat' are "not the most efficient way of doing policing". He says that his role as a constituency MP has taught him that there's a "disconnect" between what people want and "what policing needs to do".

    Kathryn Holloway, PCC for Bedfordshire, says part of her role is "to get myself out there and say, you have legitimate concerns, but I have to explain" what the force needs to be doing.

  20. MPs hear from police comissionerspublished at 09:58 Greenwich Mean Time 14 November 2017

    Home Affairs Committee

    Select Committee
    Parliament

    The Police and Crime Commissioners (PCCs) for Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, Avon & Somerset and Nottinghamshire are appearing in front of the Home Affairs Select Committee. The committee wants to discuss funding and the relationship between PCCs and chief constables.

    PCCs were introduced in 2012 as directly elected supervisors of local police forces, replacing the former police authorities.

    Every area of England and Wales has a PCC except for London and Greater Manchester, where police forces are supervised by elected mayors.

    David Lloyd, chair of the association of PCCs and PCC for Hertfordshire, says that there isn't enough money in policing.

    He says that his force could be properly funded and "a pound a week on council tax would make all the difference...we're not talking about huge sums of money".

    PCCsImage source, HoC