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The Commons turns their attention to a backbench SNP motion on refugee family reunions, being opened by Angus MacNeil.

This topic has been selected by the Backbench Business Committee.

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Liberal Democrat Wera Hobhouse says many of her EU constituents in Bath have come to her with concerns since the referendum. She asks if settled status citizens will be able to use the NHS like British nationals.

"Yes," replies Ms Nokes.

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Chair of the Exiting the EU Committee, Hilary Benn, thanks Home Office and Exiting the EU officials for briefing the members of his committee last week on this.

He asks if the government is making settlement status available for all EU citizens under the outcomes of any Brexit negotiation deal, including, "heaven forbid" a "no-deal" Brexit.

Ms Nokes says "we are not anticipating failure" and the government "has confidence that there will be a deal," - and that she does not expect the deal reached on EU citizens to be revisited.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker pledged to continue supporting Ireland.

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Chair of the Home Affairs Committee Yvette Cooper asks what will happen to children in the UK whose parents do not register them in the UK or if they are in care. She asks if this would result in children losing their legal rights.

Ms Nokes says that local authorities have a responsibility to make sure that children in care are not registered in time. The government will have a "proportionate response" to those who do not register, and there will be plenty of warnings in time.

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The SNP's home affairs spokesperson Joanna Cherry asks for details on what discussions the UK government has had with the devolved administrations.

Ms Nokes says that the government has been clear that the government should be "fully engaged" with the devolved administrations on this.

She reiterates the message of the prime minister that the government wants these EU citizens to stay.

The fees for the settlement scheme are in line with current charges, she adds.

The chair of European Research Group says there is no legal basis for any Brexit delay.

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Shadow home office minister Afzal Khan says that EU citizens in the UK have already waited two years to know what their future status would be in the UK.

There have been uncertainties for UK citizens residing in Europe as well, he says.

He asks how the rights of EEA and Swiss citizens will be enforced, as well as criminal background checks, and he criticises the lack of clarity on Irish citizens.

He asks if the app can work on iPhones, and if the website will work on all kinds of tablets and computers.

Ms Nokes says that she recognises that there have been anxieties for EU citizens living in the UK.

The digital application process is available on any device, but the chip checker does not work on iPhones, which is something the Home Office is raising with Apple, she states.

She says the department is focused on making a success of this situation.

House of Lords
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Liberal Democrat Baroness Brinton says it is important to recognise that families caring for disabled children face different circumstances than other carers.

She calls for better respite care for these children so that parents can rest. She emphasises the challenges of transitioning from children to adult services as disabled teenagers approach the age of 18.

Caring for children can lead to intense isolation, and she highlights the impact on children who help their parents care for disabled siblings.

She says the action plan does not do enough for parent carers, who are often saving the state hundreds of thousands of pounds. She says the current system penalises parent carers for choosing to care for their children rather than working.

She finishes by quoting sibling and parent carers. She tells the stories of two sibling carers. "I don't spend time with mum anymore... my friends don't understand," says an 11-year-old girl.

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The Home Office has announced that applications for EU citizens to remain in the UK will be processed "within days," which is shorter than the previous timeframe given by officials for settled status, which was a fortnight.

• Applications for settled status will cost £65, half that for children under the age of 16.
• People who already own a valid UK permanent residence or indefinite leave to remain document will be able to swap for settled status free of charge.
• Officials are expecting around 3.5m applications, and most will be available digitally via an online form or through an Android app. There is no app available for iPhones yet. Paper based forms will be available in some circumstances.
• The deadline for these settled status applications will be 30 June 2021, six months after the end of the implementation period.

There are calls for changes to "archaic" rules after an MP was wheeled from her sick bed to vote.

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Immigration Minister Caroline Nokes says that EU citizens are "our friends, our family and our colleagues, and we want them to stay".

She outlines a new settlement scheme, which will help EU citizens who wish to remain in the UK after Brexit.

The new settlement scheme is in alignment with the EU withdrawal agreement, she adds.

"It will be straightforward for EU citizens residing in the UK obtain settled status," she says, while those who have been here less than five years will be able to apply for pre-settled status until they have been here longer than five years.

Irish citizens will not need to apply for settled status under the scheme, she states.

An app and online applications will be the norm, she says, while there will be an automated system for looking up employment records to confirm what applicants are saying in their forms.

She says that EU citizens and their family members do not need to do anything immediately.

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Conservative peer Baroness Browning says if the needs of the person being cared for were met, the needs of the carer would be met.

She recounts several conversations with other peers about their difficulties of finding people to provide care work. She says direct payments, where disabled people are given funding to pay for their care, leaves some people alone and struggling to find the vital services they need.

She supports direct payments, but says they are "no excuse" for leaving people without support. She says "this House prides itself on scrutiny, and we must scrutinise" the details of the action plan.

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The crossbencher Earl of Listowel speaks of the toll on his mental health of caring for an adult with mental health and physical disabilities for two years.

He says the support group he attended was crucial, as was being able to work.

House of Commons
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Conservative MP Helen Whately thanks the work and pensions secretary for listening to MPs' suggestions over Universal Credit, praising the introduction of video recording of PIP assessments. She asks for an update on the roll out of recording.

Ms McVey says work on video recording roll out will happen over the summer.

SNP MP Chris Stephens asks her to also listen to suggestions over sanctioning changes, to which Ms McVey responds "there has always been a sanctions regime...we want to make sure we get people into work".

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Liberal Democrat Baroness Tyler says the action plan goes "some of the way" to helping carers but falls short.

She says it does well on young carers and those in work, but not older carers and carers of disabled children.

She says "we simply would not allow" a paid job to replicate the 24-hour nature of unpaid carers and "actual opportunities" for respite care are "few and far between" despite plans to provide it.

She calls for proper implementation of the 2014 Care Act, which she says "exists in name only," and criticises the failure to provide statutory leave for carers. Over two million people have had to give up work to care, with the impact falling heavily on women, she says.

"We have a responsibility" to ensure that unpaid carers can pursue careers, she says, as these carers will find themselves without the finances for their own care needs. She asks the minister to explain why statutory leave was left out of the Care Act.

She moves on to speaking about young carers, who she says are often hard to identify. She asks how the Care Act has helped to rectify this.

Baroness Tyler finishes by calling for new funding for social care in the "long-awaited green paper".

"It's not rocket science, it just requires political will," she concludes.

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The SNP's Kirsty Blackman says the government has a poor record of looking after vulnerable people, referencing the UN's criticism of the government's treatment of disabled people, suggesting it is "true to form".

She names the Joseph Roundtree Foundation report, which also criticises Universal Credit, and calls on the government to "live up to these failings and make changes to the system".

Ms McVey says "this report was out of date and does not take into account the significant changes made", and calls for Kirsty Blackman to encourage changes to the welfare system in Scotland.

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Conservative Iain Duncan Smith says that the NAO report is "a shoddy piece of work" adding that it has failed to take account "of a whole series of issues".

Changes that were made last December have made a huge difference to people's lives. He asks who polices the policemen.

Ms McVey says that the opposition should read reports in full before talking about them.

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Esther McVey responds to suggestions she should have given a statement to the house sooner to say that today was the earliest she could, adding that she made the legal changes to the system as soon as she could.

She says the new system is £50 cheaper per claim, whilst the government has provided more money for support for those struggling with IT requirements and also debt.

Ms McVey compares poverty figures to 2010 and says there are fewer in absolute poverty than there were, and says more people are spending more time looking for work than they previously were.

She ends by listing examples of people who have had positive experiences of the system.

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Shadow work and pensions secretary Margaret Greenwood says Ms McVey should reflect on the fact that the DWP has been forced to review payments to disabled people four times in the last year.

The NAO report says that it has not delivered value for money, and it is unlikely it ever will, she says.

Food bank referrals have increased in areas where Universal Credit has been rolled out, and the government is closing Job Centres in areas where UC is now active.

"Delays in payments are pushing people into debt," she adds, saying that landlords are often reluctant to have tenants who are on the UC system.

Two thirds of disabled people are not being paid on time, she states, adding that the NAO has said the government should pause UC roll out until the system will cope with the current claimants.