House of Commons
Parliament

Theresa May will no doubt seize the headlines as she appears in the Commons for PMQs, but before that Scotland ministers are taking questions from MPs.

With Scotland Secretary David Mundell facing calls to resign - some have argued the withdrawal agreement crosses his red lines on fishing rights - it could be a heated one, with almost every tabled question having an EU focus.

After PMQs, the shadow chancellor John McDonnell will ask an urgent question on the government's publication of economic and fiscal analysis of various Brexit scenarios.

Labour MP Marsha de Cordova will then table her Fire Safety (Leasehold Properties) Bill as a ten minute rule motion, before MPs get on with the main legislative focus of the day - the twice delayed consideration of the final stages of the Offensive Weapons Bill.

Wrapping the day up is Conservative MP Marcus Fysh, who leads the adjournment debate on planning conditions and framework in South Somerset.

Select Committee
Parliament

The session with Michael Gove has ended and the committee is now hearing from the Chief Veterinary Officer Christine Middlemiss.

The Chief Veterinary Officer is the head of veterinary services in the UK. Similar posts exist for the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Image source, HoC

Select Committee
Parliament

The committee has now moved on to a story from the Mail on Sunday, external that Michael Gove had decided to back the PM's EU withdrawal deal because of a "doomsday scenario" briefing in which he was told the UK would "run out of drinking water in days" in the event of no deal Brexit.

Civil servants planning for no deal had apparently warned ministers that chemicals used to purify drinking water are imported from the EU and that no deal would put supplies in doubt.

Mr Gove says the story is based on "Chinese whispers" and says that the chemicals that purify water generally come into the Lincolnshire port of Immigham rather than Dover so would be less likely to be caught up in any problems than if they came through the busy Dover-Calais route.

He says that "it should be the case, in fact it will be the case that our water will be completely safe to drink" but adds it "was a potential danger but action has been taken and is being taken".

Conservative MP Caroline Johnson asks if the story is "basically untrue" and part of a "project fear" campaign to prevent Brexit.

Mr Gove says he prefers "to say that it is Chinese whispers" and goes on to deny being the source for Mail on Sunday's story.

Select Committee
Parliament

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Conservative MP Sheryll Murray comes back to the issue of fishing.

She says she's been sent a picture today of a fishing boat in Plymouth with sea bass on deck that they will have to throw away because they do not have the quota to bring it onshore.

She says she's "very angry" and that the boat will be throwing away "almost £10,000 back into the sea" while "Mr Macron's fishing fleet" would be able to take the same fish back to France.

She adds that although UK boats have the right to fish in EU waters, EU fishermen take "five times" more from UK waters than UK vessels take from other EU member states. She asks repeatedly for "guarantees" that it will end.

Mr Gove reiterates his points about the UK being an "independent coastal state" from 2021 and that in the event of the backstop being used EU fishing vessels would have no access to UK waters.

Mrs Murray says the fishing industry "really don't trust you to deliver".

Select Committee
Parliament

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The hearing has started with discussion of fishing after Brexit. Conservative MP Sheryll Murray says the upshot of the Brexit agreement due to be voted on by Parliament is that fishermen will "definitely" have to operate under the current system for an additional 20 months despite having left the European Union, with the possibility of extension beyond that.

Michael Gove says that Britain will begin negotiating as "an independent coastal state" by the end of 2020 for fishing rights in 2021.

Committee chair Neil Parish asks if there will definitely be an "improvement for fishing capacity" in 2021 for British fishermen.

The Environment Secretary says there will be and adds that if the backstop comes into force, EU ships will have no access to UK fishing waters.

Sheryll Murray, whose South East Cornwall constituency includes a number of traditional fishing villages, cuts in to say this is true, "unless we give in, which we did in 1972", when the UK signed up to the Common Fisheries Policy.

Welcome to our coverage of Wednesday in Parliament.

Coming up at 9.30am: Environment Secretary Michael Gove is answering questions from MPs on the Environment Committee about his department's preparations for Brexit.

Select Committee
Parliament

Home Secretary Sajid Javid has told MPs the long-awaited immigration white paper will be published shortly.

He told the Home Affairs Committee he "hoped" it would be before the vote on the prime minister's proposed Brexit deal - the "meaningful vote" - on 11 December.

Mr Javid said: "The government hasn't set a final publication date for the white paper. I would certainly expect it by the end of this year, in December."

Mr Javid did not comment on reports that the proposals in the white paper are at the centre of a Cabinet dispute.

House of Lords
Parliament

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Labour peer Lord Hunt of Kings Heath is now introducing amendment 140 which would force the government to publish a report listing the names of organisations consulted by the government in preparation of the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Bill since 13 March 2017.

He says he believes the government are "embarrassed" about the low level of consultation which they undertook, which "reflects the rushed nature of this bill".

Lord Hunt adds that this bill is "crying out for pre-legislative scrutiny" and says "it is a matter of regret that no select committee considered this bill before it reached committee stage in the Lords."

Health Minister Lord O'Shaughnessy says the government has engaged with care providers and third sector organisations and formed a list of these "which can be distributed", but this does not need to be part of the bill.

He says he accepts the concern that the government "have moved too swiftly with this bill, but there was an urgent need for reform as the system wasn't working, and we have listened to concerns".

The amendments are withdrawn and the Mental Capacity (Amendment) Bill passes its report stage.

Select Committee
Parliament

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The committee has moved on to the case of Asia Bibi, the Christian woman sentenced to death in Pakistan for blasphemy who was acquitted last month.

She is now living in hiding in Pakistan and wants to leave the country. Sajid Javid says that "several countries" have made offers to give her and her family asylum, but they are "waiting for the end of the legal process in Pakistan".

Conservative MP Rehman Chisti, who has campaigned on behalf of the Bibi family since 2012, says the family "made it quite clear to me" that Canada made an offer to the family but expresses his disappointment that the UK did not make a similar offer. He says the "only thing that's stopping her leaving [Pakistan] is a country stepping up to the plate".

Sajid Javid praises Mr Chisti for his campaigning and says it must be frustrating to see her "so close to being completely safe". He says he can't say much about specific cases but "can assure you it is being taken very, very seriously".

House of Lords
Parliament

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Shadow health spokesperson Baroness Thornton stands to move amendment 103 which says that a consultation be carried out on a person's care if a family member or an interested person so wishes.

She says this amendment allows an individual to review a care plan if they feel necessary, and "creates transparency in the system".

Health Minister Lord O'Shaughnessy says "it is necessary for anyone with a reasonable care in a cared-for person to be able to lodge a review request" but "what she is asking for is already contained in the bill in numerous places".

Baroness Thornton agrees to withdraw the amendment.

House of Lords
Parliament

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Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Barker introduces amendment 89 which ensures that practicable, less restrictive options that would meet the authorisation condition are explored over time if a cared-for person's condition or needs change.

She says it is too important "to be stuck at the back of a bill in a code of conduct".

Crossbench peer Baroness Finlay says she supports this amendment as the "cared-for person should be kept empowered as far as possible".

Shadow health spokesperson Baroness Thornton says she too agrees with this amendment.

Health Minister Lord O'Shaughnessy says "a necessary and proportionate test which assures that less restrictive measures are explored is already in the bill", and he urges Baroness Barker to remove the amendment.

Baroness Barker agrees to withdraw her amendment.

Select Committee
Parliament

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Committee chair Yvette Cooper is asking how long it will take to get a security treaty with the EU sorted out after Brexit, and if it can be done by the end of the transition period, currently slated to end at the end of 2020.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid says "we have our plans, but we are reliant on working together with our European partners on this" and says there's lots to consider on the other side including EU elections, due in June 2019 and the formation of a new commission.

Yvette Cooper says "realistically you don't stand any chance of getting this through by December 2020" because it would need to be ratified individually by all 27 member states.

She says the government will need to extend transition or have some kind of contingency.

"I don't agree with anything you've just said," says Mr Javid, adding that Ms Cooper is "looking at historically what the EU has done" and not appreciating that a security partnership between the UK and EU starts from a position where "we're already aligned".

House of Commons
Parliament

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Foreign Office Minister Mark Field says he does not have control of the foreign secretary's diary, but he will be well aware that the debate is taking place.

He says he will make representations to Jeremy Hunt to meet Mr Johal's family and Martin Docherty-Hughes.

Jagtar Singh Johal's case is one that he is very aware of, he says, and has been a "priority" for him. Concerns have been raised directly with the Indian prime minister, as well as the Indian High Commissioner and others, including by Theresa May.

Consular staff have been working to support Mr Johal, visiting him 15 times since his arrest, and one of their key concerns has been the allegations of torture and maltreatment, he says.

The Indian authorities reject the allegations but the UK government still takes them very seriously, he adds.

He says everyone is delighted with the release of Matthew Hedges, but it is unfair to compare cases when there are clearly different circumstances for every case.

In the case of Mr Johal, he says the government is doing all they can to support him and his family. That today's debate is taking place will make clear to the Indian authorities that they will continue to raise concerns until progress is made.

With that, MPs adjourn for the day.

Select Committee
Parliament

Stephen Doughty asks if the political declaration attached to the EU withdrawal agreement makes the UK "more safe, as safe or less safe".

Mr Javid says "as far as security is concerned it's a good outcome" adding, under further questioning, that "it's not a question of more safe, less safe...I am absolutely confident that this country will remain one of the safest in the world".

Select Committee
Parliament

Labour's Stephen Doughty asks about Theresa May's comments about EU migrants being "queue jumpers".

Sajid Javid says the prime minister was "right to say she'd used to wrong language...EU citizens are not queue jumpers at all, they're using the rights that they earned".

Mrs May has since said she regretted using the phrase.

House of Lords
Parliament

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Liberal Democrat peer Baroness Barker rises to table amendments 61 and 67 which call for the conditions of a care plan arrangement to be monitored over time.

She says this will ensure there is "an ongoing duty for care managers to revisit people whose care plan arrangements are likely to change to ensure it is still the least intrusive option".

She says "we must recognise that no one has a crystal ball and we cannot predict what is going to happen, so plans should be monitored."

Crossbench peer Baroness Finlay says if cared-for persons improve or deteriorate over time "they must be reassessed", and this must be "explicitly laid out by the government in the bill to avoid uncertainty".

Shadow health spokesperson Baroness Thornton says she supports these amendments "as conditions for review must be set and met to offer cared-for persons the best care possible".

Health Minister Lord O'Shaughnessy says the accompanying code to the bill will list factors which trigger a reassessment of an individual if their condition changes, and urges these amendments to be removed as "the system already allows for monitoring".

The amendments are withdrawn.

Select Committee
Parliament

Still on immigration, Committee Chair Yvette Cooper asks if the government still wants to get net migration down to tens of thousands a year and Mr Javid confirms that the government is "committed to the policy that was in its manifesto".

Yvette Cooper asks that, since net migration from the EU is 230,000 a year, does that mean he's aiming for, for EU nationals, net emigration of 130,000? And will the immigration white paper aim for net migration of tens of thousands too?

Mr Javid says "what we set out was an aspiration" to get migration to "more sustainable levels...that is government policy".

Yvette Cooper asks the question repeatedly and asks if the aim of the new migration system will be to bring the numbers down but Mr Javid refuses to go any further.

"I think I've answered the question," he says.

"I think you really, really haven't," says Ms Cooper.

MPs had used an Labour opposition day debate to force the government to publish the legal advice provided by the Attorney General to the government regarding Brexit.

The humble address motion passed without a vote after Conservative MPs abstained.

House of Commons
Parliament

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Today's adjournment debate is led by SNP MP Martin Docherty-Hughes and concerns the arrest and detention of his constituent Jagtar Singh Johal in India.

Jagtar Singh Johal, who was born in Scotland and is a British citizen, is one of 10 men accused of being involved in the murder of Hindu nationalist leader Ravinder Gosain.

His family have said he was a peaceful activist and not a militant.

Mr Docherty-Hughes describes how Mr Johal was tortured after his arrest, as well as being threatened with being shot dead or burnt alive.

He says the government have not supported attempts by himself or Mr Johal's family to meet with officials - the foreign secretary has not yet met with them - whilst there are consistent issues with consular support.

He does not disagree with India's rights to apply their laws, he says, but his duty to his constituent is to point out the seriousness of the allegations against Mr Johal and suggest that their commitment to liberal democratic values are being called into question.

He calls for Jagtar Singh Johal to either receive a "fair, transparent trial", or to be released.

There are more MPs in the chamber then there usually are for an adjournment debate, and a number make interventions to support Mr Docherty-Hughes' comments and to express their surprise at insufficient response by the government on the issue.

SNP MP Drew Hendry points out the haste with which the Foreign Office has worked to secure Matthew Hedges' release in the UAE and contrasts that with Mr Johal's case. A number of others stress the need for a proper trial to take place.