House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

In response to a question from Lib Dem Tom Brake about the use of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, Jeremy Hunt says the UK's position on the death penalty has not changed and that the government are talking to Saudi Arabia about their approach to human rights.

"We continue to make representations on all cases of the death penalty in Saudi Arabia, but because it is connected to Sharia Law, we think it's unlikely Saudi Arabia will change their mind," he adds.

Mr Hunt says 50 Houthi rebels were air lifted to Oman last week which was "the crucial condition for peace talks starting in Stockholm tomorrow".

Shadow Foreign Office minister Fabian Hamilton asks how many of the 17 individuals being held captive in Saudi Arabia were present during the killing of journalist Jamal Kashoggi.

Jeremy Hunt says the government is working with officials to ensure all those responsible for the killing of Jamal Kashoggi are held responsible.

House of Commons
Parliament

Shadow foreign secretary Emily Thornberry says Mr Hunt has previously said he couldn't make a decision on the EU withdrawal deal without seeing the full legal advice.

This is an entirely rational position, she says, but asks why shouldn't that apply to the whole of Parliament?

Jeremy Hunt says the full publication of legal advice would make the practical work of government "utterly impossible".

He adds that the government are committed to delivering Brexit, which Labour are not.

Anyone expecting to see a minister in leg irons is going to be disappointed - so what could happen over the cross-party motion to find ministers in contempt of Parliament?

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Labour MP Vicky Foxcroft kicks off today's questions to Foreign and Commonwealth ministers, asking what recent discussions the government has had with its European counterparts on continued diplomatic co-operation after the UK leaves the EU.

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt says he has discusssed post-Brexit diplomatic co-operation with his German and French counterparts and that he is "confident" that positive work will continue post-Brexit.

"We have built up a strong relationship with EU members over the years and I am confident that it is in everyone's interest that this continues," he adds.

Labour MP Stephen Doughty says the deal "would undermine Britain's diplomatic position in the world".

Mr Hunt says "the UK has been one of the leading voices among EU voices on foreign policy issues and we will continue to do so."

Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee Tom Tugendhat says we must work together to help Ukraine "who are under very severe threat from an aggressive neighbour".

Jeremy Hunt says "on an issue like Ukraine we must stand full square with our friends which we have been doing" and that "there is unity among the UN that Russia's actions were wrong".

The Bank of England governor tells MPs food prices could rise 5-10% if there is no Brexit deal.

How the House of Commons explained the decision by the Speaker, John Bercow, that there should be a debate on the motion that the government has committed contempt of Parliament, by not complying with a demand by MPs to publish full Brexit legal advice.

House of Commons
Parliament

The Speaker responded to letters from opposition parties accusing the government of contempt of Parliament last night.

Labour, the Liberal Democrats, SNP, Plaid Cymru, the Greens and the DUP called on John Bercow to give 'precedence' to their motion.

The parties say the government has not revealed "the final and full advice provided by the Attorney General to the cabinet" which was what the House voted for on 13 November.

The Attorney General made a statement on legal advice yesterday.

Mr Bercow was satisfied, "there is an arguable case" that a contempt of Parliament has been committed.

The government has added an amendment to the motion of contempt, which MPs will be debating later today.

The government amendment would refer the case to the Standards Committee.

The debate is likely to start around 12.50pm, providing there are no urgent questions or statements today.

Select Committee
Parliament

Labour MP Wes Streeting asks how comfortable the panel would be from “a financial stability point of view” with a Norway model for Brexit.

Deputy Governor for Financial Stability Sir Jon Cunliffe replies the UK's financial sector is 20 times bigger than Norway’s and “much more complex”.

The Norway scenario would be “quite uncomfortable”, he says.

Image source, PA

Mark Carney says cars will cost more post Brexit, but at this stage it's difficult to say by how much.

"The direction of travel is clear. The size [of the price increase] will depend on the nature of the withdrawal," he says.

Select Committee
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Labour’s Rushanara Ali says the governor told the committee in a previous session that a trade deal would take four years and if the backstop is “inevitable”.

Mark Carney replies that the experience of advanced economy trade deals has averaged four years, including on average the implementation.

“We are not party to negotiations,” he adds.

Ms Ali says it “would follow” that if the deal takes as long as four years it would lead to the backstop.

If trade negotiations take four years, it would use up the time of the two year extension to the implementation period, Mr Carney replies.

Select Committee
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Chair of the committee Nicky Morgan asks what the “probability” is of a disorderly or disruptive Brexit.

It is a “low probability that all of these events would happen at the same time”, replies Mr Carney.

The Governor speaks about a number of factors including formal trade barriers, shorter term disruptions, logistical disruption, a severe market reaction and a shock to confidence.

The committee is better placed on probability of a no deal scenario, he adds.

It's a busy day coming up in Westminster - later Theresa May will begin the first of five days of debate on her Brexit deal ahead of next week's big vote in the Commons.

However this morning, MPs on the Treasury Committee are putting questions on Brexit to officials from the Bank of England, including Governor Mark Carney.

The committee will later be questioning representatives from various government departments.

It comes after last week the Bank warned that no-deal Brexit could send the pound plunging and trigger a worse recession than the financial crisis.

Theresa May's deal does not affect the Good Friday Agreement "in any way", states government legal advice.

House of Commons
Parliament

That's it for our coverage of the Commons and Lords today.

Earlier today Home Office ministers faced questions on police funding, before Theresa May made a ministerial statement on this weekend's G20 Summit in Buenos Aires.

After this, Attorney General Geoffrey Cox delivered a statement on his Brexit legal advice, which led to calls from numerous MPs for the legal advice given to the Cabinet to be published in full before the meaningful vote next Tuesday.

At the close of the statement, shadow solicitor general Nick Thomas-Symonds announced that leaders of the opposition parties had written to the Speaker asking for a debate on whether the government refusing to honour the motion of the House calling for the full legal advice to be presented is a matter of contempt.

The Speaker said he would carefully consider the case and deliver his verdict later tonight or first thing tomorrow.

Join us at 11.30am tomorrow for questions to Foreign and Commonwealth Office ministers, before the first of five days of debate on the meaningful vote.

The theme for the opening day will be immigration, which, in the absence of the long-awaited white paper setting out the government vision for a post-Brexit immigration policy, may be tricky for ministers.

House of Lords
Parliament

Earlier today, the government was defeated in the Lords over amendments to the Counter-Terrorism and Border Security Bill.

Labour and Lib Dem peers backed a move to introduce stronger safeguards for aid workers, journalists and others who legitimately travel to trouble spots abroad.

The government had put forward their own concessionary amendment, which Earl Howe said provided "further assurance" that those with a legitimate reason in entering an area would have a reasonable excuse.

But Labour disagreed, arguing the list tabled did not provide adequate protection for those with a legitimate reason or those employing them. They argued that the opposition amendment would minimise any difficulties by stating that such workers would not be committing an offence.

The amendment was approved by 220 votes to 191, a majority of 29.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

SNP MP Stephen Gethins is now introducing his adjournment debate on Scotland's foreign policy footprint.

He says Scotland has a significant foreign policy footprint, and that in recent years "Scotland has been recognised around the world for its work on issues such as climate change and conflict resolution."

"The Foreign Ooffice should consider how it can work to harness this considerable resource," he says.

Mr Gethins says it would be "so wrong" to underestimate Scotland’s global brand contribution to foreign policy over recent years, "or indeed its still untapped potential".

He adds that "be it the refugee and migrant crisis, gender issues, human rights, social justice or environmental concerns,on so many fronts Scots are taking a fresh look at where they stand and how they compare to others."

Image source, HoC

Home Office Minister Ben Wallace wraps up the debate on the bill.

"Bureaucracy prevents us getting to the heart of an investigation sooner and puts more children at risk," he says, "the longer it takes, the longer these criminals are able to carry on offending."

He says he is happy to consider and discuss the issues raised by the opposition when the bill enters committee stage. He says he understands concerns around the death penalty, and this highlights the need to balance between human rights and security.

Both this government and the previous Labour government recognise however that there are exceptional circumstances whereby assurances need not be sought about the death penalty, he adds.

The bill is an enabling bill for future agreements, he says, and both Houses of Parliament will get the opportunity to scrutinise these agreements individually.

The bill passes second reading without division, and will now receive further scrutiny in committee.

MPs subsequently begin the adjournment debate, which tonight is led by SNP MP Stephen Gethins and focuses on the Scottish foreign policy footprint.

House of Lords
Parliament

The government spokesperson Lord Keen of Elie says he will not comment on leaks that may or may not have been made, and may or may not have been accurate.

He says he will not comment on possible correspondence between the attorney general and Cabinet.

The backstop should never be required, he says, and the government is seeking a deal that means it will not be needed. There is no unilateral right to withdraw from the backstop, he says, "but that is not the end of the story".

It is not a case of being locked into the backstop with the EU holding the key, he says, as they have their own legal requirements which they must meet, including acting in good faith.

"I don't believe two bodies such as the European Union and the United Kingdom would act in a way in which over a period of time one or other is not going to act in good faith and not do their best efforts to reach an alternative agreement," he says.

House of Lords
Parliament

Over in the Lords, peers are reacting to a repeat of the statement made by the attorney general on the legal advice he gave to the government on EU withdrawal.

Government spokesman Lord Keen of Elie has repeated the statement, and is now responding to questions.

Shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti says it's entirely unacceptable that peers and MPs are left asking questions on a piece of legal advice that they have not read, and even more unacceptable that parts of it were "selectively leaked" to the press at the weekend.

She says it is for MPs to rule whether there has been a contempt of Parliament committed, but all on her side believe all information should be available before the "meaningful vote", which includes the legal advice in its entirety.