House of Lords
Parliament

Image source, HoL

Conservative Earl Attlee asks when the government plans to deploy a largely full framed and supported division into the field for divisional movement and manoeuvre training.

Defence Minister Earl Howe says the army has a "substantial and sophisticated exercise programme in place" to ensure that the army is well prepared. He adds there are no plans to deploy military exercises in the field.

Earl Attlee asks if it is not appropriate to have some practices due to the current state of world affairs.

Earl Howe says that it is highly unlikely that the UK would enter into combat without another internationally recognised force, and does regular training with other forces.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

In opposition to the tne minute rule bill, the Conservative MP Sir Hugo Swire says the British government has already agreed to a review of the Palestinian curriculum and that the government should wait for that to run its course.

According to the Department of International Development, no money goes to fund educational materials that incite violence in Palestinian Authority schools, he says, noting that a US state study found that demonising is rare in both Palestinian and Israeli textbooks.

Sir Hugo Swire says to withdrawl funding from schools would "cause a vacuum" and "in the law of unintended consequence, we must be aware of who may fill this vacuum".

"No one would doubt that education is a major tool for international development," he adds, noting that he believes many moderate Israelis he knows "would be appalled by the suggestion that this funding ought to be cut".

He adds that this would be "a regressive step" and instead the government should help prepare for a two state solution between Israel and Palestine.

The bill passes its first reading without division.

House of Lords
Parliament

Image source, HoL

Labour's Lord Clark of Windermere asks what plans the government has to increase the number of nurses in the NHS.

Health and Social Care Minister Baroness Manzoor says that the government is "committed" to ensuring that nursing remains an "attractive" proposition for work, as well as working on working conditions and sick days to help the workforce.

Lord Clark says that district nurses have been cut by a half, and school nurses and mental health nurses have been cut by a quarter each. He asks if there is no money in the budget currently for any future staff training.

Baroness Manzoor says "there is currently a shortage of nurses in the NHS, 41,000," but she adds that government changes have allowed more than 11,000 more nurses in NHS hospitals since 2010. She adds there are over 52,000 nurses in training.

House of Commons
Parliament

Dame Louise Ellman introduces a ten minute rule bill.

Her International Development Assistance (Palestinian National Authority Schools) would prohibit funding to schools operated by the Palestinian National Authority that do not promote values endorsed by the UNESCO.

She says her bill calls for current UK funding in Palestinian Authority schools to be used to promote peace.

"The reality is over 20 of those schools in the West Bank and Gaza are named after Palestinian terrorists or Nazi collaborators," she says, adding that children are being taught to hate.

Dame Louise Ellman says for a settlement between Israel and Palestine to succeed, "young people must support peaceful methods to obtain that end".

"Teaching undermines this effort," she adds, calling for a government review of teaching practices in Palestinian Authority schools to take place as soon as possible.

"Messages of hate must stop, and children must be promoted to support peace."

House of Lords
Parliament

Image source, HoL

Labour former defence secretary Lord West of Spithead asks how many F-35B jets will make up the Operational Conversion Unit, and when the OCU will have its full complement of aircraft.

OCUs are used in air forces in order to provide specific trained personnel to help in training pilots. The government has started taking orders of the jet.

Defence Minister Earl Howe says the squadron will support five aircraft, and will be expanded by 2023.

He adds that two squadrons will eventually support as many as 36 F-35 aircraft.

Select Committee
Parliament

• Tom Tugendhat (Chair) - Conservative
• Ian Austin - Labour
• Chris Bryant - Labour
• Ann Clwyd - Labour
• Mike Gapes - Labour (Co-op)
• Stephen Gethins - Scottish National Party
• Ian Murray - Labour
• Priti Patel - Conservative
• Andrew Rosindell - Conservative
• Bob Seely - Conservative
• Royston Smith - Conservative

Select Committee
Parliament

Image source, Getty

Over in the committee rooms, the Foreign Affairs Committee will shortly be kicking off their evidence session with experts on China and the international rules-based system.

The committee will be hearing from two panels, the first of which begins at 2.45pm:

• Professor Eva Pils - Professor of Law, Dickson Poon School of Law, King’s College London
• Paul Roseby OBE - CEO and Artistic Director, National Youth Theatre of Great Britain
• Professor Steve Tsang - Director, SOAS China Institute
• Professor Sebastian Veg - Professor of Intellectual History and Literature of 20th Century China, School of Advanced Studies in Social Sciences (EHESS), Paris

The second session, scheduled to begin at 3.45pm, features just one witness:

• Lord Patten of Barnes - Former Governor of Hong Kong

Today's hearing is part of an ongoing inquiry by the committee looking at China's role in the international rules based-system and the implications for the UK.

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour MP Danielle Rowley says following reports that Universal Credit helpline staff were using 'deflection scripts' to avoid helping people in need, she contacted government departments to ask for copies of the scripts to ensure this was not the case.

Ms Rowley says she has not received a response and the government is "flouting the mechanism that ensures that government is transparent".

She says she is entitled for this information under a freedom of information request, and asks the Speaker to help her secure a reply from the government.

The Speaker says it is up to the government to reply, but that Ms Rowley has made her point clearly.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Labour MP Paul Sweeney says the government has access to four other ferries in the UK which could be put into use, but instead has chosen to back a "risky" plan with a company with no history.

Chris Grayling says that Seaborne Freight were thoroughly looked into both by the government and independent third parties, and that "it is right to prepare for all scenarios".

He once more adds that no money will be spent unless the services are performed.

Fellow Labour MP Kevin Brennan asks the transport secretary if he can truly justify awarding this contract to a company without the facilities needed to ensure an effective service.

He questions the validity of a company who copied and pasted its terms and conditions from those commonly used for takeaway outlets, and asks if Mr Grayling's new mantra is "a meal deal's better than no deal".

Mr Grayling says he is satisfied that Seaborne Freight will have the ships to fulfil the service.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Chair of the International Trade Committee, the SNP MP Angus McNeil, asks what the fallback position is if Seaborne Freight cannot provide the services they have been contracted for.

Mr Grayling responds to say that the government has granted two larger contracts to established ferry companies, and there was "nothing to stop" the government awarding a smaller contract to a new British business.

The Speaker says he has written to the Met Police chief about the abuse of MPs outside Parliament.

House of Commons
Parliament

Labour MP Lilian Greenwood says the CEO of Seaborne Freight said yesterday he is keeping the ships, which will run a service between Ramsgate and Ostend in the event of a no-deal Brexit, "a secret", and questions whether there is "a huge question mark" over the deliverability of the service.

Chris Grayling reiterates that if Seaborne Freight do not deliver this service, "we don’t pay".

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Chair of the Exiting the EU Committee Hilary Benn asks if the company told the department which vessel it has acquired to provide the services contracted.

Mr Grayling says that the company has told the Transport Department "in great detail" about their plans.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

The SNP's transport spokesman Alan Brown says that Seaborne has "no boats" and "negative equity" of £374,000. He asks what "constitutes due dilligence".

Mr Grayling replies that the procurement was "done properly in a way that conforms with government rules".

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Shadow Transport Secretary Andy McDonald says Seaborne Freight has "no money, no ships, no track record, no employees [...] one telephone line, and no working website".

He says one of the firm's directors, Ben Sharp, is already under investigation by a government department, and asks why Deloitte and other companies were made to restrict their background analysis to Seaborne Freight, and not previous history related to the directors.

"This is a shoddy and tawdry affair, and the secretary of state is making a complete mess of it", he says.

"This contract is very likely unlawful, and violates every current best practice guidance issued by Whitehall", he adds.

In reply, Chris Grayling says there are "no reasons to believe any of those involved in this business are not fit to do business with government".

He reiterates that no money will be spent unless the ferries operate correctly.

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Transport Secretary Chris Grayling says the government is making sure the UK leaves the EU with a "sensible agreement," but he adds that the government needs to prepare for "all eventualities".

He says that the government has completed Operation Stack in order to see how future disruption at ports could affect traffic flows on roads.

The Department for Transport is working with the Port of Dover and the Channel Tunnel to ensure that both can operate at "maximum possible capacity", he says.

He adds that three contracts have been awarded to different operators: two to "established" operators, and a third to a "smaller operator", a new British firm.

He states that no money will be paid to these companies if their ships are not needed.

The government found "nothing that would prevent them from contracting with government" after vetting Seaborne Freight, he adds.

Image source, Getty Images

Labour MP Andy McDonald is now asking the second of today's urgent questions on the decision to award a contract to Seaborne Freight as part of no-deal contingency planning.

Over the Christmas break, it was announced that Seaborne Freight was given a £13.8m contract to run a freight service between Ramsgate and Ostend in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

But a BBC investigation discovered it had never run a ferry service before.

The Department for Transport has said Seaborne is contractually required to prove it can deliver on its promises, and will only be paid if it runs "an effective service".

Seaborne's contract was one of three awarded to ease "severe congestion" at Dover, in the case of a no-deal Brexit.

The contingency plans allow for almost 4,000 more lorries a week to come and go from other ports, including Plymouth, Poole, and Portsmouth.

Despite the firm previously using website terms and conditions apparently intended for a takeaway food firm, Transport Secretary Chris Grayling says the government "looked very carefully" at the business.

Last week Andy McDonald wrote a letter to Mr Grayling suggesting the company was established "in an opportunistic manner".

House of Commons
Parliament

Image source, HoC

Labour MP Debbie Abrahams says tax credit lifted 1.1 million people out of poverty, whereas Universal Credit is increasing the number of children in poverty by a million.

She calls for the government to announce greater protections within the scheme for vulnerable people.

Employment Minister Alok Sharma says since 2010, 1 million fewer people are living in poverty in the UK.

He adds that the pilot is taking place to ensure that the system is working for people as "we want to get it right".

Labour MP Neil Coyle says Universal Credit is a "colossal failure with even more colossal costs".

Mr Sharma says the government is working with health charities and others "to ensure we get this right".

House of Commons
Parliament

Conservative MP John Howell says the feedback in his constituency of Henley has been "very positive", and that this is about simplifying the system and making it work more effectively for claimants.

He asks what the government is doing to ensure that Universal Credit remains a positive experience.

Employment Minister Alok Sharma says he wishes that Labour would support the policy for the reasons Mr Howell has mentioned.

Mr Sharma says the government is continuing to liaise with companies and charities to ensure that the policy works for people, as well as investing more money into the system.