House of Commons
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Labour MP Caroline Flint - who supports the government's deal - says she welcomes a "pledge to introduce an environment bill that will enhance and not reduce standards".

She asks the prime minister if he will write "a non-regression clause" into the bill to ensure environmental standards do not slip after Brexit.

"I can indeed make that commitment," replies Mr Johnson.

He also tells MPs the government's "environment bill will set up legally binding targets".

House of Commons
Parliament

DUP deputy leader Nigel Dodds says under the PM's deal, Northern Ireland will still have to apply the EU's customs legislation after Brexit.

In reply, Boris Johnson says the checks on good imported into Northern Ireland from Great Britain amount to "light touch measures".

He adds that they will "automatically dissolve" after the initial period - set to be after 2025 - unless the Northern Irish Assembly votes to keep them.

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Image source, HoC

Labour MP Melanie Onn says there is "a fundamental issue of trust in his [the prime minister's] word".

She notes that Mr Johnson has said he is committed to reviewing "things like unfair dismissal protections".

She asks him to write into the bill the date when a consultation into such protections will begin.

The prime minister says the business secretary will write to MPs with more details.

House of Commons
Parliament

"This House will be free to legislate for the highest possible standards," says the prime minister.

"Let me stress nothing in this bill undermines workers' rights or this House's natural desire to protect our environment."

But Labour MP Tracy Brabin says the bill "doesn't give us the security we need".

House of Commons
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Independent Northern Irish Unionist MP Lady Sylvia Hermon intervenes on the prime minister.

"Do not take the people of Northern Ireland for fools," she says.

"We are not fools."

She tells the prime minister "not a single sentence" in the Withdrawal Agreement Bill explains the proposed new consent process for Northern Ireland would work.

Mr Johnson needs to explain in detail how new consent mechanism operates, she adds.

A No 10 source tells the BBC: "If Parliament votes again for delay by voting down the programme motion, and the EU offers delay until 31 January, then we will pull the bill".

"There will be no further business for Parliament and we'll move to an election before Christmas, if necessary by a vote of no confidence, if the Fixed Term Parliaments Act fails.

"We won’t waste further months with this Parliament trying to waste 2020 on referendums on Brexit and Scotland".

The BBC's Laura Kuenssberg understands the government will abandon efforts to get its Brexit deal legislation through if MPs vote against the timetable this evening.

If the EU the offers a delay, as is expected, the government will try to push straight for a general election and would not put any more legislation through, essentially going on strike, she says.

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Parliament

Image source, HoC

Boris Johnson says the bill will deliver sovereignty to the British people.

Former Conservative MP Dominic Grieve asks how the arrangements for Northern Ireland "can be squared" with this promise.

Mr Johnson replies: "Yes of course, there are transitory arrangements for some aspects of the Northern Ireland economy.

"But those automatically dissolve after four years unless it is the majority decision of the assembly to remain in alignment with those arrangements."

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"I believe if we do pass this deal and the legislation that enables it, we can turn the page and allow this Parliament and this country to begin to heal and unite," says the prime minister.

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Parliament

Image source, Parliament

The PM says the bill will "allow to the UK to leave the EU on 31 October".

He adds he that he wishes "the decision had been taken through a meaningful vote on Saturday".

He says the government has "accelerated" planning for a no-deal exit.

Boris Johnson gets to his feet to open the debate on the Withdrawal Agreement Bill.

BBC Radio 5 Live

Image source, UK Parliament

The Withdrawal Agreement Bill is "eerily similar" to Theresa May's deal, says former Tory MP Steve Brine - adding that he will support a three-day timetable to scrutinise the legislation.

He says MPs who argue they need longer to be convinced to support the bill are "big-time grandstanding".

"There are so many people who are saying, 'if only we debated this until the end of November' or whatever. But they've already gone public and said they were going to vote against this," he says.

"They're not going to support it in a million years."

A no-deal Brexit is more likely if MPs reject the proposed three-day timetable for the passage of the Withdrawal Agreement Bill through Parliament, Number 10 has warned.

"Voting down a programme motion has serious implications," the PM's official spokesman said.

"It means legislation can drift on and on and that is not in the interests of the UK or the European Union which has made clear itself that it wishes to move on."

Asked if voting down the motion would lead to a Brexit delay, he said: "Voting down the programme motion risks handing control over the situation to the European Union and therefore making no-deal more likely."

The spokesman would not comment on what the government might do if MPs do not back the programme motion.

"We would set that out in due course so what we're focused on is first winning support for a deal," he said.

"If MPs do finally vote for a deal the public will rightly expect them to get on with passing the legislation so that we can leave on 31 October."

Image source, AFP

The prime minister has left Downing Street via the back entrance.

The Regulatory Policy Committee, which advises the government, says the bill's impact assessment "could benefit from improved evidence"., external

Citing the committee - an independent body sponsored by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy - Luciana Berger asks why this has not been provided.

BBC News Channel

One Brexit expert suggests the former prime minister would have rejoiced at the prospect of Parliament approving a Brexit deal in principle.

Joe Owen, who leads Brexit research at the independent think-tank, the Institute for Government says: "Theresa May would have killed for this opportunity, for MPs to say 'Yes in principle, but let's work through some amendments.'"

Mrs May resigned earlier this year after MPs repeatedly rejected her Brexit deal.

One of the Tory rebels says he is "pausing for thought" before committing to backing Mr Johnson's deal.

Steven Brine MP, independent, resigned his position as health minister and lost the party whip as a result of his lack of support in a government vote.

Brandishing the 110-page bill, he says there is "a lot in here to be commended", adding: "This is not no-deal, it's a deal."