As it happened: Brexit bill debated in Lords

1. Parliamentary day in Commons began with education questions
2. MPs finished the Queen's Speech debate
3. House of Lords examined Brexit bill at report stage
4. Votes took place on proposed changes to bill from peers

Keir Starmer secures place on Labour leadership ballot

The Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers (Usdaw) is backing Sir Keir Starmer to be the next Labour leader.

The shadow Brexit secretary, therefore, has the support required - three unions/affiliate groups representing 5% of the membership - to get to the final stage of the contest.

He is the first candidate to cross the threshold and secure a place on the ballot paper that will go out to all Labour members.

Read the full story here.

Usdaw has also given its support to deputy leadership candidate Angela Rayner.

Over in the Commons...

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Meanwhile, the Commons is back to debating the Queen's Speech, with Labour's shadow chancellor, John McDonnell, calling it "crushingly disappointing".

He says the plans laid out by government "fail to reverse the decade of austerity.. it fails to tackle insecure work, it fails to end in-work poverty, it fails to introduce a real living wage and, I think worst of all, fails to address the brutal hardship caused by Universal Credit introduced by this government".

He adds that the country is facing a "twin emergency", both a climate emergency and a social emergency "resulting from a decade of harsh austerity and decline".

Before the debate began, Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick gave a statement saying the government will begin naming the owners of high-rise buildings who’ve been slow to remove dangerous cladding.

The latest figures show that work has yet to start on 157 residential buildings with the same type of cladding identified as a factor in the Grenfell Tower fire.

Mr Jenrick said: “Unless swift progress is seen in the coming weeks, I will publicly name building owners where action to remediate unsafe ACM cladding has not started.

“There can be no more excuses for delay, I’m demanding immediate action.”

Lord Howarth: 'Bad for trust between politics and people'

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Labour peer Lord Howarth attacks the government use of so-called "Henry VIII powers" - allowing ministers to make changes to legislation without Parliament's consent - as an "endemic vice".

Backing Lady Hayter's amendments, he says he accepts it "isn't the very intention" for the government to amend the devolution settlements with areas of the UK.

But he adds: "It is nonetheless offensive in principle to take such powers, and it doesn't need to be done.

"Governments seem to think its expedience but it is actually very bad for the trust between Parliament and the executive, and bad for the trust between politics and the people."

Lord Oates: 'Disappointed' at Tories voting down amendment

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Lord Oates put forward his amendment earlier

Liberal Democrat Lord Oates is celebrating his win after peers voted in favour of his amendment to give physical documentation to EU citizens - the first government defeat since Boris Johnson won the election in December.

But he expresses sadness at the number of Tory peers who did not break with the government line to back it.

He says: "This amendment simply seeks to uphold the promise repeatedly made by Boris Johnson that the rights of EU citizens to remain in the UK would be automatically guaranteed. "It would remove the risk that those who failed to meet the cut off deadline would be automatically criminalised and subject to deportation."

Lord Oates adds: "It was very disappointing to see the Conservatives vote against protecting the rights of millions of people who contribute so much to our society, our economy and our communities."

Lady Hayter: Government plans 'fuels suspicion'

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Labour peer Lady Hayter is next up with her amendments.

She says they are all being tabled "for the same reason", adding: "The government seems to like deciding things for itself with no reference to Parliament, which is possibly why it wants to shove us up to York where our voice won't be heard as loudly as it would in Westminster."

She is speaking on amendments to stop the government changing anything to do with the Northern Ireland protocol or the Government of Wales Act 2006 without votes in the relevant assemblies, and to limit the government's regulation-making powers without Commons scrutiny.

Lady Hayter says ignoring these "fuels suspicion" about what the government plans to do, and would lead to "a constitutional landmark and a bad one".

Lord Hutton: Concerns over citizens' rights body

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Labour's Lord Hutton proposes his amendment to the Brexit bill.

The withdrawal agreement requires the UK to establish a new independent body to monitor the implementation of citizens' right after the UK leaves the EU.

Lord Hutton says that body will have a "central role to play" to ensure the UK "meets its international obligations", and it will go "right to the heart of our standing as a nation".

His says his main concern is that the current agreement "appears to place administrative convenience ahead of proper enforcement of citizens' rights" by not making it clear the majority of members need to be non-executive.

But government minister Lord Callanan says the amendment "undermines the government's approach".

He says they have introduced a number of requirements "inline with governmental public bodies", including the "important principle" that it must contain more non executives, and the secretary of state will do this "as far as possible".

Despite his concerns, Lord Hutton withdraws the amendment so it won't go forward for a vote.

What did peers vote for?

This is the first defeat for Boris Johnson's government in Parliament since the election - and it's on an amendment to the Withdrawal Agreement bill, concerning the rights of EU citizens.

Peers will continue voting on amendments throughout report stage in the Lords today and tomorrow.

Government defeated over amendment

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The government is defeated as the Lords vote to back an amendment to give physical documentation to EU citizens.

A total of 270 peers voted in favour of the amendment, while 229 voted against.

This is the first defeat in Parliament for Boris Johnson since his election in December.

Lords vote on physical documentation amendment

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The Lords is now voting on amendment one - calling for physical documentation for EU citizens (rather than just digital) and for a declaratory registration of citizens.

Unlike the Commons, where the government has a majority of 80, the result is less certain among peers.

Government rejects physical document amendment

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For the government, Baroness Williams says the government rejects the amendment put forward for physical documentation for EU citizens.

She says the peers backing the amendment "continue to press for this chance in the belief it will reassure EU citizens" but, she claims, the government "already provided this certainty" through their settlement scheme, "not as a proposal but something that is up and running".

She adds: "Fundamentally changing a system that is working well would have the opposite effect of what they are trying to achieve with this amendment".

The minister also claims such an approach "could lead to EU citizens who had not applied suffering inadvertent discrimination to those who had".

She says the government is receiving 20,000 applications a day, and is working with communities to "raise awareness and keep up momentum".

Lord Carlile: 'Avoid the distress'

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Lord Carlile tells his colleagues it is "wise to address and solve problems before they occur".

He says in his time as the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation, he "often stood at border posts and sea ports, watching people stopped for no reason".

He adds: "One saw the shades of emotion, ranging from real distress to acquiescence."

The former Lib Dem MP, who is now a crossbench peer, says the amendment put forward by Lord Oates and others is a "simple measure that would avoid the distress... and solve a problem that is bound to occur if we don't solve it now".

Lord Oates: Bill 'not a partisan matter'

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The first to speak in the debate is Liberal Democrat Lord Oates.

He backs the amendment calling for that physical documentation for EU citizens - rather than just digital - and for a declaratory registration of citizens.

He says: "I want to be clear at the outset. This is not a partisan matter, an attempt in any way to challenge Brexit, to frustrate this bill or change substance of rights.

"What it seeks to do is simply to ensure the scheme will work effectively [and stop] the plethora of problems that will, on the current basis, be encountered by the government and citizens".

He adds: "It is a debate about people's lives, the deep and genuine concerns of EU citizens over the scheme.

"It is in the hands of the government to allay these concerns by accepting this amendment. I appeal to the minister and the government... to try and walk a little in the shoes of those who are subject to the scheme who have indicated their deep concerns".

Lords now debating Brexit bill

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Peers have now moved on to the main business of the day.

The Brexit Bill – officially known as the European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill – will have two days of debate in the Lords known as the “report stage”.

The topics they will focus on this afternoon include citizens’ rights, Northern Ireland and the courts.

It is during this time that peers can vote for amendments to the bill as well - the proposals have already been discussed in the Committee stage last week.

There are 28 being put forward over the next 48 hours, but ones to keep an eye on include an attempt to strengthen EU citizens’ rights by providing physical documentation to prove the right to residence, and cross-party amendments that aim to limit ministers’ powers to have control over when and whether courts and tribunals have to follow EU decisions.

Lord Kirkhope: Move the Commons too

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Conservative peer Lord Kirkhope, who used to represent Yorkshire in the European Parliament, says the people of Yorkshire "woke up to the excitement" of the possibility of having Parliament in the North of England on Sunday, only for it to be "somewhat sullied by later indication that it was only the House of Lords".

He says York would welcome the Lords with open arms, but suggests the government "looks carefully" for a new location for the Commons too, perhaps Glasgow or Edinburgh, for the sake of "national unity".

Lord Howe still gives nothing away, adding merely that he "felt sure all sorts of useful ideas would come from this debate".

Archbishop: 'Very serious threat to our democratic processes'

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The newly appointed Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell, says he found himself taking particular interest in this question...

"Perhaps I could put on record that later this year I will have a large garden available in York where a suitable marquee could be erected for these purposes," he jokes.

But taking a more serious tone, he says: "Some of the most important business we do in this House is not in the chamber but in the corridors.

"It seems to me to be a very serious threat to our democratic processes if we are not in the same place (as MPs)."

But again, Lord Howe steps back from the newspaper reports, and says he is "not sure how far the idea has progressed".

Lord Wallace: Government 'not thought this through'

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Liberal Democrat peer Lord Wallace questions the "depth of research" done by the government into this.

He says the briefing to the Sunday Times, which first reported the potential move, said it would take less than three hours to travel between London and the proposed new location of York.

But having taken the same trip himself, it took him less than two hours.

"It does suggest the government hasn't really thought this through very much," adds Lord Wallace.

In response, Lord Howe says the government "has an aspiration that all parts of the United Kingdom should feel connected to politics and politicians".

And he dismissed the criticism, saying: "Should the idea of relocating be taken forward, I'm sure all logistical aspects will be examined."

Government 'committed to looking at role' of Lords

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Lord Foulkes asks the question that must have been on the minds of peers as news broke over the weekend - "what consideration is being given to relocating the House of Lords outside London?"

The government's minister, Lord Howe, says the Conservative manifesto "committed to looking at the role" of the House of Lords but it had "not yet decided what would be in the scope of the commission".

Lord Foulkes, a Labour peer, wasn't that impressed with the answer.

"That doesn't answer the question. Can the minister confirm the reports that No 10 has said this is a serious proposal? No 10 also said it is one of a range of options, what are the options?"

But again, the minister says nothing has been decided.

When did Parliament sit outside London?

After reports that the government is examining whether to move the House of Lords out of London, journalists and organisations who are experts in the history of Parliament have been excelling themselves...

And what's on in the House of Lords?

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The Lords will also kick off just after 14:30 GMT with a number of oral questions, including on human rights in Kashmir and a Holocaust memorial.

Peers will then move onto the question of their own relocation, before moving to the Brexit bill debate.

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Statement on building safety to come...

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The Commons will kick off just after 14:30 GMT with education questions.

A statement has been added to the order paper from Housing Secretary Robert Jenrick on building safety.

And then MPs will move onto the main business of the day - discussing the economy and jobs in the Queen's Speech debate.