nationals' right to stay in the uk after the split. however, it is merely a setback as mp5 will be able remove the lords‘ changes when the bill returns to the house of commons. embattled french presidential candidate francois fillon has suffered another setback to his political campaign as a political ally freezes its support. it follows the revelation that mr fillon is facing a formal investigation over a fake job scandal involving his wife. he denies any wrongdoing. syrian government soldiers have entered the ancient city of palmyra three months after the so—called islamic state re—captured it from them. the city, which has both strategic and cultural importance, has changed hands several times during the conflict. it's understood the army has taken control of a western neighbourhood in the city. now it's time for a look back at the day in parliament. hello and welcome to wednesday in parliament, our look at the best

of the day in the commons and the lords. on this programme... drama in the house of lords, as the government suffers its first defeat on the bill that starts the uk's departure process from the eu. they have voted. contents, 358. not contents, 256. so the contents have it. the labour leader attacks theresa may over changes to disability benefits. this is a shameful decision that will affect people with dementia. and you wait for ages and then... why will they not let local authorities decide what's best fortheirarea? we're back to the situation where every labour councillor is trying to set up

their own bus company. lots of ideas on how to run our bus services. but first, the government has suffered a setback in the house of lords in its plans to start negotiations on leaving the eu at the end of march. peers decisively backed a labour—led amendment to guarantee the rights of eu nationals living in the uk. the defeat means the eu notification of withdrawal bill, better known as the brexit bill, will now have to return to the commons, where mps will either accept or reject the decision of peers. the crucial vote in the lords came after a three—hour debate in an unusually packed chamber. first, labour's lady hayter spoke about the interests of british citizens living in the 27 countries of the eu outside the uk. we all have heard lots of representations of the serious worries of britons who have settled abroad. they've got homes, children, jobs or lives there and they now fearfor their rights, their access to medical treatment and other services and wonder what the future holds for them. and it's not acceptable to place

such people under that pressure. and it is quite clear to everyone in this house that there is no chance that parliament would approve the expulsion of eu citizens legally resident in this country. no way! and this is understood by the government. there is no way the government would propose this so there is no danger what ever to eu citizens resident in the uk so apart from a certain amount, too much i would say, in my personal opinion, of virtue signalling, what is the purpose of this amendment? this amendment has no place in this bill whatever. in the end, this is a matter of principle. this house can, in fact, make a unilateral decision and give a unilateral guarantee and, my lords, that is what we should do. let us all remember how shocked

we were when idi amin expelled the asians from uganda. so shocked that we offered them refuge in this country. the question that your lordships have to decide this afternoon is what action to take in the light of the truth, perhaps unpalatable to many of your lordships, unpalatable to me because i have made it clear on numerous occasions that i actually favour a unilateral guarantee, that i think that is what the government should give, but nevertheless, what actions should your lordships take in the face of the unpalatable truth that the government is not going to change its mind. as we've heard, over 3 million people live in this country who are european union nationals.

it's notjust them who are experiencing anguish. it's also their family members, it's also their employers, it's also their neighbours. indeed, it affects a whole cadre of people well beyond the people themselves. and i suspect that our committee is at the receiving end of the greatest number of communications from those people about their distress, their anxiety, the fears of their children and the fears that they have as to their future. why is everybody here today so excited about this amendment which looks after the foreigners and not the british? it's true. quite right. ijust would like to point out to the noble lord that the reason that the amendment is structured as it is because we are conscious of the powers of the british government and the british government is able to determine the lives of the eu citizens

resident in this country but we are not able to determine the lives of our own citizens abroad but that does not mean to say we think any less of them and we are fighting for them. so, of course, we don't have the power to look after our citizens overseas. not in these days when we don't have many gunboats. groaning but we have an obligation to look after the rights of those people and to look after those rights first and i think that the best way in which we can in fact preserve the rights of all those concerned, eu citizens here, our citizens on the continent, is to allow the process of section 50 to be proceeded with as expeditiously as possible. lord bragg believed the outcome of the referendum was a disaster. one major aspect of the disaster is to turn our backs on those

who come here and give their talents and skills to the united kingdom, settle here, transforming us in so many ways for the better. they're now reduced to pawns in a government strategy that too many observers here and abroad seems largely clueless and without any response, save bluster, to any critical questions. i think that the government ought to accept that the weight of opinion is in favour of that unilateral guarantee which will then trigger similar rights for britons abroad. what has changed is the prime minister has said it is her first priority. she has said that the fate of those people living in this country from europe will be determined by primary legislation and that no change will be made other than with the agreement of the other place and this house. that's good enough for me not to wish to amend a bill which prevents us... which allows us to get on with the process of making that happen.

these people are not bargaining chips. they actually... if we say, quite freely, that they are now free to stay, that actually does give the moral high ground to our government in its negotiations and i would argue that all noble lords, including noble lord howard, should vote with their consciences and not with their party. if, as i do, we want to see this decision which the government makes on the half of all of us, that citizenship should be guaranteed to remain, the best way to do it is to call the bluff of angela merkel by saying, we have now triggered article 50 and we will go in unilaterally and talk about it and guarantee. it will be much quicker than the three months of proposals which have been written for this amendment. my lords, this is a matter of principle. it is a simple matter of principle of being prepared to do the right thing because it is the right thing and being prepared to say so and that is what i hope these benches and members on all sides

of the house, not all members, but members on all sides of the house, including the bishop's bench, will be prepared to do when it comes to taking the vote. the reason why i cannot support these amendments is the fundamental flaw that lies at the heart of these amendments is that they will create more uncertainty in particular for the million british citizens living abroad. the noble lord said we should trust the british government. the home secretary's written a letter to all of us in which he says, i reassure my colleagues that parliament will have a clear say. this is the same home secretary who wanted companies to list every foreign worker. this is the same home department that has a minister who wants eu workers, for companies to pay £1000 per eu worker. how can we trust the home secretary? the law can only be changed with the agreement of parliament. that is why these amendments

are at the wrong time in the wrong bill on the wrong subject and we should support the rights of british citizens living in europe. but when the house divided, peers voted for the labour—led amendment and against the government. they have voted. contents, 358. not contents, 256. so the contents have it. later, government sources said ministers would seek to overturn the lords defeat on the brexit bill in the commons. at prime minister's questions, jeremy corbyn has claimed ministers have made a "shameful decision" on the entitlement of people to disability benefits. the government intends changing the criteria for the daily living component of personal independence payments, or pips, to make

the system "fairer." the labour leader asked why ministers couldn't find the money to support people with mental health conditions. a year ago, the new work and pensions secretary said you can tell the house, "we're not going ahead with the changes to pip that were put forward." the court have since made a ruling. her friend, the member for south cambridgeshire, said "in my view, the courts are there for a reason. if they've come up with this ruling that says that the criteria should be extended, i believe we've got a duty to honour that." isn't she right? he referred to the social security advisory committee and they can look at that. my right honourable friend the work and pensions secretary called the chairman of the social security advisory committee and spoke to him

about the regulations on the day they were being introduced. he called the chairman of the work and pensions select committee and spoke to him about the regulations that were being introduced. he called both offices of the shadow work and pensions secretary, but they were still outside and they didn't come back to him for four days. mr speaker... calling the... mr speaker, calling the... mr speaker, calling the chairs of two committees and making a written statement to the house does not add up to scrutiny and, as i understand it, there was no call made to the office of my friend the shadow secretary of state. mr speaker, the reality is this is a shameful decision that will affect people with dementia, those suffering cognitive disorders due to a stroke, military veterans

with post—traumatic stress disorder and those with schizophrenia. can she look at the effects of her decision to override what an independent court has decided and think again? the issues that he raises, the conditions that he raises, these are taken into account when decisions are made about the personal independence payments. what the court said was that the regulations were unclear. that is why we are clarifying the regulations and we are ensuring that they respect that they reflect the original intention that was agreed by this parliament. theresa may said the government wasn't cutting benefits and said no—one would see a reduction from the benefit already awarded to them. this week, her policy chair suggested people with debilitating conditions were those who, and i quote, "who take pills at home, who suffer from anxiety

and were not really disabled." isn't that proof the nasty pa rty‘s still around ? my honourable friend has rightly apologised for the comments that he made and i hope that this whole house will accept his apology. he asks the right honourable gentleman asks me about the parity between mental health and physical... mental health conditions and physical conditions. it is this conservative government that has introduced parity of esteem in relation to dealing with mental health in the national health service. there are 6600 fewer mental health nurses and 160,000 people with severe mental health conditions are about to lose out on support. can she not recognise parity of esteem means funding it properly and not overriding court decisions that would benefit people suffering from very difficult conditions? we should reach out to them, not deny them the support they need.

as i say, we are spending more than ever on mental health. that's {11.4 billion a year. more people each week are now receiving treatment in relation to mental health than have done previously. is there more for us to do on mental health? yes, there is. i've said that in this chamber in answer to questions that i've received previously. "well, do it," shouts the shadow foreign secretary from her normal sedentary position, commenting... laughter i'm sorry! we are doing it, that's why we're putting record amounts of money into mental health. that's why we're seeing more people actually being provided with mental health treatment every week under this government. theresa may has tried to reassure scottish nationalists that those

negotiating britain's exit terms from the eu will be taking "full account" of the concerns of the devolved administrations in the uk. at prime minister's questions, the snp's westminster leader said ministers had failed to come up with any answers as to what the future will be for scottish agriculture and fishing once the uk is out of the eu. these are important industries for the rural economy and they are devolved areas to the scottish government and the scottish parliament. with brexit ending the role of brussels in these areas, we'll all decisions about agriculture and fisheries be made at holyrood, yes or no? well, the right honourable gentleman knows very well that we are discussing with the devolved administrations the whole question of the uk framework and devolution of issues as they come back from brussels. during the brexit referendum, people in scotland, including those working in the agriculture and fisheries sector, were told that farming and fisheries powers would be exercised fully by the scottish government and the scottish parliament, but now... now, it seemsjudging

by the prime minister's answer, that that is not going to be true. will the prime minister confirmed today, she has the opportunity, will she confirmed today that it is her intention to ensure that it is uk ministers that will negotiate and regulate over large areas that impact on scottish fisheries and agriculture post—brexit? when he asks about the negotiations were brexit with the european union, it will be the uk government that will be negotiating with the european union, taking full account of the interests and concerns of the devolved area... of the devolved administrations. and, indeed, of all the other regions of england. then came a link between brexit and supposed leadership manoeuvring within the labour party. the prime minister i'm sure cannot fail to have noticed the intervention by two former prime ministers recently in relation to the brexit debate.

and as a result, very helpful they were, i'm sure. i'm sure the... i'm sure the prime minister will know, of course, what they and everybody else means by hard brexit, what is meant by soft brexit, but we're all now wondering what is meant by a soft coup and when, indeed... laughter and when indeed it might be triggered and when we will know it has been triggered or not. perhaps the prime minister can elucidate on that as well since she's been so helpful in so many other ways. would she take the opportunity today, however, to make it clear that whatever former prime ministers may say and whatever members of the unelected upper house may say, the reality is that her plan to trigger article 50 by the end of march is now clearly on track? i thank the right honourable gentleman for the question

that he has asked. it is indeed my plan to trigger by the end of march when i refer to that, i refer of course to the triggering of article 50 rather than attempting to trigger any coup, soft or otherwise, that might take place. it is still our intention to do that. theresa may. you're watching our round—up of the day in the commons and the lords. still to come: parliament's newest mp gets a warm welcome, from one half of the house of commons. there's been growing concern in recent months about russia's intentions in the arctic. russia is building up its forces there, causing the us to describe its actions as "a it is also planning a new wave of giant icebreaking ships. the region is believed to contain massive and, as yet untapped, reserves of oil and gas. a commons defence committee is investigating what is happening in the region and what the uk should be doing about it. in its first session the committee heard from the ambassadors of three nations that border the arctic. to what degree do you sense any kind

of threat in the arctic? quite clearly, poland has expressed a threat coming from russia. to what degree is there a threat to the peace and security of the arctic? if i can ask you to talk about greenland. one of the main elements in our defence strategy for the arctic region is a priority for us in denmark to maintain the arctic as a low tension region, which it actually is. we have a significant operation of all the arctic states, both on a bilateral basis and a multilateral basis. we see the same things as i think everyone else sees. we see a russia that is upgrading, modernising, building up its military forces in general and that takes place in the arctic, as well. we also see a russia that, in general, has showed itself ready to use military force

to further its objectives in contravention of international law and we see, obviously, the arctic is an area that is strategically crucial for russia in several ways, not least being the basing area for their nuclear deterrent in murmansk. the russian official line is the re—militarisation, as we would see it, of the arctic, with an additional 6000 troops which have been deployed recently, and the reopening of arctic bases as well as a considerable, it would seem, investment in capabilities. it's merely an answer to the bad days of the soviet union when the infrastructure has been degraded and it is no more

than an assertion of russian sovereignty and with planet changing the clearing of passages. a different view, a second scenario, would be that this is a manifestation of mr putin's ambitions, that it fits with a greater russian strategy and that in the shadow of ukraine, crimea, georgia and indeed i would go back as far as the second chechen war, that this could be preparation, could be, for a form of warfare. so what role could and should the united kingdom play in the region? i suppose that the united kingdom could play a very positive role as a noble broker in the arctic, because it has no geographical access to the region, but still, it plays a very substantial historical role of this region in exploration,

and it could serve as a intermediary between russia and other neutral countries at least with an understanding of this place. and so my recommendation is that yes, we should think about some military and security developments in the arctic and be cautious in formulating these ideas and projects. discussion on the arctic. "no return to the 1970s" — that was the pledge of transport secretary chris grayling when mps debated the bus services bill. among other things, it gives a new generation of directly elected mayors in the city regions

of england responsibility to run their local bus services. but in the lords, peers have altered the bill. their change would allow local councils to set up their own bus companies. the transport secretary disagreed with that. we're not going back to the 1970s world, of local authority plans on delivered bus services. it wasn't a golden era. it was one of indifferent services that cost the taxpayer. we want decommissioning and provision of bus services to be kept separate as far as possible and to ensure that it will retain the strength of the private sector. although we will seek, mr speaker, to return this bill so that it will be tabled in this place. what i was seeking to ask the secretary of state was to understand his approach to municipal bus operators. when we look at the uk bus awards, and in four of the last five years it has been won by a municipal bus operator. i don't think the municipals are the answer to everything and i certainly wouldn't expect every local authority to want to set one up, but why will he not let

local authorities decide what's best for them? we do not want to go back to the situation where every labour council is trying to set up its own bus company. we think it will absorb private sector capital that could be wisely used elsewhere. the by—election winner in copeland in cumbria was welcomed into the commons at the end of prime minister's question time. huge cheers sounded from the packed benchers of the conservatives as ao—year—old trudy harrison entered to take a seat. it had been, to say the least, a notable election victory for the former parish councillor in west cumbria, as it was the first time a governing party had made a by—election gain for 35 years. the seat had been made vacant by the departure of the previous labourmpforajob in the nuclear industry. trudy harrison took the oath in the traditional way. i swear by almighty god that i will be faithful and bear true allegiance to her majesty queen

elizabeth, her heirs and successors, according to law, so help me god. members: hear, hear. the commons‘ newest member. and that's it for this programme. dojoin me for our next daily round—up. until then, from me keith mcdougall, goodbye. well, a very blustery night out there for some of us, particularly across southern parts of the uk, especially the south—west, around the bristol channel. breezy inland too. and really, the weather is going to be very unsettled over the next few days. lots of clouds, lots of weather fronts out there in the atlantic, ready to come our way. this is what we've got through the early hours. here are the winds, quite

strong in the south. some rain and hill snow across more central parts of the uk. and then we've got temperatures near freezing across the north, with some showers as well. now, the good news is that the winds will ease, eventually, through the course of the morning. it will still stay relatively breezy, and you can see there's a bit of cloud and rain again across parts of the midlands wales and the north—west in the morning. but i think by lunchtime, most of the uk should be enjoying fine weather. so this is a snapshot of thursday at 3pm in the afternoon. predominantly sunny, really a very pleasant day, quite breezy, though, still, especially across that south—eastern portion of the uk. some nice weather through yorkshire, not so bad in the north—west. but then, eventually, into northern ireland and scotland, we run into here, and there's quite a few showers around, and it feels on the chilly side as well. and there is a rain on the way for northern ireland. that won't arrive until thursday evening. clearfor a time in the evening across the rest of the country, before more rain. so these are low pressures here spiralling our way. this is the start of a very unsettled period through friday. and that's going to take us right

into sunday as well. so rain around on friday, at least for some of us, not necessarily there in scotland. could be even sunny in the afternoon. and then by the time we get to saturday, that weather front‘s still with us, or at least that area of low pressure is with us, with the cloud and rain spiralling around it. it will be quite breezy as well. wherever they rain occurs, it is going to feel on the chilly side, probably no higher than about six degrees, six or seven degrees, across some of these more northern areas, and barely touching double figures in the south. plymouth, i suspect, around 9. that takes us across saturday into europe then. and what's it looking like across the rest of the continent? actually, quite a bit slow to come across the alps. unsettled for spain. very unsettled, as we have established, across the uk, and also into france as well. so a large chunk of western europe experiencing that very changeable weather on saturday. and into sunday, the same thing continues. you can see lots of fronts here. low pressure across the uk. brolly to hand. but clearly there will be breaks in the weather. it is not pouring all the time. here is the weather for the weekend

if you happen to be thinking about it already. so, wet at times, and the winds will be quite strong, and it will feel on the chilly side. welcome to bbc news, broadcasting to viewers in north america and around the globe. our top stories: the british government suffers its first defeat over its brexit bill after the house of lord rules eu nationals should be given the right to remain in the uk. in america, new developments in the allegations of collusion between the trump administration and russia — a government intelligence committee says it will investigate. syrian government forces once again enter the ancient city of palmyra months after the so—called islamic state drove them from it. and it's being called the greatest blunder in oscar history — the pairfound responsible for that envelope mix—up are told they won't be back again.