At Prime Ministers questions, Jeremy Corbyn demands theresa may retracts her invitation to donald trump to come to the uk and meet the queen. Just what more does President Trump have to do, before the Prime Minister will listen to the 1. 8 Million People whove already called for his State Visit Invitation to be withdrawn . But theresa may rejects that call and says labour has nothing to offer the uk. He can lead a protest, im leading a country. And in a debate on the damage done by drinking, a former Minister Talks about growing up as the son of an alcoholic. I know what its like to feel that cold nausea, when you find the empty bottles hidden around the house. But first, the result was never in doubt, but there was still a sense of drama in the commons when, after two days of debate, the moment finally came for mps to vote on the bill allowing the government to trigger our exit from the eu. The ayes to the right, 498. The noes to the left, 114. Commotion. The ayes to the right, 498. The noes to the left, 114. So the ayes have it, the ayes have it. That result was the culmination of a process started when the governments plan to trigger brexit without pa rliaments consent was challenged in the courts. Judges ruled that mps and peers should have a vote before ministers began the formal divorce proceedings. And so two days were set aside for debate on a bill to trigger article 50, and in total nearly 200 mps had their say over 18 hours of debate in the commons chamber. Its not a bill about whether or not the uk should leave the eu, or indeed how it should do so. It is simply about Parliament Empowering the government to implement a decision already made, a Point Of No Return already passed. We asked the people of the uk if they wanted to leave the European Union they decided they did. So at the core of this bill lies a very simple question. Do we trust the people or not . I hope the respectful approach that ive tried to adopt to colleagues, and to the anxiety among the 48 , is reflected across the house, and that we will see a good deal less of the gloating from those who campaigned to leave than weve seen in the past. It is our duty to accept and respect the outcome of the referendum, but we remain a european country, with a shared history. Above all, it is our duty to ensure an outcome that is notjust for the 52 , or the 48 , but for the 100 . That we will do. Apparently, you follow the rabbit down the hole, and you emerge in a wonderland where suddenly, countries throughout the world are queuing up to give us trading advantages and access to their markets that previously weve never been able to achieve as part of the European Union. Dont let me be too cynical i hope thats right. I do want the best outcome for the United Kingdom from this process. No doubt somewhere theres a Hatter Holding a tea party with a dormouse in the teacup. This is a big deal. Youre Notjust Divvying Up the Nana Mouskouri records here or divvying up the borgen box set. This has an impact on each and every one of us. Europe is where our future lies its one where we tackle inequality, climate change, refugess get help, areas that dont get much of a hearing in whitehall these days. Pooling our sovereignty and working together is a good thing. Passing this bill, and turning your back on our amendment, would turn its back on the progress made, and disrespect the devolution settlement. The british people gave the government the mandate to pulll the United Kingdom out of the European Union. No, i want to make some progress. The british people did not give this government the mandate to threaten to turn our country into some tawdry, low regulation, low tax Cowboy Economy and the british people most certainly did not give the mandate to the government to indulge in this ludicrous, sycopha ntic farce weve seen in recent days, in which this government, having burnt every bridge left with our friends in europe, rushes across the atlantic to sidle next to a us president who they dont seem to be aware, whose nativism, whose isolationism, whose protectionism is diametrically opposed to the long term Strategic Interests of the United Kingdom. A labour mp was one of those who defied her partys leadership and said shed vote against triggering article 50. Some have been victims of racism and hate crimes, like my Friend Susann who came to cardiff from germany, and has a young daughter, lilith, who is in primary school, who have been spat at and told to go home. And had bricks and stones thrown at them in the street. And this is the climate that they and we are living in. But other mps welcomed the bill and the decision to leave. Those who wanted to vote to remain tried to scare the devil out of them when it came to the vote. They told them all kinds of horrors were going to beset them. Within a couple of days, they were going to be eating bread and having to drink water and lose our jobs. I think the people, advocates of free speech and free press and a powerful democracy, would view their wishes dimly. This is the moment we begin to take back control of our laws, our borders and our money. Once again, we become a sovereign nation in command of our own destiny. At the end of that epic debate, mps rejected an snp amendment attempting to block the bill and passed it by a majority of 384. 47 labour rebels, the snp, the lib dems and former conservative chancellor ken clarke all voted against. The bill will now reappear in the commons on monday to begin its detailed consideration. Well, the next day, the government published its 75 page brexit policy document, laying out what its objectives are in the forthcoming negotiations on extracting the uk from the European Union. There were few surprises, as the principles were contained in the Prime Ministers Keynote Speech last month. The Secretary Of State said it confirmed the Prime Ministers vision of an independent, truly global uk. I have said at this despatch box that there will be any number of votes on substantive policy choices. To that end, the white paper makes clear that we expect to bring forward separate legislation in areas such as customs and immigration. Delivering a smooth, mutually beneficial exit, avoiding a disruptive cliff edge, will be the key. Whatever the outcome of our negotiations, we seek a more open, outward looking, confident and fairer uk, that works for everyone. The white paper is available on the government website, and ive arranged for copies to be put in the library of both houses. Sir keirstarmer. Mr speaker, normally i would thank the Secretary Of State for early sight of his statement, but this statement says nothing. Otherwise, all honourable members will have to watch on their screens, as the European Parliament debates our deal, before we get to express any views on it that is completely unacceptable, and its demeaning of this house. Sir keir starmer. Now, before the big vote on wednesday night, theresa may had faced Jeremy Corbyn for the regular round of Prime Ministers questions. The Labour Leader pressed the Prime Minister over her recent visit to the us, and meeting with President Trump. Theresa may was the first overseas leader to meet mr trump. The pair discussed nato and trade before giving a joint news conference. Just hours after mrs may left washington, the president announced a ban on people from seven mainly muslim countries travelling to the us. Mr speaker, Downing Street has not denied that the Prime Minister was told by the white house that the Executive Order on travel to the us was imminent. So lets be clear was the Prime Minister told about the ban during her visit, and did she try to persuade President Trump otherwise . If hes asking me whether i had advance notice of a ban on refugees, the answer is no. If hes asking me if i had advance notice that the Executive Order could affect british citizens, the answer is no. If hes asking if i had advance notice of the travel restrictions, the answer is, we all did. Because President Trump said he was going to do this in his election campaign. President trump has torn up International Agreements on refugees. He has threatened to dump International Agreements on climate change. He has praised the use of torture. He has incited hatred against muslims, he has directly attacked womens rights. Just what more does the president have to do before the Prime Minister will listen to the 1. 8 Million People who have already called for his State Visit Invitation to be withdrawn . The right honourable gentlemans Foreign Policy is to object to and insult the democratically elected Head Of State of our most important ally. Lets just see what he would have achieved in the last week. Would he have been able to protect british citizens from the impact of the Executive Order . No. Would he have been able to lay the foundations of a trade deal . No. Would he have got a 100 commitment to nato . No. Thats what labour has to offer this country. Less protection for british citizens, less prosperous, less safe. He can lead a protest, im leading a country. Theresa may. Well, staying with the fallout from Donald Trumps travel ban, the home secretary amber rudd told mps on the Home Affairs Committee it could create a potential Propaganda Opportunity for so called islamic state. Isis and daesh will use any opportunity they can to make difficulties to create the environment they want, to radicalise people, to bring them over to their side. So it is a Propaganda Opportunity for them potentially. We will continue to monitor what is said, continue to take down the sort of literature and postings we see on the internet, that try to encourage that sort of extremism, they may use this as an example, and we will continue to take down the sites where we can. The next stage in the plan to expand Heathrow Airport is under way. In the commons on thursday, the Transport Secretary launched a four month consultation and set out planning and infrastructure proposals. A liberal democrat was just one of the mps to raise concerns about air quality. Will he explain what he will do if the airport cannot be delivered within legal obligation limits, proceed anyway, change the air quality objectives, or pull the plug on the runway . The airport will not be able to secure its Development Consent order if it cannot demonstrate its ability to meet those targets. But some of the things we are consulting on today, for example, smart use of airspace, one of the things we will be able to achieve through a space reform and through the technology now available to us, is to avoid to anything like the degree we experience at the moment, claimed stacking over the south east of england, using up more fuel that is one of the benefits that comes from smarter use of airspace. It will help contribute, as will cleaner, newer generation, more fuel efficient aircraft that we will see, i think, extensively in this country in the coming years. The Chief Inspector of prisons for england and wales, peter clarke, says many of his reports are falling on deaf ears. He told Thejustice Committee Thatjails that did not put his recommendation into practice, often failed to improve or even decline. In 60 seconds, tell me what is wrong with our prisons. Basically, they are unsafe, they are full of drugs, we have an ageing population, physically the environment is appalling, and there are far too many people in our prisons suffering from Mental Health issues. In myjudgment, those five issues will create a major obstruction to the reform programme. Mr clarke, so who is holding up this reform . Youve identified the problems, you have talked about what needs to be improved, where is the block in the system that prevents the changes that need to be made . Well, in terms of those issues which i have mentioned, they are issues which we frequently refer to in our report, and if i have a frustration, its that far too often, not always, it feels as if they are falling on deaf ears. And not in all prisons, but in some, the prisons which do not respond to the recommendations in our reports, where there is a hugely low uptake of implementation of our recommendations are those prisons which do not improve, or which actually decline in the way in which they treat prisoners and the outcomes that prisoners encounter in those prisons. The government is seen to need to do more to the release of the british iranian woman, Nazanin Zaghari ratcliffe, being held in iran with her baby daughter. The Charity Worker has been accused of Security Offences and was detained while trying to leave the country after visiting relatives in april. Her husband, richard ratcliffe, who is from london, said his wifes detention was a stain on iran, and her family denies she has broken any laws. Here we have a young mother, a british iranian citizen imprisoned after visiting her family with her daughter. Her daughter is solely a british citizen. Surely the time has come for the uk to call for mrs zaghari ratcliffes release before she, her little daughter, and her husband, here today with his own mother, suffer further. Hear, hear. My lords, the suffering of the family can only be imagined. And we should, throughout all of this, regardless of some of the extraordinary claims made on the internet, we should remember that this is a loving father who simply wants his family to be reunited, and i fully respect that. That is why, my lords, we are urgently seeking information on what further legal avenues are available to mrs zaghari ratcliffe, and undertake that the fco will continue to support the family, both here in london and in tehran. Now, lets go back to brexit. The former uk ambassador to the eu, mr ivan rogers, make the headlines in december after the bbc reported his private remarks to the Prime Minister about how long brExit Negotiations could take. Sir ivan stepped down last month, and in his Resignation Letter he told officials to challenge muddled thinking in the brexit process. Now, in his first public appearance since his resignation, he has told the European Scrutiny Committee that brExit Negotiations could be difficult. This is going to be difficult on a humongous scale, going to have enormous amounts of business running up various different channels and they involve difficult trade offs for her majestys government, and difficult trade offs for the other 27 on the other side of the table. Sir bill cash asked about an assertion in the letter last october that Exit Negotiations could take ten years. You said that it was going to take ten years. Can you confirm whether in fact you actually said that . Or was it meant to be. Was it a leak . Was it an intention that you thought you would be able to get across the message without anyone really knowing quite where it came from . I mean, can you give us a bit more information on that . I can indeed. I never said it would take ten years. Is this reporting by the bbc based on off the record remarks and observations that you made to them . No. It isnt . No. Where do you think it came from . Ive no idea. We hear threats, and i assume they are threats, that is how i interpret them, of having to pay billions of pounds or euros to leave this club. So far asjoining a club, you pay every year to be a member, and when you leave, you dont pay to leave the club. You say, thank you very much and you head off. So do you think this is a genuine, a real threat to us to pay billions of euros to a club that we are leaving . Or do you think that is an unreasonable request to make at this stage . I think it can be both genuine and unreasonable, if i may say so. I think it is genuine. I hear it considerably, and it has been reported for months. He called it a predictably very hard line coming from the Eu Commission and from some member states. The International Trade secretary told mps that the uk is already having talks over potential trade deals with countries, including australia, china and india. Liam fox told the commons International Trade committee that the new Trading Relationships would not be something akin to the single market. But he hoped they would be an addition to a three trade deal with the remaining member states. In terms of australia, we have an australia uk trade working group. In terms of china, we have a trade working group, and im chairing thejoint Economic And Trade Committee in beijing in april. With a collection of gulf states, we are working with them to determine what relationship would be, and looking at our potential future. Fta with india, weve got a joint working group, i chaired the last meeting in delhi. And we have embarked on a process of trade audit. If you were to add up all those potential countries, the level of exports that you have been talking about, on the list that you had there, it doesnt come anywhere near
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