Theresa May had a rough ride at today's PMQs, under pressure from Jeremy Corbyn over her goverment's record on housing and homelessness.

Meanwhile, she faced down a backbench revolt on her Brexit bill, used some very ropey statistics and denied Philip Hammond had blamed poor productivity on disabled people - which he did.

Here's all the action from PMQs as it happened

Recap: What we learned at today's PMQs

And with that, PMQs rounds up for another week.

Here’s the key takeaways from today’s organised slanging match.

  • The Government won’t support Dominic Grieve’s amendment to the Brexit bill because the PM says it could delay the withdrawal process
  • Corbyn attacked on homelessness and housing - which led the PM to use some extremely misleading figures
  • She did not apologise for failing to deliver on her pledge of replacing Right to Buy homes one-for-one
  • The PM denied Philip Hammond had blamed slow productivity figures, in part, on the number of disabled people in the workforce - which he blatantly did. On video and everything
  • She doesn’t plan to take action on RBS bank closures - saying people’s banking behaviour has changed over the years and it’s a commercial decision for the banks
  • She said Lord Kerslake had made the “right decision” to resign as boss of King’s College Hospital, which was put in special measures over its finances the same day - and took a pop at his apparently advising Labour on ‘debt and deficit’

"One rule for her constituency and another for Birmingham"

Jack Dromey says not one penny has been given to Birmingham to fit sprinklers in tower blocks, alongside a raft of new budget cuts for the local council. Yet the PM’s Maidenhead constituency is one of the areas least hard hit by local government cuts. “How can she justify one rule for her own constituency and another for the great city of Birmingham?”

The PM says the local government settlement has yet to come before the house, and that local authorities should discuss money for “necessary” fire safety work to be undertaken with DCLG.

The rebel amendment

Anna Soubry calls on the PM to accept Dominic Grieve’s Rebel Amendment 7, “in the interests of unity”.

The PM insists there will be a meaningful vote. She says the government will not put any statutory instruments into play until after the meaningful vote - but the amendment as drafted says the government shouldn’t put them into place until the withdrawal bill hits the statute book. This could, she claims, be at a very late stage and prevent us having the “orderly and smooth Brexit” everyone wants.

It sounds like she isn’t backing down on the amendment just yet.

Theresa May denies Philip Hammond said disabled people had damaged productivity

In answer to a question from Caroline Lucas, Theresa May has brazenly denies Philip Hammond blamed Britain’s low economic output on disabled people in the workplace. For the record, this is untrue, he did say it.

Look, here’s a video of him saying it.

The Prime Minister insists the government wants to see more disabled people in the workplace.

Extra money for Scotland - but how will they spend it?

Tory John Lamont asks the PM to call on the Scottish first minister to rule out higher taxes for Scots.

Mrs May says it’s an important test for Nicola Sturgeon, and he’s right that £2bn more is going into Scotland - “we’ll see how the SNP spend it.”

Brexit impact assessment should be 'basic' work for government - so why hasn't it been done?

Stephen Timms says assessing the impact of Brexit on the economy is “basic spadework” for the government - yet David Davis says none of it has been done, why not?

Mrs May says it isn’t the case that none of it has been done - citing 850 pages of documents that have been provided to the Commons and the Lords.

It should be noted that David Davis has said none of the 850 pages constitute impact assessments.

Technical education

Barry Sheerman notes Theresa May’s maiden speech stressed the need for practical education and apprenticeships - which he says are now in crisis.

He asks if she’ll “break a few heads, crack a few eggs and get it sorted.”

She says there is more funding for apprenticeships and T-levels - adding that she promised to support technical education “and we are delivering.”

PM "hasn't got a clue" about banking needs of small communities

Caroline Flint brings up bank branch closures, telling the PM she “hasn’t got a clue” about the needs of businesses in small communities. She calls on the PM to restore the bank levy and use it to prevent closures.

Mrs May says she and others need to accept that people’s behaviour with relation to using bank branches has changed over the years and there is less demand.

EU migrants in the NHS

Tory Dr Sarah Wollaston calls on the PM to thank EU migrants working in the NHS and social care sector, and confirm they will be allowed to stay when we leave the EU.

The PM thanks them, adding: “We want them to be able to stay...where people have made that life choice to live in the UK, we will support them.’

Funding for women's refuges

Labour’s Alex Norris calls on the PM to support women’s aid and save women’s refuges which are threatened with closure.

The PM says the government is proposing a new funding model, which will “make this more responsive to people’s needs at a time of crisis”. She says it will “free women from worrying about housing costs”.

Superfast broadband for rural communities

Tory Dr Caroline Johnson urges the PM to give a commitment to ensuring everyone gets superfast broadband, especially in rural areas.

The PM says superfast broadband is available to up to 90% of people in Lincolnshire, and assures Dr Johnson the government has not forgotten anybody and will work further to make sure people have the services they need

Bishops and homelessness support budgets

Gareth Snell says the Bishop of Stafford has written to Stoke’s Tory council to plead with them not to cut £1m from the homelessness support budget - and calls on the PM to support his plea.

Theresa May says “we don’t want to see people without a roof over their heads.”

And she says the government is now putting £1bn into eliminating rough sleeping by 2027.

Brexit vote on leaving the single market?

Heidi Alexander brings up her amendment to the Brexit bill which would give Parliament the power to decide whether Britain should leave the single market.

She says it should be our sovereign parliament and not the PM that decides our economic future.

Mrs May says there will be a meaningful vote on the withdrawal arrangements - but adds that Parliament gave the decision about withdrawing from the EU to the people.

She says: “It is the people who made that decision and this government will deliver on that decision.”

Lord Kerslake made 'right decision' to resign as boss of top hospital

Labour’ Mike Hill raises the resignation of Lord Kerslake from King’s College Hospital over “unrealistic” cuts to NHS funding.

Here’s our story on that from Monday

The PM says Lord Kerslake made the right decision to quit - but notes that King’s has been put into special measures because of its financial situation.

She then notes that it’s “perhaps not surprising” that Lord Kerslake is advising the Labour Party on “debt and deficit.”

RBS branch closures are "a commercial matter for the banks"

The SNP’s Ian Blackford says the Royal Bank of Scotland is paying the country back for bailing them out in 2008 by closing branches across the country. She calls on the PM to confront RBS about the closures.

She says the decision to close branches is a commercial matter for the banks - but the she says the Scottish secretary has raised the issue with RBS and she wants to make sure vulnerable customers have access to a branch, but that many people bank entirely online now

Theresa May reels out ropey figures on homelessness

Corbyn notes that 40% of homes sold under right to buy are now being rented out privately.

Here’s the full figures on that story.

He goes on to say the latest figures show up to a quarter of rented homes are not up to standard - with people living with damp and poor insulation. Does she want homes to be fit for human habitation?

Theresa May says the number of homes failing the decent homes standard has decreased under the Tories, after a peak under Labour.

She goes on to say statutory homelessness peaked under Labour and is down 50% under the Tories - which is an extremely misleading figure.

In fact, in February, the government was rapped by the UK Statistics Authority for using the figure.

Right to buy and long term tenancies

Corbyn reads a letter from Rachel, who says she was was given notice to quit her home of ten years with no notice.

Theresa May says she’s looking at ways the government can encourage “longer term tenancies”

She says Corbyn’s approach to rented housing is to bring in rent controls, which she says have “never worked” - quoting homelessness charity Shelter, who say the policy wouldn’t work.

Corbyn attacks the Government’s pledge to replace right-to-buy homes one for one. In fact, the figure is 1 in 5. He calls on her to apologise and tell the public when she will deliver her pledge.

May says the Tories want to give people the opportunity to buy their own home - and quotes Shadow Housing Minister John Healey, who said fewer people owning their own homes “is not a bad thing”.

Corbyn batters Theresa May on homelessness figures

Jeremy Corbyn opens by saying the Grenfell Tower fire was an “avoidable” tragedy.

He goes on to tell the PM homelessness has risen this year, and called on the PM to declare that 2018 will be the “year that homelessness will go down.”

The PM says there are a number of initiatives on the go aiming to deal with rough sleeping.

She goes on to attack the last Labour government, under which she says: “housebuilding went down by 40%, and social housing went down by 400,000”

Corbyn says a thousand children will spend Christmas without a home to call their own - and calls on the PM to commit to reducing the figure by this time next year.

Mrs May reels off a string of measures - including the homelessness reduction act - that she says give families support to prevent them becoming homeless, and providing emergency accommodation.

She says her focus is on preventing homelessness before it happens.

Meaningful vote

And we’re underway.

The PM announces she will be attending the Grenfell Tower memorial service tomorrow.

Tory Cheryl Gillan says the PM will take the “thoughts and prayers of every member of this house” with her.

She asks if it is still the PM’s intention to hold a “meaningful vote” on the terms of the Brexit agreement.

The PM confirms that will be the case - the final deal will be agreed before we leave and both houses of Parliament will get a vote on it before March 29th 2019.

Big cheer for the PM as she arrives in the Commons

Theresa May scrambles to head off Brexit rebellion

Theresa May will go head to head with Jeremy Corbyn at PMQs today, as she faces down a backbench rebellion on the Brexit bill.

David Davis has written to MPs in a desperate bid to stave off a backbench revolt that could derail the Brexit bill and see the government defeated in the Commons.

Rebel ringleader and former attorney general Dominic Grieve believes he has enough support to defeat the Government on Wednesday evening unless ministers give in.

Labour is set to back Mr Grieve and urged would-be rebels not to be bought off by “warm words and woolly concessions”.

Mr Davis promised MPs there would be “a number of votes” on the final deal struck between the UK and EU.

Here’s the full story

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Image:
REUTERS)