The third reading of the Universal Credit and Personal Independent Payment Bill has started.
MPs will be debating and voting on large number of proposed amendments before the vote on the whole bill, which is expected to be at around 7.00pm
You can watch the debate live on parliament tv here.
We won’t be giving a blow-by-blow account of the various debates and votes, but you are welcome to comment on proceedings below the line.
There is a very detailed guide to today’s proceedings, including which amendments will be voted on available on the parliament website.
Other documents relating to the bill are on this page
This is the final list of amendments, running to 34 pages.
The government was not defeated at any point in the voting. However, they did give a large number of concessions in relation to New Claus 11, moved by Dr Marie Tidball, relating to co-production of the Timms review. As a result Dr Tidball withdrew her amendment.
At 17.50 onwards, Timms called the amendment "a helpful checklist" and said that the government would "closely consult with and actively involve persons with disabilities in carrying out the review."
He also said "I accept the proposal in section 4 of her new clause for a group to co-produce the review. Not so much to provide independent oversight as to lead and deliver it . . . I agree with her that the majority of group member need to be disabled people or representatives of disabled people's organisations and that they need to be provided with adequate support, including towards their cost of travel and taking part. . . The outcome of the review will be central to the legislation that follows"
47 Labour MPs voted against the bill at third reading, 333 Labour MPs voted in favour, along with 3 independents. This compares with the second reading, where 49 Labour MPs voted against. The second reading had a majority of 75, so there has been a slight increase at third reading.
The bill has passed its third reading by 336 votes to 242. Labour currently has 403 MPs, and a majority of 165 but this vote passed with a majority of just 84.
The question that clause 5 stand part of the bill was asked and the Noes had it without a vote. Clause 5 was the PIP 4-point rule, so it is now officially no longer part of the legislation: there is not going to be a 4-point rule in the final bill.
After a short delay, votes on the amendments are available here.
So far, the government are very easily winning the votes.
For example, the first amendment debated, a Green party amendment that would have increased the UC standard allowance by 4.8% every year from 2026 to 2030 had 35 votes in favour, 469 against.
A LibDem amendment that would prevent most of the Bill coming into force until a range of reports and consultations had been completed had 105 votes in favour and 370 against.
17.59 parliament tv Stephen Timms, DWP disability minister on the severe conditions criteria:
"The severe conditions criteria in the bill exactly reflects how the functional tests are applied at present. That is in guidance. It’s being moved in this bill into legislation. It does take account of Parkinson’s. It does take account of MS. Because people need to meet the descriptors reliably, safely, repeatedly and in a reasonable time frame. And so I can give a very firm assurance to those who are concerned about how the severe conditions criteria will work for those on fluctuating conditions.
"The word constantly here refers, as I said in my intervention earlier, to the functional criteria needing to apply at all times, not to somebody’s symptoms."
