Brexit news - live: MPs pass emergency law forcing prime minister to avert no deal by one vote

It’s all happening this morning. Some remarkable footage has emerged showing members of the Army using a photo of Jeremy Corbyn as target practice.

Here’s our Home Affairs Correspondent Lizzie Dearden with the details.

More on the resignation of Nigel Adams, minister for Wales and a government whip. Will he be the first of many to quit over the prime minister’s bold offer to Jeremy Corbyn?

Back at the Brexit committee, Stephen Barclay has said it’s possible European Parliament elections might take place in the UK on May 23, though he stressed that this was not the government’s intention.

He said that the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster David Lidington has written to the Electoral Commission to say that the government will reimburse returning officers for money spent on contingency planning for the polls.

Mr Barclay told the committee: “It is not the intention to hold a general election … That’s why the contingency has been put in place, to ensure that returning officers are able to prepare.”

The Brexit secretary also said that the government did not intend to ask for a long extension, but said that failure to prepare for the elections would remove that option.

“If we don’t hold the European parliamentary elections, we would not be able to take a longer extension to the end of the year,” he told the committee.

This will annoy the hard Brexiteers who believe a stand-alone Britain can bestride the globe, striking fantastic trade deals hither and yon. Sir Oliver Letwin told Today it as “very difficult to imagine” the UK doing better on its own than the EU in big trade deals.

Theresa May is set to meet Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon today. The prime minister’s spokesman has confirmed the meeting will take place, although the time and venue are still to be confirmed. 

Nicola Sturgeon – now travelling down to London to meet Theresa May – retweeted a selfie of her with SNP councillor Robbie McGregor, who met her at Edinburgh Airport this morning.

The Republic of Ireland’s foreign minister Simon Coveney has said his country plans to support a British request for a short further delay to its EU exit at a Brussels summit next week, and argued it is very unlikely the UK will crash out with no deal.

“They will look for a short extension next week, and I think Ireland will support that,” Mr Coveney told Irish state broadcaster RTE.

“It is very unlikely that there will be any crash out at the end of next week with the prime minister looking for an extension with a plan to go with that.”

European politicians have reacted with relief at Theresa May’s move to hold talks with Labour. But they have also warned that the “short” delay she says she’s looking for may not be an option.

Here’s our Europe Correspondent Jon Stone with more from Brussels.

Theresa May has written a letter to Conservative MPs explaining her strategy, essentially repeating what she said on Tuesday.

Stephen Barclay has told the Brexit committee that a second referendum was a possible outcome of Mrs May’s talks with Mr Corbyn.

He claimed that it would take a year to hold a second referendum. “The indication tends to be that legislation on a second referendum would take around 12 months.”

“There are no preconditions to talks,” said the Brexit secretary. “I don’t think we should have a second referendum because it takes us back to square one, is my personal view, but the prime minister will have the discussions and we will see where they lead.”

Mr Barclay noted that a second referendum was not in Labour’s election manifesto in 2017, though it was included in a successful motion at last year’s party conference.

“I think the idea of a second referendum prolongs uncertainty and risks taking us back to the very starting point, as if we then vote Remain we are back where we started,” he told the committee. “We will need to look at this in terms of the hierarchy of options.”