Brexit news - live: Theresa May heads to France amid howls of outrage from Tory Brexiteers at 'surrender' over customs union

Theresa May's Conservatives face a voter deficit if no Brexit deal is secured in time for the local elections, according to one of the party's most respected polling experts.

With the deadlock over Brexit showing no sign of easing at Westminster and less than a month to go until parts of the country go the polls, Lord Hayward also claimed turnout could dramatically decline.

In England alone at the 2 May election there are 8,374 seats up for grabs, including 33 metropolitan councils, 119 district councils, and 30 unitary authorities. 

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez asked for “sage words of advice” from anyone with a green thumb while gardening over the weekend — and got a helping hand from the other side of the pond.

Jeremy Corbyn responded to the freshman Democrat’s call for tips as she tended to a plot in a local community garden, encouraging her to “get your hands dirty” in a tweet. 

Head of the 1922 Committee Sir Graham Brady has said “there is, at the moment, no deal with Labour” after Theresa May met with the committee in Downing Street today.

Why is Theresa May seeking a short Brexit delay that the EU is likely to reject?

Brexit Explained: The prime minister’s request was made with her ministers – and her party’s future – in mind rather than Brussels

Peers have become embroiled in bitter wrangling over a controversial bid to delay Brexit day to avert a no-deal exit.

Lords leader Baroness Evans of Bowes Park said the government remained opposed to the European Union (Withdrawal) (No 5) Bill, tabled by Labour's Yvette Cooper.

Tory former leader Lord Howard of Lympne told the Lords: "This appalling piece of legislation is totally misconceived."

The bill, which passed in the Commons by just one vote, would force the PM to seek an extension to Article 50 to prevent a no-deal Brexit on Friday.

Lord Howard said that the Bill aimed to constrain Ms May's exercise of the royal prerogative to make decisions on the exit date.

For Labour, Lord Goldsmith warned time was running out and it was critically important an extension was agreed before Friday.

If the Bill was passed today the Commons could pass a motion informing what Theresa May did at the emergency European Council meeting on Wednesday.

A mother caught trying to bring medical cannabis into the UK to treat her severely epileptic daughter may get the drugs back from the Border Force, the Health Secretary has revealed.

Emma Appleby had a three-month supply of the medicine, which cost £4,600, seized as she landed at Southend Airport on Saturday.

But Matt Hancock told the Commons that the cannabis had not been destroyed yet, with the "opportunity for a second opinion" to be given over whether it can be allowed into the country to help treat nine-year-old Teagan Appleby, who suffers from a rare chromosomal disorder called Isodicentric 15, as well as Lennox-Gastaut syndrome, which causes her to experience up to 300 seizures a day.

Responding to an urgent question, Mr Hancock said they were prescribed by a consultant in Holland, but without approval by a UK doctor "it is not possible to import controlled drugs".

"However we have made available the opportunity for a second opinion, and the products have been held and not destroyed as would normally be the case," he added.

DUP MEP Diane Dodds has said the warm words from Michel Barnier "ring hollow" and accused the EU of trying to "foist a bad deal" on the UK.

Ms Dodds, whose party prop up Theresa May's government, said: "The government should have heeded the DUP’s warnings in December 2017. 

"No one was ever building a new hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic. Yet the government was outmanoeuvred by Brussels."

She went on: "Michel Barnier and Leo Varadkar’s warm words about hard borders and the peace process ring hollow when compared to their obsession with a backstop which would be offensive to unionists and fundamentally undermine the integrity of the United Kingdom.  

"Their actions and determination to foist a bad deal for the Union on the United Kingdom betray the words being uttered by their lips.

"The referendum result in 2016 must be respected. People voted to leave the EU and to thwart that democratic decision would be an affront to democracy.”

House of Commons leader Andrea Leadsom has confirmed a motion to extend Article 50 will be put forward later this evening.

Ms Leadsom added that, if the bill is passed, a 90-minute debate on the Article 50 extension would be held on Tuesday.

Theresa May has presided over the "two worst years for social house building since the Second World War", according to Labour.

But Housing Secretary James Brokenshire hit back, saying the Tory government had delivered more affordable homes in the last eight years than under the previous Labour administration.

The row came when shadow housing minister John Healey said in May 2017 Ms May had said "we simply have not given enough attention to social housing".

He then asked: "So can the Secretary of State confirm that, since the prime minister's admission, his government recorded the two worst years for social house building in 74 years since the Second World War?"

Mr Brokenshire said the Conservatives had "delivered more affordable homes over the last eight years of this Government as compared to the last eight years of the last Labour government".

He said 407,000 new houses had been built since 2010, but Mr Healey responded that "what the Secretary of State is doing isn't working, which is why we've got a housing crisis".

Mr Healey said the "hard fact (is) that social housebuilding has hit a record low under this Government's watch", with a commitment to build just 12,500 new homes over the six years to 2022.

The Conservative Party has opened applications to stand in this year’s European elections.

An email sent to candidates today said: “Due to the current situation we will be contesting the European elections on 23rd May 2019 and the closing date for nominations is 24th April.”

The government today tabled an order enabling elections to the European Parliament to be held in Britain if the country has not left the EU by the time they take place next month.

The Day of Poll Order sets the date for elections on 23 May – however the Cabinet Office has said they would be automatically cancelled if the UK leaves before then.