Theresa May is under renewed pressure on the future of three million EU nationals living in the UK after MPs called for their future rights to be immediately guaranteed.
The Commons Exiting the EU Committee said the Government should not wait for a similar assurance over the British citizens in the EU before acting.
Ministers have said that settling the status of EU nationals in the UK will be a "priority" in Brexit negotiations, but they need to secure the rights of UK nationals at the same time.
But the committee said it was "unconscionable" they should have to wait up to two years when the negotiations are completed before their future is clarified.
:: Post-Brexit fears: 'I'm not Greek anymore, I'm English'
Hilary Benn, chairman, said EU citizens had been left under a "cloud of uncertainty" and did not want to be used as "bargaining chips".
He said: "EU citizens who have come to live and work here have contributed enormously to the economic and cultural life of the UK.
"They have worked hard, paid their taxes, integrated, raised families and put down roots.
"Although the Government has said it wants EU citizens to be able to remain, this has not offered sufficient reassurance that the rights and status that they have enjoyed will be guaranteed. It should now do so."
The committee's report adds to the pressure on the Prime Minister following the House of Lords overwhelming backing of an amendment to the Government's Brexit Bill, which calls for a guarantee on the continuing rights of EU citizens.
:: Sky Views: No such thing as one type of Brexit
Ministers have made it clear they intend to overturn the vote when the bill - which authorises the start of the formal withdrawal process - returns to the Commons later this month.
The report states: "It would be unconscionable for EU citizens in the UK and Uk citizens in the EU not to have clarity about their status for another two years.
"We do not believe the electorates of Europe will thank politicians in any country if the situation is allowed to continue."
The committee said the system for EU citizens to get permanent residency in the UK - completing an 85-page form and "copious" supporting evidence - was "not fit for purpose".
It warned that Brexit would not also necessarily lead to an immediate fall in net migration to the UK.
Saturday, March 4, 2017
Patients with chemical attack symptoms in Mosul
The UN is investigating possible war crimes in eastern Mosul after 10 patients were admitted to hospital with symptoms linked to a chemical attack.
It follows an attack on a residential area along the Tigris River earlier this week in a part of Mosul liberated by Iraqi forces in January.
Hussein Qader, the deputy director of a hospital in the nearby city of Irbil, said 10 patients were admitted with symptoms of chemical weapons exposure on Thursday.
Lise Grande, UN humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, said: "If the alleged use of chemical weapons is confirmed, this is a serious violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime, regardless of who the targets or the victims of the attacks are.
It follows an attack on a residential area along the Tigris River earlier this week in a part of Mosul liberated by Iraqi forces in January.
Hussein Qader, the deputy director of a hospital in the nearby city of Irbil, said 10 patients were admitted with symptoms of chemical weapons exposure on Thursday.
Lise Grande, UN humanitarian coordinator in Iraq, said: "If the alleged use of chemical weapons is confirmed, this is a serious violation of international humanitarian law and a war crime, regardless of who the targets or the victims of the attacks are.
Hillary Clinton snapped reading headlines about Mike Pence emails
A photograph has emerged of Hillary Clinton reading newspapers splashing on Mike Pence's use of a personal email account while in office.
Mrs Clinton appears to be transfixed by the headlines as she learns that the vice president was embroiled in an email controversy.
Mr Pence and Donald Trump repeatedly criticised Mrs Clinton during the presidential election campaign after it emerged she had used her personal emails for her State Department work.
Her use of the private server while she was secretary of state in the Obama administration triggered a huge political fallout and some commentators said it was a major blow to her chances of beating Mr Trump in November's election.
During the campaign, Mr Pence and Mr Trump said Mrs Clinton had broken the law and endangered national security, leading to their backers to chant "Lock her up!" at rallies.
Mrs Clinton was travelling on a flight from Boston's Logan airport in New York on Friday when she was snapped engrossed in the newspapers by healthcare centre worker Caitlin Quigley, who posted the photos on social media.
Emails released under a public records law show that while Mr Pence was the governor of Indiana he regularly used an AOL address to speak to advisers about confidential state business.
His account was later hacked by a scammer asking Mr Pence's contacts for money, according to reports.
Mr Pence's office has confirmed he "maintained a state email account and a personal email account" while governor.
In a statement, his office added: "Mr Pence fully co-operated with Indiana law regarding email use and retention."
The FBI investigated Mrs Clinton's use of a personal email server but she has always insisted she did not use it to send sensitive information.
In July 2016 the FBI said Mrs Clinton had been "extremely careless" in handling classified information but it did not recommend criminal charges.
But just weeks before the election, it revealed it was opening a new probe into the email server after the discovery of new emails in an "unrelated case".
Mrs Clinton appears to be transfixed by the headlines as she learns that the vice president was embroiled in an email controversy.
Mr Pence and Donald Trump repeatedly criticised Mrs Clinton during the presidential election campaign after it emerged she had used her personal emails for her State Department work.
Her use of the private server while she was secretary of state in the Obama administration triggered a huge political fallout and some commentators said it was a major blow to her chances of beating Mr Trump in November's election.
During the campaign, Mr Pence and Mr Trump said Mrs Clinton had broken the law and endangered national security, leading to their backers to chant "Lock her up!" at rallies.
Mrs Clinton was travelling on a flight from Boston's Logan airport in New York on Friday when she was snapped engrossed in the newspapers by healthcare centre worker Caitlin Quigley, who posted the photos on social media.
Emails released under a public records law show that while Mr Pence was the governor of Indiana he regularly used an AOL address to speak to advisers about confidential state business.
His account was later hacked by a scammer asking Mr Pence's contacts for money, according to reports.
Mr Pence's office has confirmed he "maintained a state email account and a personal email account" while governor.
In a statement, his office added: "Mr Pence fully co-operated with Indiana law regarding email use and retention."
The FBI investigated Mrs Clinton's use of a personal email server but she has always insisted she did not use it to send sensitive information.
In July 2016 the FBI said Mrs Clinton had been "extremely careless" in handling classified information but it did not recommend criminal charges.
But just weeks before the election, it revealed it was opening a new probe into the email server after the discovery of new emails in an "unrelated case".
Peers urge PM not to pay divorce bill if no Brexit deal is agreed
Theresa May is being urged to walk away from the European Union without paying a £50bn "divorce settlement" being demanded by Brussels.
Government lawyers are recommending that the Prime Minister should stop paying money to Brussels if Brexit negotiations end in deadlock with no deal.
But the PM is also being warned that withholding cash from the EU could damage the UK's prospects in the Brexit negotiations after she triggers Article 50.
The highly contentious demand comes in a report by a high-powered House of Lords committee which has examined the legal consequences of Brexit.
The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, has demanded that the UK pays the £50bn bill for exiting the EU, a demand condemned by pro-Brexit Conservative MPs.
Mrs May is widely expected to reject the Brussels demand, but Brexit Secretary David Davis was giving nothing away when questioned about it this week.
:: Your guide to Brexit jargon
Asked during a visit to Denmark if the UK was prepared to accept the £50bn bill, he said: "We are a country which believes in the rule of law and we take our responsibilities seriously.
"But we think this is something that needs to be dealt with alongside the issue of markets, the issue of other relationships between us and at the end of this we will come to an amicable agreement. But we are not at that stage."
Government lawyers are recommending that the Prime Minister should stop paying money to Brussels if Brexit negotiations end in deadlock with no deal.
But the PM is also being warned that withholding cash from the EU could damage the UK's prospects in the Brexit negotiations after she triggers Article 50.
The highly contentious demand comes in a report by a high-powered House of Lords committee which has examined the legal consequences of Brexit.
The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, has demanded that the UK pays the £50bn bill for exiting the EU, a demand condemned by pro-Brexit Conservative MPs.
Mrs May is widely expected to reject the Brussels demand, but Brexit Secretary David Davis was giving nothing away when questioned about it this week.
:: Your guide to Brexit jargon
Asked during a visit to Denmark if the UK was prepared to accept the £50bn bill, he said: "We are a country which believes in the rule of law and we take our responsibilities seriously.
"But we think this is something that needs to be dealt with alongside the issue of markets, the issue of other relationships between us and at the end of this we will come to an amicable agreement. But we are not at that stage."
Boris Johnson to visit Russia for 'guarded engagement'
Boris Johnson will travel to Moscow for "high-level talks" with his Russian counterpart, it has been announced.
The Foreign Office said Mr Johnson would visit Sergey Lavrov in the coming weeks - the first visit from a UK foreign secretary in more than five years.
His visit is described by Whitehall sources as part of a new policy of "guarded engagement" with Vladimir Putin's regime.
But he faced criticism from MPs, who said Russia should remain isolated following its intervention in Syria.
Discussions would be "robust" on the issues of Russian intervention in Ukraine and Syria, and there would be no lifting of sanctions, according to the FCO.
The Foreign Office said Mr Johnson would visit Sergey Lavrov in the coming weeks - the first visit from a UK foreign secretary in more than five years.
His visit is described by Whitehall sources as part of a new policy of "guarded engagement" with Vladimir Putin's regime.
But he faced criticism from MPs, who said Russia should remain isolated following its intervention in Syria.
Discussions would be "robust" on the issues of Russian intervention in Ukraine and Syria, and there would be no lifting of sanctions, according to the FCO.
MH370 families plan private search for missing plane
Families of those on board Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 have launched a campaign to raise money to pay for a private search for the missing plane.
They are attempting to raise up to $50m (£47m) so they can resume the hunt for the aircraft which disappeared on 8 March 2014.
It is believed to have crashed in a remote part of the southern Indian Ocean but the largest search in aviation history has failed to find the main wreckage of the plane.
In January families of those on board reacted angrily when it was announced that the £133m operation to find the aircraft was being called off.
Details of the families' plan for a private search were announced at a memorial just ahead of the third anniversary of the plane's disappearance.
Jacquita Gomes, whose husband was a flight attendant on MH370, said that what happened to the flight "should not go down in history books as a mystery".
In July 2015 part of the aeroplane's wing was found on Reunion Island, and so far more than 20 objects either confirmed or believed to be from the jet have washed ashore on beaches in Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa and Madagascar.
Analysts have been looking at how the debris has spread to see whether they can trace it back and significantly narrow down the search area.
Jiang Hui, whose mother was on the plane, discovered a piece of potential MH370 debris in Madagascar last year.
She said: "I thought it was very miraculous and fortunate when I found the piece of debris that day, but I thought it was useless because this sort of searching activity should have been done by the government.
"It should not be us, the family members, who should have been subjected to this pain, to go and face this cruel reality."
Grace Nathan, whose mother Anne Daisy was on board, said: "We want the next phase of our searching campaign to be that we will continue to look for the plane.
"So if the governments do not resume searching, we intend to source our own experts and own assets to continue searching."
A number of theories have been put forward about what happened to the aircraft including a fire on board, hijacking or terror plot, rogue pilot action and mechanical or structural failure.
A final report on the plane's disappearance will be released this year.
They are attempting to raise up to $50m (£47m) so they can resume the hunt for the aircraft which disappeared on 8 March 2014.
It is believed to have crashed in a remote part of the southern Indian Ocean but the largest search in aviation history has failed to find the main wreckage of the plane.
In January families of those on board reacted angrily when it was announced that the £133m operation to find the aircraft was being called off.
Details of the families' plan for a private search were announced at a memorial just ahead of the third anniversary of the plane's disappearance.
Jacquita Gomes, whose husband was a flight attendant on MH370, said that what happened to the flight "should not go down in history books as a mystery".
In July 2015 part of the aeroplane's wing was found on Reunion Island, and so far more than 20 objects either confirmed or believed to be from the jet have washed ashore on beaches in Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa and Madagascar.
Analysts have been looking at how the debris has spread to see whether they can trace it back and significantly narrow down the search area.
Jiang Hui, whose mother was on the plane, discovered a piece of potential MH370 debris in Madagascar last year.
She said: "I thought it was very miraculous and fortunate when I found the piece of debris that day, but I thought it was useless because this sort of searching activity should have been done by the government.
"It should not be us, the family members, who should have been subjected to this pain, to go and face this cruel reality."
Grace Nathan, whose mother Anne Daisy was on board, said: "We want the next phase of our searching campaign to be that we will continue to look for the plane.
"So if the governments do not resume searching, we intend to source our own experts and own assets to continue searching."
A number of theories have been put forward about what happened to the aircraft including a fire on board, hijacking or terror plot, rogue pilot action and mechanical or structural failure.
A final report on the plane's disappearance will be released this year.
'Terrible!': Trump claims Obama had his 'wires tapped' before election win
US President Donald Trump has claimed Barack Obama had his "wires tapped" before he won the election.
He tweeted: "Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"
The president added: "Is it legal for a sitting president to be 'wire tapping' a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!"
In a further tweet, he wrote: "I'd bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to election!"
And in an additional message, he said: "How low has President Obama gone to tapp (sic) my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!"
Mr Trump did not offer any evidence to support his claims, while Mr Obama has not responded.
McCarthyism is defined as making allegations of subversion or treason with insufficient regard for evidence.
It is said to have begun with an executive order issued by President Truman in March 1947, requiring all federal employees within the American civil service to be screened for "loyalty".
Senator Joseph McCarthy claimed in 1950 that known communists were working in the US State Department.
Later, in 1954, he was censured by the Senate.
The Watergate political scandal followed a break in at the Democratic National Committee's HQ in the Watergate office building in Washington DC in 1972.
Multiple abuses of power by the Nixon administration were subsequently discovered.
He tweeted: "Terrible! Just found out that Obama had my 'wires tapped' in Trump Tower just before the victory. Nothing found. This is McCarthyism!"
The president added: "Is it legal for a sitting president to be 'wire tapping' a race for president prior to an election? Turned down by court earlier. A NEW LOW!"
In a further tweet, he wrote: "I'd bet a good lawyer could make a great case out of the fact that President Obama was tapping my phones in October, just prior to election!"
And in an additional message, he said: "How low has President Obama gone to tapp (sic) my phones during the very sacred election process. This is Nixon/Watergate. Bad (or sick) guy!"
Mr Trump did not offer any evidence to support his claims, while Mr Obama has not responded.
McCarthyism is defined as making allegations of subversion or treason with insufficient regard for evidence.
It is said to have begun with an executive order issued by President Truman in March 1947, requiring all federal employees within the American civil service to be screened for "loyalty".
Senator Joseph McCarthy claimed in 1950 that known communists were working in the US State Department.
Later, in 1954, he was censured by the Senate.
The Watergate political scandal followed a break in at the Democratic National Committee's HQ in the Watergate office building in Washington DC in 1972.
Multiple abuses of power by the Nixon administration were subsequently discovered.
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