Would more North Sea gas lower prices?published at 14:02 GMT 18 March

14:02 GMT 18 March

By Ben Chu

We're ending our live coverage of today's Prime Minister's Questions, but we'll leave you with an analysis from BBC Verify following a question to Starmer about energy.

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage asked the prime minister to consider increasing extraction of natural gas in the North Sea, saying it would lead to “thousands of jobs, increased tax revenues and cheaper gas prices”.

Granting new licences for drilling might well safeguard jobs in this sector and lead to higher tax revenues but it’s not clear that it would make gas prices cheaper.

The UK is highly integrated with the European gas market, being physically linked with the wider continent through undersea pipelines.

Private energy companies operating in the UK’s section of the North Sea do not sell gas exclusively to UK customers, they sell into this pan-European market and the UK wholesale price tends to move in line with the European wholesale price.

Experts told us the potential additional supply available from granting more exploration licences to get more gas from the North Sea would not be big enough to significantly move the European price and hence would be unlikely to reduce the price for UK consumers.

The prime minister and Kemi Badenoch attacked each other's leadership style at PMQs.

The Tory leader took aim at Keir Starmer's appointment of Peter Mandelson, while Starmer attacked Badenoch over her stance on the Iran war and comments by her shadow justice secretary.

Peter Mandelson's appointment

Badenoch persistently pressed Starmer on whether he spoke to Mandelson about Jeffrey Epstein before his appointed as US ambassador. In response, Starmer reiterated that the appointment was a "mistake" and repeated his apology to Epstein's victims.

Shadow justice secretary's comments

In his exchange with Badenoch, Starmer called for shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy to be sacked over comments he made about Muslims praying in public (here's what Timothy said). "If he were in my team, he'd be gone," the PM said.

Angela Rayner's warning

Badenoch also mentioned comments from former deputy PM Angela Rayner, who called Labour's immigration proposals "un-British". The Tory leader said she and Rayner agreed this "weak man" should be replaced by a "strong woman" - watch the moment.

On Iran

The prime minister reiterated that the UK would not be drawn into the wider Iran war, and said the longer it went on the more it would increase the cost of living.

The future of the UK's nuclear deterrent

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey asked whether the UK should be reliant on the US when it renews its nuclear deterrent - the PM said he'd do what's in the UK's "best interests".

Vicki Young
Politics Live presenter

Kemi Badenoch used today’s PMQs to return to the issue that has dogged Keir Starmer over recent weeks – his decision to appoint Peter Mandelson as British ambassador to the United States.

Speaking to me on Politics Live, the Shadow Environment Secretary Victoria Atkins said: “The idea that the prime minister of the UK would not interview the person that they are proposing to send to Washington on behalf of the UK is frankly crazy.”

I asked Justice Minister Jake Richards whether the PM should have just given a straight answer to Badenoch’s question.

His response: “What would be dangerous would be for a prime minister to storm out, make broad statements and not respect the due process.”

Image source, UK Parliament

During PMQs, Keir Starmer singled out shadow justice secretary Nick Timothy for comments he made about Muslims praying in public on social media.

Accompanying a video of Muslims praying at an event in Trafalgar Square, Timothy wrote: "Mass ritual prayer in public places is an act of domination."

"Perform these rituals in mosques if you wish. But they are not welcome in our public places and shared institutions," he added.

Starmer told Tory leader Kemi Badenoch she should "denounce his comments and she should sack him".

In response to Starmer's comments, Badenoch took aim at his justice secretary and proposals to abolish jury trials.

"My shadow justice secretary is defending British values," Badenoch said. "I know who I would rather have sitting on the front bench next to me."

Since the post on Tuesday night, Timothy has accused people of interpreting it with "wilful misunderstanding".

This week's PMQs has come to a close. We'll bring you a round-up of the key lines from the Commons soon.

Snowden will have won points with Badenoch with attack on PMpublished at 12:52 GMT 18 March

12:52 GMT 18 March

Brian Wheeler
Reporting from the House of Commons

Andrew Snowden will have won some brownie points with his leader with an impassioned attack on the PM for failing to answer her questions on Mandelson.

Conservative MP Andrew Snowden criticises Starmer for his earlier responses to party leader Badenoch - claiming the PM comes to the House every week with "pre-scripted nonsense that bears no resemblance to the questions he's asked".

Snowden says that, when asked repeatedly about Mandelson's appointment, the Starmer responded by talking about the war in the Middle East, the shadow justice secretary, and protests in London.

He asks: "What is he scared of? What is he hiding?"

He asks Starmer again whether he spoke to Mandelson "personally" after finding out he had a personal relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The prime minister says the process in relation to Mandelson has been set out.

He also says he knows why the Conservatives "don't want to talk about" the war - because they supported going in before "thinking of the consequences".

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage asks Starmer about energy reserves. He says Norway has opened 49 drill sites for gas and oil but on the UK's side of the North Sea there are none.

He asks whether the prime minister believes the UK should become self-sufficient in natural gas.

Starmer replies that oil and gas will be part of the mix of energy for "many years" to come.

He says Farage is talking about the consequences of a war "he said we should rush into" before changing his mind a week later.

Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey asks about the UK’s nuclear deterrent programme.

The UK has operational control of its nuclear arsenal, including British-built warheads, but it depends on the US to supply and maintain the Trident missiles that would deliver them.

With the use of Trident missiles set to expire by the 2040s, he says the UK faces a choice between leasing new missiles from the US - "accepting whatever terms the president gives us" - or building our own in the UK.

Davey says the Conservatives and Reform say we must rely on the US "because we couldn't possibly do it ourselves - does the prime minister agree with them?"

Starmer says renewing the nuclear deterrent will be done according to the "best interests of Britain" but argues Davey is advocating for a plan without knowing how much it'll cost and how it would work.

Starmer and Badenoch exchange insults over leadership in today's PMQspublished at 12:34 GMT 18 March

12:34 GMT 18 March

Chris Mason
Political editor

Those main exchanges this week were quite something.

The prime minister and the Conservatives lobbed insults about what each perceive to be the leadership failings in each other — doing so often at cross purposes to the questions or points being made.

Kemi Badenoch was able — via a specific question — to highlight that the prime minister didn’t speak to Mandelson himself prior to appointing him ambassador in Washington.

The lack of such a conversation, reported by The Times in recent days, prompted Badenoch to repeatedly offer the prime minister to say this reporting was wrong — and he didn’t.

Instead, the Prime Minister chose to turn the question of leadership and judgement on Badenoch, by questioning her outlook on the war in Iran and remarks made by the Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy.

This morning’s story about the former deputy prime minister Angela Rayner’s critique of the government was mentioned in passing by Kemi Badenoch, but not in a sufficiently direct way to prompt an answer about it from Starmer.

Badenoch had some sharp punchlines this week, but on two occasions managed to deliver them and then forget she needed to actually ask a question.

Social Democratic and Labour Party MP Claire Hanna asks the prime minister if he can guarantee that the UK will not be drawn into the wider war in Iran, and whether MPs would "get a vote before the UK involves in any further conflict".

Starmer says he will "protect our people in the region" and take action to defend the UK and its allies.

"We will not be drawn into the wider war," Starmer says, adding: "I want to see this war end as quickly as possible.

"The longer it continues, the bigger the impact on the cost of living, and that's where we've intervened to support households with cost of heating oil".

Brian Wheeler
Reporting from the House of Commons

The Speaker is not amused by the PM throwing questions at Badenoch. It’s meant to be questions to the prime minister.

Starmer has come prepared with attack lines on Iran but the Tory leader wants to talk about Mandelson.

Badenoch says Starmer wants the public to believe he is a serious leader "but he doesn't do the work" - accusing him of outsourcing decisions and blaming "anyone but himself" in relation to Mandelson's appointment.

She says he appointed Mandelson but "didn't bother to ask the questions", and asks why the House should believe what he says about anything if he "can't be straight" about this matter.

Starmer responds by saying Badenoch tried to rush the UK into a war "without thinking of the consequences".

"She's utterly irrelevant and she's got no judgement," he continues. He says she "jumped into a war with Iran without stopping to think".

Brian Wheeler
Reporting from the House of Commons

Keir Starmer laughs off Kemi Badenoch’s jibe about Angela Rayner’s alleged leadership ambitions.

David Lammy finds it even more funny, as the Tory leader indicates that she has not finished her question yet.

Badenoch turns to Starmer's leadership suggesting his former deputy Angela Rayner has "fired the starting gun" on the race to replace him.

She says she and Rayner both agree this "weak man" should be replaced by a "strong woman".

Badenoch presses the PM on his appointment of Mandelson as the UK's ambassador, asking if the prime minister did not speak to Mandelson ahead of the appointment, then how could Mandelson have lied to him.

In response, Starmer deflects saying the process is "clear" and is being looked at by an independent adviser.

Image source, House of Commons

Badenoch accuses Starmer of trying to "talk about anything else" and says he did not answer her question.

She says we know the prime minister was warned of the risk of appointing Mandelson and asks again whether he spoke to the former ambassador before giving him the job.

Starmer responds that he has already made clear Mandelson was "asked questions and gave untruthful replies".

The prime minister says this is "a question of my judgement" but asks, too, "what about her judgement" - and accuses the Conservative leader of wanting to rush into the UK into the war in the Middle East.

The BBC understands Mandelson's view is that he answered questions about his relationship with Epstein in the vetting process accurately.

Starmer responds that Mandelson's appointment was his "mistake" and repeats his apology to Epstein's victims.

He adds that the government is continuing to support the ongoing police investigation and says it is clear the appointment process wasn't strong enough which is why he has strengthened it.

He then calls for Badenoch to apologise for calling for the UK to join the Iran war "without thinking through the consequences".

Image source, House of Commons

Kemi Badenoch has her first question for Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

The Conservative leader says the PM tried to avoid scrutiny on files relating to the appointment of former ambassador to the US Peter Mandelson by releasing the documents immediately after PMQs last week.

She then asks Starmer whether he personally spoke to Mandelson about his relationship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, before he was appointed as the UK's Washington ambassador.

Mandelson has repeatedly let it be known that he believes he has not acted criminally, did not act for personal gain and is cooperating with the police during an ongoing investigation.

Image source, House of Commons

Prime Minister Keir Starmer is on his feet at this week's Prime Minister's Questions.

Before taking questions, he takes the opportunity to offer his "deepest condolences" to the families of two young people who have died as a result of the meningitis outbreak in Kent.

He says health experts are working to identify close contacts, and distribute antibiotics.

Starmer asks anyone who attended Club Chemistry in Canterbury on March 5, 6 or 7 to come forward and receive antibiotics.