Shabana Mahmood says Labour party wants to create ‘fairness in our immigration system’ – as it happened - The Guardian

For a full list of all the stories covered on the blog today, do scroll through the list of key event headlines near the top of the blog.

Burnham's social care plan could cost far more than he says, and take 'many decades' to implement, leading expert claims

Streeting thanks farmer who alerted police to suspicious activity at RAF Fairford, but says she only has a 'partial picture'

Getting rid of triple lock would not raise enough now to fund PM's social care reform plans, Resolution Foundation chief says

Miliband says Britain can be 'beacon of light' and has to play its part 'rebuilding' world order

Healey says there's 'nothing progressive' about losing control of borrowing and he and PM 'united' on sticking to fiscal rules

Burnham says he has been asking Home Offices for details about Piddington camp in light of concerns

Burnham says social care reform perhaps his most important ambition - as he admits he's not certain it will happen

1d ago 12.50 EDT Rayner says government will give councils new powers to 'strengthen public control of social housing'

It is a good day for local government at the Labour government. As well as the announcement about mayors and councils getting control of the warm homes programme (see 4.58pm), Labour has announced that councils are getting new powers “to strengthen public control of social housing” and to tackle homelessness.

Angela Rayner, the housing secretary, will announce the plans in her speech tomorrow. But someone else is also giving a speech tomorrow, and Labour has presumably decided that, if Rayner is going to get any media coverage, her new policy needs to be out tonight.

Explaining the plans, Labour said:

double quotation mark The measures will be set out in Rayner’s speech and will be legislated for as amendments to the social housing bill, which is currently in the Commons, and will include: A new requirement to notify - reducing much-needed social homes from leaving the sector by requiring housing associations and other providers to notify the council when they are selling a social home, while also doubling the time for this before a home is sold to maximise opportunities for councils, or other social housing providers, to buy the home. A new duty to collaborate - compelling public services to work together to prevent homelessness and support those who are at crisis point, mandating early identification of those at risk of or experiencing homelessness, ensuring they are referred into the right support. Learning from Scotland and Wales, where such a duty is already in place, the government says this will ensure people get the right support they need and support the new national effort to end rough sleeping. A new power of referral - a power for local authorities to refer a homeless household to housing associations and other providers to be housed unless the private provider has a good reason not to do so. This measure will help tackle the number of families in temporary accommodation, which is at a record high - almost 180,000 children are currently living in temporary accommodation.