It has sometimes seemed over the past couple of years that Parliament has not wanted to discuss anything other than Brexit. Of course, it is a crucial and defining issue that needs to be resolved but I am surely not alone in hoping fervently that our official withdrawal may now very soon be ratified with a fair and sensible deal.

I am delighted with the deal the Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been able to bring back from Brussels and I am pleased that the EU is supporting it strongly too. It is a deal that protects UK citizens in the EU and those EU citizens who have made their home here in the UK and it is a deal that has outlined a peaceful and prosperous way forward for Northern Ireland and all those who live there.

I am very pleased to announce that this deal has my full support and that I will be voting for it in Parliament on Saturday and I would urge all other MPs to do likewise, whatever political party they represent. It is time for our country to come together on this matter and I am quietly confident that it can now do so.