The House of Lords has voted 358 to 256 to secure the right for EU nationals to stay in the UK post-Brexit.
Seven Conservatives joined Peers from other parties to vote for the amendment to the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill (Brexit Bill).
Some Conservative MPs, who will have their say on the Bill when it returns to the House of Commons in two weeks’ time, had argued that giving guarantees to EU citizens in Britain would reduce the UK’s bargaining power in negotiations over the status of its own nationals living in Member States.
The amendment means the Bill will now go through “Parliamentary ping pong”, moving between the two Houses. Labour MPs have said they will support the amendment, but, while there is some support, Conservative MPs may be harder to convince.
The Bill has been passing through the committee stage of the Lords. Earlier this week, Lord Hain failed to persuade a majority of Peers to back an amendment committing the government to negotiating Brexit on the basis the UK would remain in the single market.
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