Looks like Andrea Leadsom will be abstaining from tonight’s HS2 vote, the Treasury says she has conveniently gone to Brussels. If she stays for beer and frites this evening it will be ambition and a 20,000 majority that keeps her there…

Foreign Office minister David Lidington has been given permission to abstain and is threatening to “resign at a later stage of the bill” if changes are not made in favour of his constituency.

Minister for Civil Society Nick Hurd is also abstaining reports the Speecie, apparently he thinks resigning wouldn’t make any difference.

Attorney General Dominic Grieve is visiting the north-east and won’t be back in time for the vote.

The debate is underway shortly…