Lords vs. Arsenal

I am happy to report that I will be hot-switching between an important European situation that is developing tonight in a democratic setting, and coverage on BBC Parliament of the House of Lords. Yes, it is Arsenal vs. Munich and Lords vs. Commons. Again. Both matches are second legs.

Arsenal really have a lot to do tonight to win their match, and are surely praying for a draw if not a narrow aggregate loss. A catastrophic loss for them will almost certainly cause their manager to exit.

In the Lords, they are having it all their way. They have succeeded in approving another amendment to the Brexit bill. Sorry, sorry. It is the “EU (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill” in fact. Brexit bill just sounds good.

So the Lords have blocked something which the Commons will simply overturn in a few days or weeks. As my colleague Guido brilliantly points out on his website, there are only 24 days remaining before Prime Minister Theresa May must trigger Article 50. The heat, and the race, is on.