By Beth Rigby, political editor

This was a trip with two aims: to refocus the world's attention on Ukraine and announce a big boost in defence spending - with an eye, of course, on national security, but also on the general election.

When it comes to Ukraine, this was a co-ordinated effort across the Atlantic.

As Rishi Sunak arrived in Berlin, overnight in Washington the US was finally approving a $600m military aid package for Kyiv.

This was all designed to send a message to Russia - allies are in lockstep and will stand behind Ukraine for as long as it takes.

The prime minister used the Poland leg of the trip to commit the UK to spending 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2030, while in Berlin, Mr Sunak announced a formal bilateral security partnership with Germany to deepen co-operation on defence and military manufacturing.

It was all part of his agenda to position himself as a wartime leader, speaking of the UK's defence industry going onto a war footing as Europe stood at a turning point.

"The world we are living in is increasingly dangerous and the axis of authoritarian states are working together to undermine our security," he told his audience in Berlin.

"We need to do more. Germany has done more and we have met the NATO standard [on spending], and you see global defence spending is rising."

Mr Sunak added: "I do believe we will look back at this moment in time and recognise this inflection point, where the old paradigm is no longer the case and we need to adjust for a new paradigm."

Read Beth's full analysis here:

That's all for tonight. 

But make sure to join us again tomorrow - Sophy is heading to Grimsby to discuss why so many people have turned off politics.

There'll be a live audience and new polling laying out the situation in one of our Target Towns, so make sure to tune in at 7pm on Thursday.

By Jennifer Scott, political reporter 

Labour's Angela Rayner has attacked the Conservatives for "obsessing" over her living arrangements while renters continue to face uncertainty over the government's promise to end no-fault evictions.

The party's deputy leader has come under scrutiny over the sale of her former Stockport home before she was an MP, with claims she did not pay the right amount of capital gains tax and may have registered to vote at the wrong address - allegations she denies.

Greater Manchester Police are now looking into the latter issue, which could be a breach of electoral rules, following a complaint from Tory MP James Daly.

But standing in at Prime Minister's Questions on the day the much-delayed Renters' Reform Bill returned to the Commons, Ms Rayner said: "I know this party opposite is desperate to talk about my living arrangements, but the public want to know what this government is going to do about theirs."

Ministers first promised to scrap no-fault evictions - or Section 21s - in April 2019, but agreed to an indefinite delay to outlawing the mechanism after a group of Conservative backbenchers, including some landlords, raised concerns that the courts were not prepared for the legal cases that could replace them.

A new clause being added to the bill by the government today would, if approved, order an assessment of the courts before any ban could be enacted. But it offers no timetable for when the probe would have to take place.

Read more below:

Our panel, Sir Liam Fox and Sunder Katwala, are paying tribute to the late Labour politician.

A notable part of the tributes is the fact they have come from both Labour and Conservative figures.

Mr Katwala says he first came across Lord Field after reading him in university - dubbing him a "one-man thinktank".

Meeting him later showed the Labour stalwart to be a "very kind man" who was "very committed" to his ideas. 

Sir Liam says that you got "Frank the man" and "Frank the politician". 

The first was witty and good company, the latter was a politician who was "very driven by ideas".

The Conservative MP says Lord Field would be "pretty savage" about ideas, but would not make the debates personal.

Mr Katwala says there is an appetite for cross-party working in parliament, and Sir Liam says that a lot of it still goes on - but it is not often seen by the public.

By Tim Baker, political reporter

Frank Field, the former Labour MP and minister, has died at the age of 81.

A statement from his family said: "He will be mourned by admirers across politics but above all he will be greatly missed by those lucky enough to have enjoyed his laughter and friendship."

Lord Field of Birkenhead was asked to "think the unthinkable" to reform welfare by Sir Tony Blair in 1997, but he only lasted a year in the role before clashes with other ministers - including Gordon Brown - saw him return to the backbenches.

Having left the Commons in 2019, Lord Field was later diagnosed with terminal cancer and briefly admitted to hospice care in 2021.

His health had continued to decline, and he swore his oath to the King last year in the House of Lords from a wheelchair.

Tributes poured in from across the political spectrum

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer said Lord Field "dedicated his life to being a voice for the most vulnerable" and called his death a "profound loss to politics and to our nation", while former home secretary Priti Patel praised his "unwavering moral compass, commitment to working cross-party and unshakable principles".

Read more below: 

With the local elections just over a week away, deputy political editor Sam Coates explains why they matter and what they might tell us about the upcoming general election.

Sophy returns to her panel, Conservative MP Sir Liam Fox and British Future's Sunder Katwala.

She asks about reforming the housing sector.

Mr Katwala says housing will continue to be on the agenda for likely the next decade - and it's new to see rentals at the centre of the debate.

But he says reforms will always be contested by both sides.

There are also conversations to be had about supply, Mr Katwala adds.

Sir Liam says it's important to make sure renters are protected from being kicked out for no reason, while also ensuring landlords have the confidence they will get a return on their investments.

He adds that it is now down to the Lords to take the bill forward.

Mr Katwala and Sir Liam both acknowledge that there is a generational aspect to the issue, with younger people tending to vote Labour and also being renters, with older people more likely to be landlords and Tory supporters.

By Jennifer Scott, political reporter

MPs have voted in favour of the government's Renters (Reform) Bill - despite it including an indefinite delay to the end of no-fault evictions.

A debate on the legislation ran throughout this afternoon, including around a new clause from the government which would hold off outlawing Section 21s until a review of the courts system had taken place.

But despite outrage from charities, campaigners and opposition parties around the measure, it got the backing of the majority of MPs - and the bill passed its final stage in the Commons shortly after 6.30pm.

A Section 21 notice is the legal mechanism allowing landlords to evict tenants without providing a reason, which creates uncertainty for those who rent their homes.

The government first promised to ban the notices five years ago, back when Theresa May was still in Number 10.

But it has faced numerous delays amid threats of rebellion from Tory backbenchers - some of them landlords - who said they feared ending Section 21s would see the courts overwhelmed with more complex eviction cases.

Read more below....

Sir Jeremy Quin, the chair of the Commons Defence Select Committee is speaking to Sophy.

He is also a former member of the government, and so Sophy asks him whether the pledged 70,000 Civil Service job cuts to fund the increase is possible.

Sir Jeremy says: "Happily, I'm in a situation where others in government will have to work out how to find the money to deliver it."

He adds that the government would not be promising the cuts if they could not deliver it over the six years promised.

Putting on his hat as chair of the Defence Committee, Sir Jeremy says he is "delighted" funds are being committed to the military. 

The ex-minister says the increase in funds is a green light to businesses to invest in the UK military sector.

But he does not take responsibility for the decreasing capacity of the UK's armed forces over the past decade or so - saying that a "very vibrant job market" has led to recruitment struggles.

Sir Jeremy adds that defence spending fell after the end of the Cold War when the world was safer - but it now has to go up again in the wake of the Ukraine invasion, Houthi aggression and tension in the Indo-Pacific.

The former government minister declines to say if he is worried about a potential Donald Trump presidency - saying that "whoever is in the White House" will recognise the importance of the relationship between the US and Europe.

Former defence secretary Sir Liam Fox and British Future's Sunder Katwala are on the show tonight.

Sophy asks them for their take on the new defence spending announced.

Sir Liam says it is the right decision to make, and that defence is "not discretionary spending".

He adds the UK "can't choose" who its enemies are, but highlights Russia, China and Iran as potential threats.

Sir Liam denies his party has been asleep at the wheel.

He calls for funds to be spent on the navy and cyberspace.

Mr Katwala says decisions on spending will not be taken until after the next election - but the aspiration to spend 2.5% is shared cross-party.

He contrasts this with the US, where there is a "knife-edge" election between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, the former a traditional support of the transatlantic relationship, the latter being much more unpredictable.

Sir Liam chips in to say it used to be - when he was negotiating with other nations on defence - that he and his US counterpart would have a "bad cop and worse cop" act to convince nations to spend more.

But this is no longer the case in the wake of the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.