Tim Farron and Dick Newby responded quickly to the excellent news that the Lords have done the decent thing and defeats the Government over EU Nationals’ right to stay.

The Government now needs to think again over how it treats the millions of EU citizens living in this country. Theresa May has been stubbornly determined to use EU citizens in the UK as bargaining chips. Today the Lords have told her this is not acceptable. The Government must now secure the future of the millions who are currently being held in limbo by its drive for a hard Brexit. The Liberal Democrats will stand up to this government and for the people being left behind by Theresa May’s destructive Brexit plan.

Tim added:

This is an embarrassing defeat for the government. Theresa May is failing the three million EU citizens that live in this country. Her Conservative Brexit Government is leaving our friends, neighbours and colleagues in a state of fear. The Prime Minister must now listen and accept this amendment. I can guarantee that Liberal Democrats will keep trooping through the lobbies time after time, if needed, to defend EU citizens’ rights. People must not be used as pawns in Theresa May’s dangerous game. Her position leaves lives, families and futures hanging in the balance.

Our peers took to Twitter to hail the result:

Stunning victory for #righttostay. Shows what can happen when parties work together for the interest of the country & doing the right thing. — Lindsay Northover (@LPNorthover) March 1, 2017

And Olly Grender makes an observation about former colleague Zahida Manzoor:

To defect from LibDems & join Tories & now sit behind Tebbit as he takes a pop at "foreigners" is embarrassing pic.twitter.com/OMuVmwiKbs — Olly Grender (@OllyGrender) March 1, 2017

I still feel utterly ashamed by the fact that we had this vote at all – that the Government didn’t instinctively tell EU nationals they had nothing to worry about and guarantee their future.

The story doesn’t end here, though. Next week the amended bill goes back to the Commons. We need an almighty campaign to persuade MPs to keep that amendment in and defeat the government in the Commons. If you haven’t written to your MP, do so right now even if you know for certain, as I do, that they would support the amendment. Let’s fill those inboxes with reasoned, impassioned pleas on behalf of our European friends and colleagues.

* Caron Lindsay is Editor of Liberal Democrat Voice and blogs at Caron's Musings