Prime Minister Theresa May will seek to use her majority in parliament's lower chamber to overturn a defeat her government suffered in the upper chamber on legislation allowing her to trigger Brexit, a government source has said.
The House of Lords voted 358 to 256 on Wednesday to make an amendment to the "European Union (Notification of Withdrawal Bill)" which requires the government to publish proposals on how to protect the rights of EU citizens currently living in Britain within three months of triggering exit negotiations.
The source confirmed an earlier tweet by the Press Association which said the government would look to reverse the change when the amended bill is put before the lower house of parliament. Both houses must approve any changes before the bill can become law, and before May can trigger the legal exit process.
The change requires the government to publish proposals on how to protect EU citizens currently living in Britain - including their residency rights - within three months of triggering exit negotiations.
May's Conservatives do not have a majority in the upper chamber.
The defeat is a blow to May, who had hoped to pass the legislation without changes. While May has said she wants to guarantee EU citizens' rights, she has not been prepared to do so until other member states agreed to a reciprocal deal.
May is still expected to be able to fulfil her plan to trigger the exit process by the end of the month.
