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Labour peers tonight ordered Theresa May to think again over cruel cuts to disability benefits.

Labour narrowly defeated the government using a rarely-used 'regret motion' in the House of Lords over Tory plans to cut Personal Independence Payments, the main disability benefit.

The motion demands an urgent review of the cruel policy which will leave at least 160,000 disabled people with conditions such as autism and schizophrenia without vital financial support.

Peers backed by 162 to 154 - a majority of eight - a Labour motion "regretting" the changes and demanding a review of their impact on people with mental health conditions.

Both of tonight's votes were at risk of failing after a chaotic last-minute split between the Lib Dem and Labour peers.

Labour drew up a motion to "regret" the changes and push for a review of them within two years.

But the Lib Dems drew up a motion to kill off the changes completely - and each side appeared to be refusing to back the other.

A Lib Dem source said before the vote: "We aren't voting for the Labour motion. It's not enough. We want to kill it and they won't."

In retaliation a Labour source branded the tactic "childish" and said so-called kill motions rarely survive their trip through Parliament.

The Lib Dem motion was defeated by 164 votes to 75 - a Government majority of 89.

Both motions were designed to fight changes to the disability benefit Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

A tribunal said PIP should rise for 164,000 people who can't go out alone due to "psychological distress".

Tory ministers rewrote the law to block the court judgements - because implementing them would have cost £3.7bn.

The legal change was condemned by charities and branded "nasty" by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn .

The Social Security Advisory Committee (SSAC) watchdog said some people could be deprived of money, and called for part of the plans to be delayed for further scrutiny.

Despite the warning, Disabilities Minister Penny Mordaunt told MPs today: "This is not a policy change or a budget change, and it will not result in any claimants, regardless of their health conditions, seeing a reduction in the amount of PIP they have been awarded."

Labour MP Stephen Hepburn hit back that the "arrogant Tory Government" was "ignoring legal decisions" and "overriding expert medical opinion to deprive people with mental health issues of the right to benefits".

He added: "What level of cuts has the Minister promised the Chancellor in order to get this policy through?"