Tuesday briefing: Inside the latest Lords scandal – and the future of the peers

In today's newsletter: What the suspension of Richard Dannatt and David Evans tell us about standards and accountability in the Lords, and the prospect of reform

Good morning. Two peers, Lord Dannatt and Lord Evans of Watford, are facing lengthy suspensions from the House of Lords, after the house's disciplinary process found multiple instances in which they broke lobbying rules and demonstrated a failure to act on their personal honour".

The investigation began after the Guardian published a series based on undercover reporting earlier this year that exposed both peers offering to arrange meetings with ministers for what they believed were potential commercial clients. The commissioner's findings detail breaches including Dannatt offering introductions to ministers for companies in which he had a financial interest, and Evans expressing a clear willingness to provide access to ministers in the context of a commercial deal worth tens of thousands of pounds.

Politics | Reform UK has ignored requests to share the evidence for its claim to have saved 331m since it took charge of 10 English councils in May, prompting questions over whether the figure is true. This Guardian analysis has found that supposed savings appear questionable.

Society | Hundreds of thousands of vulnerable unpaid carers will have their cases reassessed after a damning official review concluded they had been left with huge debts because of government failure and maladministration.

Media | Claims of serious and systemic problems" in the BBC's coverage of issues including Donald Trump, Gaza and trans issues - which led to the resignation of its director general, Tim Davie - have been disputed by a former adviser to the corporation.

Ukraine | Kyiv has significantly amended the US peace plan" for Ukraine, removing some of Russia's maximalist demands, people familiar with the negotiations said, as European leaders warned that no deal could be reached quickly.

Politics | Rachel Reeves has privately urged Labour MPs to back her make-or-break budget, saying they will not like every measure but promising it will be fair".