The bill, which was lost last week after it was defeated five times in House of Lords, will be reintroduced in the House of Commons on Wednesday - the first day of the new parliamentary session.

The government says European elections will be fairer

The European Parliamentary Elections Bill will be rushed through all its Commons stages on a "guillotine" timetable, limiting debate.

It will go through all its parliamentary stages - up to the third reading - in one day.

The government says the guillotine measure is justified as the bill has already been amply debated.

Lords may cause delay

The bill will then return to the Lords, who rejected the measure an unprecedented five times, defying the government.

They were opposed to the government's "closed list" system, under which voters do not see the name of the candidates, only the parties.

The government had to abandon the measure just one day before the end of the last session. But ministers are reintroducing it under the Parliament Act which means it cannot be blocked by peers although they may try to cause delays.