I thank the Minister. I know she shares my frustration at the length of time it is taking for this legislation to appear. Although the hare can hide in the long grass, it is about time we flush it out. If the Minister has any suggestions for how we can advance this legislation I would be most gratef…
The Minister said that the camera was found in a routine inspection. Have the Government instigated more frequent inspections as a result of this discovery?
My Lords, I join noble Lords in thanking the noble Baroness, Lady Elliott of Whitburn Bay, for introducing this very worthwhile Bill, which has cross-party support. I declare a personal interest as I was diagnosed with early-stage lung cancer last year. The noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, may be intere…
My Lords, I will not detain the House very long. I speak as somebody who for most of their adult life was a retailer, until the good people of the Uxbridge constituency sent me into the other place—but I continued to be a retailer, behind the counter and also having to deal with putative shoplifters…
My Lords, I thank everyone who has taken part in this short but very important debate on the issues of child criminal exploitation and the interface with our modern slavery law. It is a vital issue on which I think all of us across the Committee wish to ensure we are taking coherent action.
Amendme…
My Lords, I am a great admirer of the noble Lord, Lord Krebs, and I listened to what he said. I remember reading a book probably by one of his predecessors at Oxford, Swifts in a Tower by David Lack, which was a very interesting and useful piece of work. I understand exactly what the noble Lord is s…
My Lords, I fully support Amendments 140 and 246.
I agree entirely with the noble Baroness, Lady Grender, about having a level playing field. I remember organising a round table in No. 10 a few years ago with developers and builders who all said that they would love to do various environmental thin…
My Lords, I have several amendments in this group. First, I say to the noble Lord, Lord Teverson, that the chances of the Government agreeing to an amendment are very slim. I remember being in opposition in the other place in Committee on the Bill setting up the Greater London Authority, and we disc…
The amendments I have put down are all about making sure we had scientific evidence and consultation. I am a bear of little brain—
In the absence of my noble friend Lord Goldsmith, I shall move Amendment 212, to which I have added my name. My noble friend sends his apologies to the Committee that he is detained elsewhere and cannot be here today. I am grateful, as is he, that my noble friends Lady Coffey and Lord Hintze have al…
My Lords, I was a bit remiss in not congratulating the Minister on remaining in post. Prime Ministers make, from time to time, crazy decisions—I have seen it happen—but nothing would have been crazier than to remove the noble Baroness from her position. That is why I did not even think about it.
I …
My Lords, I declare my interests as chairman of the Human Trafficking Foundation and chairman of the Task Force Trust, which I will come on to later. I extend my best wishes to those mentioned by the noble Lord, Lord German, who are not able to be here because of illness, and wish them well.
I supp…
LordsOral Questions1 September 20252 contributions
My Lords, the Animals (Low-Welfare Activities Abroad) Act 2023 provides a framework for the introduction of future bans on the advertising and offering for sale, in England and Northern Ireland, of low-welfare animal activities abroad. We are currently engaging with both industry and stakeholders to…
The noble Lord is correct. As he is aware, I strongly supported the then Bill when it went through Parliament, because I do not want to see the abuse of animals in any circumstances. However, having looked at the Act and how to take it forward, there are certain challenges to ensure that it is effec…
I am sure the noble Lord will not be surprised when I say that we are looking at the best way to bring this forward at the moment. I cannot commit to a timetable, but I can confirm that Defra is absolutely committed to bringing in this legislation and is working within government to ensure it is don…
It has been made public that legislation will be introduced by the end of the year to enable the ratification of the BBNJ agreement. That agreement includes processes to ensure better co-ordination and co-operation between international bodies responsible for ocean governance, including the ISA.
My Lords, we want to stop fishing only where it is damaging protected species and habitats in MPAs. For example, some MPAs are designated to protect sea-birds or harbour porpoises; bottom-trawling restrictions will not help these species. Our regulators undertake detailed assessments to make sure we…