Lords
Debate
14 July 2026
Taxation (Energy and Vehicles) Bill
My Lords, this Bill is presented by the Government as a series of targeted measures designed to address a specific issue: the war in the Middle East. I thank the Minister for his full explanation. However, the truth is that what we are discussing is a series of sticking-plaster measures designed to …
Lords
Proceedings
13 July 2026
Climate Change: Housing Insurability, Mortgage Lending and Financial Resilience
My Lords, London is the world’s leading international centre for commercial insurance and reinsurance, which is a subject of this Question. Does the Minister agree that insurance companies, with their considerable long-term expertise, are best placed to determine how the effect of climate change is …
Lords
Committee Stage
8 July 2026
Financial Services and Markets Bill [HL]
My Lords, our amendments in this group concern the future of the bank ring-fencing regime. I will start by setting out clearly the position that we have reached as the Official Opposition. Through our diagnostic work, we have found a consensus that the bank ring-fencing regime is no longer fit for p…
Lords
Committee Stage
1 July 2026
3 contributions
Financial Services and Markets Bill [HL]
My Lords, for me, the group speaks to the essential balance which underpins the purpose and function of effective financial regulation. Of course regulation must promote safety, stability and confidence in the system, but regulation must also support growth, competitiveness and innovation. It must h…
My Lords, I rise enthusiastically—we have to get going for the football—to move Amendment 105, in my name and the name of my noble friend Lord Altrincham. I will also speak to the other amendments in the group.
I am grateful to my noble friend Lord Holmes for his amendments, which seek to achieve b…
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Proceedings
30 June 2026
Pension Access Rules: Impact on Terminally Ill
My Lords, The Pensions Review, along with a whole body of work done by organisations such as the Institute for Fiscal Studies, raises serious concerns about pension adequacy and retirement saving. What steps is the Minister taking to improve financial education and public understanding of the need t…
Lords
Proceedings
29 June 2026
Covid Fraud
My Lords, I think we need to stand back and take a broad view of the problems. We all know that Covid was a challenge right across government and that fraud was an issue. However, the important thing is to do better next time, which is why we set up the Public Sector Fraud Authority in 2022 and intr…
Lords
Committee Stage
22 June 2026
Financial Services and Markets Bill [HL]
My Lords, it is a pleasure to open our deliberations on the Financial Services and Markets Bill. I thank the Minister for his constructive engagement so far and I thank noble Lords across the House who have shared their initial views with us. These conversations have been very helpful and have under…
Lords
Proceedings
9 June 2026
Further Education Colleges: Recovery of VAT
My Lords, as noble Lords know, I am huge supporter of vocational education, so I welcome this Question. Does the Minister agree with the noble Lord, Lord Forbes, that it would cost the Exchequer £200 million to extend the scheme in the way proposed? More generally, do the Government consider that th…
Lords
Debate
8 June 2026
Financial Services and Markets Bill [HL]
My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the Minister as we begin our deliberations on the Financial Services and Markets Bill. Like him, we believe that the financial services sector is one of Britain’s great success stories. It accounts for around 12% of GDP, supports 2.5 million jobs and contributes …
Lords
Proceedings
1 June 2026
Middle East: Economic Response
My Lords, it is a pleasure to return to the House after such a sunny break and to be able to review calmly the Chancellor’s Statement of 21 May.
It was not a major package. It was a collection of small measures, welcomed by some people as far as it went. As far as I know, the Chancellor did not ann…
Lords
Proceedings
21 May 2026
Higher Earners: Emigration
My Lords, we should encourage rich people to reside and stay in the UK, as, for example, the top 1% of those paying income tax contribute 29% of receipts. Unfortunately, government policies not only on non-doms but on inheritance tax and other taxes have encouraged them to leave in large numbers—you…
Lords
Proceedings
19 May 2026
Defence, Security and Resilience Bank
My Lords, the recent noise around Labour’s leadership meltdown has drowned out the fact that the Government have still not announced a date for the publication of what has become the “defence invisibility plan”. Does the Minister agree that the proposed defence, security and resilience bank is a dis…
Lords
Proceedings
19 May 2026
El Niño: Impact
My Lords, the weather is, of course, borderless. What contingent planning have His Majesty’s Government undertaken to mitigate the combined impact of potential shortages of essential supplies—including fertiliser, which is so important to British farmers—that might arise from the conflict in the Gul…
Lords
Proceedings
19 May 2026
VAT Relief: Business Donations
My Lords, we on these Benches very much agree that food and other waste should be minimised, and we sympathise with the objective of this measure. However, are the Government satisfied that the proposal will be effectively administered? I speak, of course, as a former retailer.
Lords
Committee Stage
18 May 2026
Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Amendment) Regulations 2026
My Lords, these regulations introduce a number of changes following the Government’s 2022 review and the 2024 consultation. I thank the Minister for his clear introduction and for emphasising the important principle of getting things right first time, which partly explains why these reforms have tak…
Lords
Proceedings
28 April 2026
Middle East: Economic Update
My Lords, the International Monetary Fund, in its latest World Economic Outlook , has warned that the energy shock stemming from the Iran war will hit the United Kingdom harder than any other advanced economy, notably in terms of growth and inflation. It is also the case that UK borrowing costs are …
Lords
Oral Questions
27 April 2026
Online Challenger Banks
I do not think I agree with the noble Baroness on the question she asked about disadvantaging challenger banks. As I have said already, the regulations are not prescriptive in setting out specific steps that banks should undertake to satisfy customer due diligence; instead, they require them to take…
Lords
Debate
22 April 2026
Pension Schemes Bill
My Lords, since we have only one group of Motions today, I shall address our three key areas—scale and competition, public sector pensions and mandation—together.
First, on scale and competition, I am grateful to the Minister for bringing forward these amendments in lieu. The government response do…
Lords
Oral Questions
22 April 2026
World Economic Outlook: UK Growth and Inflation
Yes, and we are doing most of that, but the noble Baroness is opposing most of it. She said that we need to pursue a growth path. She will know that one of the most important things for growth is keeping inflation and interest rates as low as possible, but her party has unfunded proposals to deal wi…
Lords
Debate
20 April 2026
3 contributions
Pension Schemes Bill
My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Altmann, my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe and the noble Viscount, Lord Thurso, for their Motions in this group. In the interest of brevity, I shall focus my remarks only on Motion J1.
My noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe is fundamentally asking the importa…
Leave out from “House” to end and insert “do insist on its Amendments 77 and 85 to which the Commons have disagreed for their Reason 85A.”
+1 more contribution in this session
Lords
Proceedings
26 March 2026
Middle East: Economic Update
My Lords, for the third time in as many weeks, the Chancellor came before the other place on Tuesday and once again delivered a Statement remarkable only for its lack of substance.
I welcome the confirmation respecting nuclear power, including the implementation of the Fingleton review, which shoul…
Lords
Oral Questions
26 March 2026
HBOS: Fraud Investigation
As I said to the House previously, the independent Foskett Panel was established by Lloyds Banking Group in 2020, in part following engagement with the FCA and Treasury, to determine the right level of compensation in individual cases. As I said before, the review is independent. I understand that i…
Lords
Debate
25 March 2026
3 contributions
National Insurance Contributions (Employer Pensions Contributions) Bill
My Lords, I will speak briefly to this group of amendments in lieu. I am grateful to my noble friend Lady Neville-Rolfe for returning these issues to the House despite the very disappointing decision to cloak all our previous amendments in the financial privilege. Up and down the country, SME busine…
My Lords, I rise to throw my support behind the four Motions in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Neville-Rolfe. I will be brief. Is the Government’s apparent resistance to the impact assessments proposed in these amendments in any way connected to the fact that the measures in this Bill will not…
+1 more contribution in this session