All I would say is that diplomacy is an art, and it comes more naturally to some than to others, perhaps. We keep this under consideration, but I think it is right that we do not escalate this issue above some of our very real concerns around security, defence and trade that we seek to work very clo…
I think the first thing we need to do with HS2 is to finish it so it is a railway. This Government are working very hard to do that, as was set out in the recent announcement. When HS2 is finished, it will release capacity on the west coast main line, at least south of Birmingham, and that capacity …
I agree with the noble Baroness. Following the findings of the Grenfell inquiry, it is clear that the social housing system was not fit for purpose and that tenants were ignored. It is quite right that apologies were made, and those failings definitely contributed to the Grenfell tragedy. As the nob…
My Lords, I will speak to my Amendments 72 and 86. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Grender, for giving such a good explanation of them. I wish I had lobbied the Minister more, as all three amendments in this group are very good and very sensible.
Turning first to Amendment 72, I was talking last n…
My Lords, I rise to speak to my Amendment 224, which I think is less contentious than the last issue that I raised in your Lordships’ House. The amendment is about deregistration from school when it is triggered by crises, or whatever. Taking your child to school is a voluntary arrangement at the po…
LordsStatutory Instrument3 July 20257 contributions
It is interesting that the noble Baroness mentions that she has been to a meeting with Minister Johnson and the Metropolitan Police. That is part of a regular series of stakeholder engagement meetings being undertaken by the Policing Minister with the police, current regulators, civil society groups…
My Lords, I shall speak to Amendment 30 in my name. I take the point made by the noble Baroness, Lady Wolf of Dulwich, that it is good to have something easy to read. I would say that this amendment is very easy to read: it would amend the Housing Act 1988 so that, when determining rents, tribunals …
My Lords, I note what the Minister says about the Government taking it seriously and I accept that there is a move, for example in the warm home local grants, to put in a clear expectation, but that is not compulsory. Guidance is not compulsory. Landlords do not need to do it; they can completely ig…
My Lords, I refer to my register of interests: I am the chairman of Faraday Ventures, which was set up to provide social and key worker housing. Therefore, I am understandably keen to support any measures that will encourage the construction of a large quantity of high-quality housing, particularly …
My Lords, I do not think there has been a Labour questioner so far on this. I am grateful to my noble friend the Minister for his responses on this, but can I ask—I refer to my interest as chair of the National Preparedness Commission—to what extent the security position is also being factored into …
As the noble Baroness sets out, the consultation has 42 MPAs, and 41 of those have bottom-towed gear restrictions proposed. As I understand it—I will write if this is not the case—those are separate from those previous 38. The consultation will close later in the year, I understand, sometime in the …
The noble Baroness makes a valuable point. We will invest £13.2 billion in the warm homes plan over the spending review period, in line with our manifesto commitment. This builds on last year’s initial settlement of £3.4 billion, and we have taken a major step forward in our plans to upgrade up to 5…
My Lords, it is a great honour and privilege to have been chosen to join this House. I am deeply grateful for the support and kindness that I have received since I arrived. In particular, I thank my supporters, my noble friends Lord Vaizey of Didcot and Lady Finn. I also thank the staff of the House…
My Lords, I am going to speak on this even though it is completely pointless, as I feel quite strongly about it.
I am getting snarky comments from the Tory Front Bench. I object strongly to that.
I am speaking in support of Amendment 238, even though the noble Lord, Lord Hendy, needs no support at all. This would establish
“a clear positive right to strike (and take action short of a strike)”.
As the noble …
My Lords, it is a pleasure to support the noble Lord, Lord Hendy. I have put my name to only two of the amendments in this group, Amendments 154 and 164. Quite honestly, it took a lot of time and energy to read through all of his amendments; it must have taken an astonishing amount of time to write …
My Lords, I ought to clarify my comments on yachts. I have had a yacht of my own, but it was 21 feet long and I was referring to yachts that are 200 to 400 feet long. Sorry about that.
My Lords, we are already paying more for our water because Thames Water has put up our bills. I declare an interest as a Thames Water bill-payer. How much higher are our bills going to go before the Government actually accept that they have to put public ownership before private profit?
I do not know what the noble Baroness would suggest. This is a judgment call. It is my absolute, sincere hope—shared by the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary—that we can support Alaa’s mother, Laila, and ensure that she is safe. We are going to do that at the highest possible levels, by worki…
I rise to move Amendment 141 in the name of my noble friend Lady Bennett of Manor Castle. She is, about now, talking about net zero to students at Oxford University. It was an engagement that was made some time ago, but she wishes to express her thanks to the Minister for arranging a meeting to disc…
I thank the Minister for his answer. If this amendment is so similar to Amendment 129—I was not in the Chamber during that debate, I am afraid—I wonder why they were not grouped together. That might be something to think about.
The Minister talked about genuine work trials. I argue that “genuine” i…
My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Baroness. She started off her speech so well with her kind remarks about a speech that I had not yet given. Having listened to the rest of her speech, I fear that this is one subject on which she and I are destined not to agree.
It is a great pri…
My Lords, I am speaking in place of my noble friend Lady Bennett, who is not able to be here today, and she has signed both of the amendments in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Smith of Llanfaes.
The noble Baroness made an excellent opening speech and has covered almost everything, but I think…
My Lords, I will speak to several amendments in this group that I have signed, which are all very good.
Non-disclosure agreements can be exceptionally toxic and corrosive, because they can be used to cover up wrongdoing by an employer. It is a very dangerous game. They are not simply a contractual …
I am afraid that I am not aware of any particular plans—this strays a little outside my briefing. It is really important that we enable more green growth in transport to ensure that people have access to the sorts of transport levels that those of us who live in the capital enjoy. What we require an…
My Lords, I will speak to Amendments 127, 128 and 139, which I have signed, but all the amendments in this group have real value.
In my relatively long life, in which I have argued endlessly for human rights, I think there can be only one or two times when I have stood up and argued for men’s right…
The noble Baroness is right. I have said before about climate change. I understand the Met Office predicts that the UK will experience more frequent and intense weather extremes. It is widely believed that the impact of climate change is likely to increase and intensify fire incidence. We are alread…
My Lords, I, too, add my heartfelt congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Nichols, on her wonderful maiden speech. I know her from back in North Yorkshire. She was always a wonderful woman—a wonderful lady. If you went to some of her meetings, she was very like a mother hen gathering her chicks…
My Lords, I shall speak very briefly, because the noble Lord, Lord Black, covered his two amendments very thoroughly. I do not have pets myself, but I declare that I have a daughter who has recently taken the tenancy of a house, and she has children, a dog and two cats. It was quite difficult for he…
My Lords, my Amendments 178 and 191, along with Amendment 133 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Janke, highlight some of the challenges that disabled people face living in rented accommodation. Life is hard if you have to live with a disability, and it makes sense if where you live can help yo…