Lords
Oral Questions
21 January 2026
Great Western Railway: Infrastructure
The noble Baroness is completely right. At one stage, out of the total train fleet for long-distance services, with 400-odd engines in those trains, some 110 of them were not functioning due to a fault that appears to be something to do with fuel supply and fuel pumps. The good news is that the numb…
Lords
Debate
20 January 2026
2 contributions
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, as the noble Viscount, Lord Goschen, said, this is Groundhog Day, and I fear we are rehearsing many of the points raised on earlier groups. We on these Benches do not support Amendment 416 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Neville-Rolfe. As we have heard, there are many reasons why s…
My Lords, these two amendments after Clause 144 from the noble Lord, Lord Blencathra, are trying to give further powers to address the issue of dockless bikes and scooters, which we have discussed many times in this Chamber and which have become an issue on many streets in cities across the country,…
Lords
Oral Questions
20 January 2026
Railways: East Coast Main Line
I cannot give the noble Baroness a specific answer, as I am sure she is probably aware, but we will communicate that as soon as we are able to.
Lords
Proceedings
19 January 2026
Northern Powerhouse Rail
My Lords, as we have heard, the northern powerhouse initiative was launched in June 2014 by the then Chancellor George Osborne. Featuring new and significantly upgraded railway lines, it should be the region’s single biggest transport investment since the Industrial Revolution. Twelve years on, desp…
Lords
Debate
15 January 2026
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, these amendments from the noble Earl, Lord Attlee, covering the safe, proportionate and fair oversight of abnormal loads, raise an important issue. It was one that I was not particularly aware of until looking into this group of amendments. Clearly, I had not appreciated that this area had…
Lords
Oral Questions
8 January 2026
2 contributions
Buses: Safety and Security
This Government are committed to ensuring that buses are safe and secure for all passengers and road users, and we expect the bus sector to uphold the highest possible safety standards. The Bus Services Act 2025 helps to deliver safer, more reliable and more accessible bus networks, and we have just…
My department and other parts of government are looking into the media reports on this from Norway, and the Secretary of State has already committed to updating the Transport Select Committee on this work as soon as we can. We cannot legally mandate that funding given as subsidy is used to purchase …
Lords
Oral Questions
6 January 2026
Channel Tunnel Infrastructure: Reliability
The review that I have talked about already will look at the resilience of the infrastructure and at previous recommendations to make sure that the infrastructure is resilient. Obviously, everything that we are talking about is certainly less than 40 years old, which, by railway standards, is like y…
Lords
Oral Questions
5 January 2026
Toilet-training: Support for Parents
The noble Baroness raises an important question. Our plan for change is committed to the milestone that children at the end of reception, including those with SEND, have received a good level of development. Children with special needs are at the heart of our strategy. We need to make sure that the …
Lords
Debate
17 December 2025
2 contributions
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, the amendments in this group from the noble Lords, Lord Shinkwin, Lord Blencathra and Lord McColl, are trying to probe the issue of who is responsible for dangerous cycling by cyclists working for delivery companies. While I support their aims, I do not associate myself with all the points…
My Lords, as we discussed earlier, we have seen a huge rise in fast food and other deliveries by e-bikes and e-scooters across our cities, and of course internationally too. The whole model for these deliveries is based on time— carrying out as many deliveries as possible in as short a time as possi…
Lords
Debate
15 December 2025
2 contributions
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, this clause stand part notice seeks to remove the clause that creates the new offences of dangerous, careless or inconsiderate cycling. I now understand why: it is to raise the issue of insurance and the noble Baroness’s Private Member’s Bill, which was raised and discussed in an earlier g…
My Lords, this group of amendments looks at illegal vehicles on our streets, enforcement and guidance. Amendment 345 from the noble Lord, Lord Lucas, seeks guidance on enforcement in respect of illegal vehicles. However, having looked into this, my understanding is that a range of powers exists to e…
Lords
Debate
15 December 2025
Crime and Policing Bill
My Lords, this has been an interesting debate. Many of the amendments seem to be shaped by individuals’ bugbears that they experience a lot on the streets of London. This group of amendments looks to increase penalties for dangerous cycling and raises other issues regarding cycling and scootering wh…
Lords
Oral Questions
11 December 2025
Business Improvement Districts: Town Centre Renewal
We have provided a great deal of support for small businesses, including those on our high streets. The Chancellor announced some steps in relation to business rates in the Budget recently. There are a number of steps in our small business plan to support those small businesses which operate on our …
Lords
Debate
10 December 2025
4 contributions
Sustainable Aviation Fuel Bill
My Lords, this group of amendments is trying to tease out the details around revenue certainty mechanism contracts.
Amendment 2 from the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, says that the contracts must not exceed 10 years and must have a no-cost break clause at five years. Amendment 3 from the noble Baroness,…
My Lords, this stand part notice is interesting, and the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Moylan, explains why it is tabled. It seems to be almost wrecking the Bill if you are trying to remove the mechanism. The purpose of this Committee is to look at the concerns and issues, and to try to find th…
+2 more contributions in this session
Lords
Debate
20 November 2025
Sustainable Aviation Fuel Bill
My Lords, what is one to say? The easy part is to start by joining other noble Lords in congratulating the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Chester on his entertaining and interesting maiden speech, and to welcome him and the many contributions he will no doubt make to your Lordships’ House in t…
Lords
Oral Questions
20 November 2025
South Western Railway
The noble Baroness is referring to the London to Exeter service, which has not been very good in recent months, although the timetable will be reinstated from 29 November. That is because there was a serious problem with soil moisture deficit, as we have had the driest spring since 1836—and that was…
Lords
Committee Stage
19 November 2025
Merchant Shipping (Marine Equipment) Regulations 2025
My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for arranging a briefing for me by members of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency and the Department for Transport, which was extremely helpful. The issues underlying this wholly uncontroversial instrument were debated in the other place, and the official Conse…
Lords
Oral Questions
19 November 2025
Road Injuries and Deaths
The noble Baroness is right that that international system is a good guide. We recently discussed it in this House during the passage of what is now the Bus Services Act. I can confirm that the Government intend to use that guidance, because it is internationally recognised and successful.
Lords
Oral Questions
11 November 2025
2 contributions
Airport Expansion
My Lords—
Previous Questions in this House have dealt with the construction of the third runway in relation to carbon. The Government expect those two schemes, which are being taken forward, to demonstrate how carbon reduction applies not only to the construction of the runway itself but to the freight traffi…
Lords
Committee Stage
10 November 2025
Protection of Freedoms Act 2012 (Definition of Relevant Land) (Amendment) Order 2025
My Lords, this instrument seeks to amend the Protection of Freedoms Act. The moment one sees a Labour Government fiddling with our freedoms, one is naturally anxious as to what they have in mind. That Act was one of the great achievements of the coalition Government—in fact, it was a Liberal Democra…
Lords
Proceedings
4 November 2025
Huntingdon Train Attack
My Lords, I want to put on record, on behalf of the Liberal Democrat Benches, that our thoughts are with all those affected by this terrible incident: the staff, the victims, friends and families, and those who witnessed this attack—an attack that left 11 people in hospital, and many haunted by what…
Lords
Oral Questions
30 October 2025
Heathrow Airport: Third Runway
The noble Baroness will know that, on Monday evening in this House, we discussed the Statement made in another place on Heathrow. She is right—I said so then, and I will say so again—that the public transport links to and from Heathrow must be a critical feature of any proposals put forward by any p…
Lords
Proceedings
27 October 2025
Heathrow: National Airports Review
My Lords, I welcome this debate on the review of the airports national policy statement and the Government’s announcement regarding Heathrow. But let me be very clear that the Liberal Democrat Benches believe that expansion of Heathrow would be a mistake from the Government and deliver a blow to our…
Lords
Oral Questions
22 October 2025
Open Access Rail Services
The noble Baroness has a good point. The regulator necessarily needs to give a successful open access application sufficient time to recover the significant costs of rolling stock. Many of these arrangements run for at least 10 years, and it would not be right to curtail those activities. Serious in…
Lords
Oral Questions
22 October 2025
Drink-Drive Limit
The noble Baroness makes a strong point. Drug-driving is as lethal as drink-driving. She will know that there has been some recent publicity about that particular method of drug-driving in London. I am confident that the police and enforcement authorities are working their way through that particula…
Lords
Debate
22 October 2025
3 contributions
Planning and Infrastructure Bill
My Amendments 52 and 57 aim to make it easier for people who do not have driveways to switch to an electric vehicle and install the necessary infrastructure so that they can charge from their home, thus benefiting from VAT-free electricity charging. Amendment 52 allows for cross-pavement solutions t…
I thank the Minister and his team for meeting me a number of times, including during recess, to discuss the amendments that I have tabled. Finding ways to make it easier for people who do not have driveways to move to electric vehicles is so important for our green transition. I welcome the Minister…
+1 more contribution in this session