Contributions
1,193 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCivil Service PensionsMy Lords, I echo the words of the noble Baroness, Lady Finn, and the noble Lord, Lord Pack, and pay tribute to our fantastic public servants. Many Members of your Lordships’ House…13 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service PensionsI thank my noble friend. She is absolutely right. It is incredibly important that the failure that we are currently discussing and wider concerns about how our pensions operate…13 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service PensionsI thank the noble Lord. One of the reasons I love being a Member of your Lordships’ House is that every day is a history lesson, including about history that happened before I was…13 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service PensionsThe noble Lord is right. The contract was signed and we received assurances. In response to the NAO report, we met Capita and went through a clear plan. There was a much larger…13 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service PensionsI would never disagree with my noble friend—she scares me on a good day—because she is a fabulous trade union official who has fought her members’ corner for a long time. She is…13 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service PensionsThe noble Baroness is right: the reality is that Capita provides contracts across government. In fact, we are its single biggest client, I believe. Capita holds a total of 85…13 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementI am awfully fond of my noble friend, and he will remember that, over 25 years ago, I helped to run his “Buy British” campaign for our trade union. This is something that he has…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementMy Lords, on 26 March, the Government announced procurement reforms to protect our national security, boost growth and build a fairer economy. We have now moved from policy…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementI welcome the noble Earl’s new commitment—maybe it is not new —to supply chains and to where components come from. Many of these contracts were signed by previous Governments. We…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementThe Department for Transport has recently published its 10-year pipeline for zero-emission buses, covering procurement through to 2035. That will give British manufacturers,…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementMy Lords, I am sure that every memo sent by my department will be actively read by every other department. On shipbuilding, the noble Lord is absolutely right—when we were Members…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementI wonder who the noble Lord is talking about. He will be very aware that we have to operate within a contractual framework; we follow the rules and always will, but he raises an…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementThe noble Baroness has huge experience in this—and as soon as we talk about defence, I have to declare myself as an honorary captain in the Royal Navy. With regard to individual…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementI think the noble Lord was here for previous coronations. On SMEs, he is absolutely right. There are many elements of our manifesto that can be delivered only through SME…07 Jul 2026HANSARDBritish Industry and Services: Public ProcurementThe noble and gallant Lord is absolutely right: we need not just sovereign capabilities but sovereign skill capabilities so that we can build what we need, especially in the…07 Jul 2026HANSARDLobbying Transparency (In-house Lobbyists) Bill [HL]My Lords, first, I thank my noble friend Lady Hayter for bringing forward this Bill and facilitating such a thought-provoking debate on such an important topic. I find myself in…03 Jul 2026HANSARDCivil Service Pension SchemeMy noble friend raises a very important issue. While there are contractual issues at play, the reality is that behind each and every one of the statistics that we will undoubtedly…30 Jun 2026HANSARDCivil Service Pension SchemeMy Lords, midnight tonight marks the deadline by which Capita promised a complete return to normal contractual service levels. We will hold Capita’s performance against this…30 Jun 2026HANSARDCivil Service Pension SchemeThere are two separate parts to this, which include the current contract. On debarment and the Procurement Act, while I cannot go into the specific details of this case right now,…30 Jun 2026HANSARDCivil Service Pension SchemeMy Lords, I gently remind the noble Baroness that this contract and its details were signed by the previous Government. We are now trying to fix, and seek assurances for, a…30 Jun 2026