Contributions
1,892 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillMy Lords, as I set out in my response to the previous group, the Government chose to apply the ban to public authorities as defined by Section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998. It…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillBefore the noble Lord sits down, I will repeat the point that the Bill applies only to investment and procurement decisions, as everyone understands. We are trying to find a way…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillIt depends, and it also depends on case law under the Human Rights Act, which I have undertaken to look at and come back to noble Lords.17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillI understand the question. Of course, we now have government sanctions against Russia, so the question is wider. The suggestion made by the noble Lord, Lord Stevens, is a good…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillThe honest answer is that I do not know about the lottery, but I will find out for the noble Baroness and write to her. On universities, of course she is right: very substantial…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillThe answer I must give in the short term is that it depends a lot on the courts. I will look at housing associations; I know they have come up in other Bills that we have…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillI agree with the noble Baroness; that is an entirely fair point. We agree that the Bill is complex when it comes to understanding. I want to make sure that, when I answer…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillThat is a good point and a good question. The noble Baroness also gave a good example. I suggest that I take away the distinction regarding the public function and have a look at…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillI thank the noble Lord for raising that point again. It has been raised before and I am aware of it. We are talking about quite marginal sums here, so it will not be definitive,…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillMy Lords, I am grateful for the thoughtful contributions from across the Committee. On the first day of Committee, which also touched on the scope of this Bill, we heard from the…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillThe noble Baroness is right that we need to use the term “public function” with care and to be entirely clear what it means, but the receipt of public funding is another…17 Apr 2024HANSARDEconomic Activity of Public Bodies (Overseas Matters) BillI have already said that I am trying to answer the many questions noble Lords have asked. There have been a great many interventions on me and I have been very patient. I have…17 Apr 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyI am glad that my noble friend deplores this behaviour, because I think that that is agreed across the House this evening. Of course our approach must be rooted in our national…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyMy Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Chapman, and the noble Lord, Lord Fox, for their comments. I also thank the noble Baroness for her support for the important work across…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyI thank the noble Lord for all he does in relation to educating us on China. I cannot agree with everything he says, but I agree with the points he made about debts building up on…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyThe noble Viscount makes a good point.26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyWe now have a senior FCDO civil servant as CEO of the Electoral Commission. Indeed, he has joined the Defending Democracy Taskforce which I very much value, being security vetted…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyI note what the noble Lord says about the committee. It does a very important job and we do listen to it. I look forward to giving it evidence soon on the integrated security…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCybersecurity and UK DemocracyTo answer the noble Viscount’s question, my understanding is that the Chinese ambassador condemned the “groundless accusations”, accused the UK of smearing China and stated that…26 Mar 2024HANSARDCabinet ManualIt is difficult to draw any conclusions of that kind. However, I share the noble Lord’s tribute to the noble Lord, Lord O’Donnell, in putting this together. There are many…25 Mar 2024