Contributions
824 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDEU Exit: End of Transition PeriodMy Lords, I congratulate the Government on the progress that they have made in being ready for 1 January and on the support that is being given to businesses. The former EU…24 Sept 2020HANSARDEU: Future RelationshipMy Lords, it is a pleasure to take part in this debate. I thank my noble friend Lord True for his usual masterful summary in opening the debate. It is also a pleasure to follow…23 Sept 2020HANSARDTrade: Trans-Pacific PartnershipMy Lords, I congratulate the Government on not only obtaining the treaty with Japan but getting Japan’s support for our membership of the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The…23 Sept 2020HANSARDAgriculture BillMy Lords, I have added my name to Amendments 98 and 99, in the name of my noble friend Lord Trenchard. I will not spend any time going into the substance of whether the Trade and…22 Sept 2020HANSARDAgriculture BillMy Lords, it is a pleasure to follow my noble friend Lord Trenchard; indeed, it was a pleasure to add my name to his Amendments 94, 95 and 96. This is the first time that I have…22 Sept 2020HANSARDHealth Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (No. 2) (England) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2020My Lords, I will make three points. First, neither the regulations before us nor the original provisions being amended have had an impact assessment or been underpinned by any…18 Sept 2020HANSARDHealth Protection (Coronavirus, Wearing of Face Coverings in a Relevant Place) (England) Regulations 2020My Lords, I support what the noble Baroness, Lady Thornton, said about delays in making regulations and parliamentary scrutiny. However, I cannot support her amendment, because it…18 Sept 2020HANSARDBrexit: Civil Service CodeMy Lords, noble Lords have focused on one particular aspect of the Civil Service Code, but there are many other requirements, one of which is that civil servants must not…17 Sept 2020HANSARDHouse of Lords: Number of MembersMy Lords, last year, your Lordships’ House demonstrated that it was spectacularly out of step with the country as a whole over Brexit. Does the Minister agree that it is more…16 Sept 2020HANSARDCovid-19 UpdateMy Lords, when we had questions on the Statement last Thursday, I asked the Minister two questions that he did not answer. I have another opportunity now. Can the Minister say…14 Sept 2020HANSARDCovid-19 UpdateMy Lords, as a Conservative, it grieves me that the Government are pursuing policies, such as the rule of six and Covid-secure marshals, which belong in a police state. The…10 Sept 2020HANSARDEU Trade AgreementMy Lords, does the Minister agree that it would be better if the noble Lords who are getting so excited about this just waited until the internal market Bill is published later…08 Sept 2020HANSARDTrade BillMy Lords, I am pleased to support the Trade Bill today and to welcome my noble friend the Minister to the Dispatch Box. I am an unapologetic free trade enthusiast. Free trade is a…08 Sept 2020HANSARDTreaty Scrutiny: Working Practices (EUC Report)My Lords, it is a pleasure to be back physically in your Lordships’ House, despite the hostile environment that the risk-averse House authorities have created for us. It is also a…07 Sept 2020HANSARDHealth Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) (No. 3) Regulations 2020My Lords, these regulations are authoritarian and disproportionate. Under the banner of responding to Covid-19, the Government’s default position is to take sweeping powers to…03 Sept 2020HANSARDFinance BillMy Lords, I welcome the tax reductions in the Stamp Duty Land Tax (Temporary Relief) Bill; they should help to get the property market moving again. Stamp duty may well be an…17 Jul 2020HANSARDEU Coronavirus Vaccine ProgrammeMy Lords, has my noble friend seen the comments of Oxford’s Regius Professor John Bell, who said that the Government’s decision was “sensible”, that the UK has “a very, very…13 Jul 2020HANSARDBusiness and Planning BillMy Lords, I too shall be brief. I support what my noble friend Lord Balfe said about the House getting back to work. Indeed, I encourage my noble friend to come and join us in the…13 Jul 2020HANSARDBusiness and Planning BillMy Lords, I hesitate to be predictable; the noble Lord, Lord Harris of Haringey, has partly predicted what I will say. I am concerned that some of the amendments will make the…13 Jul 2020HANSARDBusiness and Planning BillMy Lords, I have not smoked for nearly 40 years and I loathe cigarette smoking, so I gently say to the noble Lord, Lord Clement-Jones, that he has misremembered my involvement in…13 Jul 2020