Contributions
2,978 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)I hope that we now sail into less contentious waters. This clause recreates, in modern terminology, the current offence from the Vagrancy Act 1824 of being on enclosed premises…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)I have made my points already, so I do not want to irritate the Committee by repeating them. The definition is pretty specific. As the shadow Minister has said, it is much more…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I will briefly respond by making two or three points. The first is that I hope the shadow Minister and others will acknowledge that the clause represents a dramatic reduction in…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I beg to move amendment 70, in clause 43, page 42, line 21, after “application” insert “by complaint”. This amendment provides for applications for nuisance begging prevention…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)Clauses 63 and 64 make supplementary provision relating to earlier clauses on nuisance begging and, I hesitate to say, nuisance rough sleeping. Clause 63 enables an authorised…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)With respect, I do not think that sleeping on a bench would cause damage to it, would it?23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I did set out the Government’s commitment to ending rough sleeping and the £2 billion being invested to achieve that objective. The shadow Minister is setting out why he does not…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)Is the shadow Minister saying that if the words “capable of” were deleted, he would support the clause?23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)The hon. Gentleman asks an excellent question. There is in the Sentencing Bill a presumption against short sentences, defined as under 12 months. However—as he knows, as a shadow…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)Just to make it clear, at the end of subsection (2)(a) there is the critical word “and”. It is not enough simply to be sleeping rough or intending to sleep rough; it needs to be…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I reiterate a point I have made already: nobody should be criminalised simply for being destitute or homeless. That is why we are committed to bringing into force the provisions…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)If someone is given a nuisance begging prevention notice, the expectation will be that they comply with it. If there is any prosecution for a breach, it may be that the…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)1986.23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)I am not sure if Hansard is going to record that, but I will take it as a compliment. I do try to stay on top of the detail. There are provisions in that Act that would afford the…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I shall respond briefly to the question about the interaction of this clause with the Modern Slavery Act 2015. The Modern Slavery Act applies where someone is coerced, forced,…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)The hon. Lady asked what happens if she was insulted in the way she describes, which I am sure rarely happens. There are provisions in the Public Order Act 1986, particularly…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)I thank the hon. Lady for her forbearance. Of course we want to combat homelessness. That is why £2 billion is being spent for that purpose. On the serious point, the Government’s…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)I hope that the clause is relatively uncontentious and commands unanimous agreement across the Committee. It creates a new criminal offence for any person to arrange or facilitate…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Eleventh sitting)The hon. Lady raises an important point. As she says, first responders, among others, are already under an obligation—I think a statutory obligation—to make referrals into the…23 Jan 2024HANSARDCriminal Justice Bill (Twelfth sitting)I thank the hon. Lady for her characteristically emollient intervention. We are defining precisely what “nuisance” means, not using it as a general term. It means damage,…23 Jan 2024