Contributions
760 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillI just need to finish. Noble Lords come at me from all directions, which is perfectly fine, but I need to finish the group. I turn next to the amendment proposed by the noble…12 Mar 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillMy Lords, I entirely understand the point that the noble Baroness is making, which effectively encapsulates the problem that we are up against: how do we protect the safety of the…12 Mar 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillMy Lords, following on from what the noble Lord, Lord Ponsonby, said, the Government agree entirely that our joint objective is to arrive at a package of measures that…12 Mar 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillI do not know that one would use the word “inconceivable”. The Government do not see any prospect of that happening at the moment.12 Mar 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillI thank my noble friend Lord Clarke of Nottingham for inviting us to foregather at the Dog and Duck and consider what more can be done. I venture to suggest—hint is too weak a…12 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, I think that this will be the subject of the test and trials later this year that I have just mentioned, but I shall give an example. Following the recent Letby trial…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, in financial crime, the ultimate question is, normally, whether the defendants have acted honestly or not. Experience suggests—and my own experience suggests—that jurors…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsTo the last part of that question, as I have just said, the Government are extremely reluctant to qualify in any way the right of all citizens to be tried by a peer group of 12…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, the noble Lord raises a very good point. Witnesses obviously form an essential part of the system. I can tell your Lordships that the witness support service has made…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, the Government recognise the crucial importance of the role of jurors in delivering justice and the need to secure their well-being. The Government have no current plans…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, I would like first, if I may, to thank my noble friend for raising this issue and for organising a recent stakeholder conference. The Government are aware of the…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, speaking from the experience of a sometime, extreme lowly, recorder of the Crown Court, the first thing that one is taught as a criminal judge is to ensure the…06 Mar 2024HANSARDCriminal JurorsMy Lords, I am happy to report to the House that the present Lord Chancellor secured a major financial injection from the Treasury, specifically to improve the court estate—which,…06 Mar 2024HANSARDEmployment of People with Criminal ConvictionsMy Lords, the Government do recruit ex-offenders and have signed up to various programmes to do so. That is a matter for individual departments, but it is certainly part of the…26 Feb 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillMy Lords, the amendments proposed by the noble and learned Lords, Lord Burnett and Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, would mean that parole referrals under the new power in the Bill would…26 Feb 2024HANSARDEmployment of People with Criminal ConvictionsMy Lords, I will have to come back to the noble Lord on that question, as I am not in a position to answer it straightaway.26 Feb 2024HANSARDEmployment of People with Criminal ConvictionsMy Lords, there is a specific action plan in place for IPP prisoners. The question of whether they are being prepared for work is a little premature because they first have to be…26 Feb 2024HANSARDEmployment of People with Criminal ConvictionsMy Lords, the Government are very keen to allow prisoners release on temporary licence wherever that is possible. I emphasise the work that has gone into preparing prisoners for…26 Feb 2024HANSARDEmployment of People with Criminal ConvictionsThe Government are very keen to expand all opportunities for the re-employment of prisoners. I take this opportunity to pay tribute to a range of employers—Timpson, Marston’s,…26 Feb 2024HANSARDVictims and Prisoners BillYes, the Government recognise that up to a point. What we are discussing is the right way to get there. The Government are not convinced that this statutory amendment is the right…26 Feb 2024