Contributions
152 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDHouse of Lords (Hereditary Peers) BillMy Lords, there are many dimensions in which participation can be measured. We have two problems. As the noble Lord, Lord Swire, said, we do not know the quality of the…12 Mar 2025HANSARDHouse of Lords (Hereditary Peers) BillMy Lords, I have many things to declare. One is that I came here not as a hereditary Peer but was appointed by John Major, who conspired with Neil Kinnock—the noble Lord, Lord…10 Mar 2025HANSARDBreakfast Clubs: Early AdoptersMy Lords, there seems to be uniformity, in that everybody has to have breakfast. Why cannot some schools have breakfast and others have lunch? I always went to school in the…27 Feb 2025HANSARDRenters’ Rights BillMy Lords, let me first say congratulations to the two maiden speakers. Let us hope that they enjoy being in your Lordships’ House. I start by saying that we have a very distorted…04 Feb 2025HANSARDGrowing the UK EconomyMy Lords, does the noble Lord not agree that, because we had a debate on growth very recently, and because the question has been raised again, what we really need is an expert…03 Feb 2025HANSARDEconomic GrowthMy Lords, we have not had any economic growth in the UK for about 15 years. The last time that we had growth was during the years of new Labour, between 1997 and 2008. Then there…23 Jan 2025HANSARDFinancial Services: Mansion House SpeechMy Lords, does the noble Lord agree that it is not fair to blame the present growth rate on the Labour Government? There are long and variable lags in economics, so whatever…21 Nov 2024HANSARDFuture of the Post OfficeCould the noble Baroness make sure that, for villages where there is no post office, there will be a mobile service at least twice a week? That would help residents to have some…18 Nov 2024HANSARDHome School Education Registration and Support Bill [HL]My Lords, I welcome the Bill, which is long-needed. It is possible to say that there are some fantastic examples of home education. My education started when I was two years old…15 Nov 2024HANSARDHouse of Lords ReformMy Lords, as the 50th speaker in this debate, I have to say something different from everybody else—I will try. There are two problems here. First, people think it is an anomalous…12 Nov 2024HANSARDAutumn Budget 2024I welcome the Budget. I give it about two cheers, not three, for reasons I shall describe. First, I am very much in favour of high taxation. Indeed, I am notorious for having been…11 Nov 2024HANSARDUkraineMy Lords, I rise as the 33rd speaker in your Lordships’ debate. I am pleased to follow my friend, the noble Lord, Lord Whitty—I cannot call him my noble friend any more. I was…25 Oct 2024HANSARDHumanist WeddingsMy Lords, what is the difficulty about the humanists? I have been here for 30 years and again and again I have heard the answer that we cannot do it for humanists. We have can…16 Oct 2024HANSARDSocial Fund Winter Fuel Payment Regulations 2024My Lords, there seems to be rather a hurry to embrace economic rationality on the part of the new Government. We know what economic rationality always says: cutting income tax for…11 Sept 2024HANSARDForeign AffairsMy Lords, it is a great pleasure to welcome the noble Lord, Lord Cameron, to his position as Foreign Secretary. He is a rare example of someone who has been Prime Minister and…05 Mar 2024HANSARDPoverty ReductionMy Lords, as the last speaker from the Back Benches, I will concentrate very much on my work on poverty. I was born in a poor country and have worked professionally as an…22 Feb 2024HANSARDPoverty ReductionYes, it was Sam Brittan. Sam Brittan, James Meade and I were the three people advocating a basic income back in the 1960s and 1970s. This is not a new idea; there is a whole…22 Feb 2024HANSARDFinance BillMy Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Lord, although I cannot say anything technical like he has. The Bill is coming before us far too late to really matter. I know we…21 Feb 2024HANSARDAutumn Statement 2023My Lords, I wish first to commiserate with the noble Baroness on having a very hard job: of sitting here listening to people and even having to answer questions. Let me assure her…29 Nov 2023HANSARDKing’s SpeechMy Lords, it is a privilege to follow the noble Lord, Lord Sikka, but unfortunately he has said some of the things I was going to say, so, as the 57th speaker, I will have to…13 Nov 2023