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HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillI shall just intervene briefly in this interesting debate on the amendment proposed by the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie. Just to follow on on what the noble Baroness, Lady Suttie,…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords—02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillWe cannot get in.02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, I am truly grateful for the opportunity to participate, and would have done so earlier had I stood up more quickly. I will address some of the issues raised by the noble…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillDoes the noble Lord accept that the provisions of Article 18 are contrary to the agreement that was made between the European Union and the UK Government in December 2017? Article…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillWith respect, I will answer the noble Lord’s question first. We had a UK-wide referendum. Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom, as provided for under the Belfast…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillThe 44% who voted to come out was a much higher figure than people had expected—but I accept what the noble Baroness says. But we are part of the United Kingdom and, just as…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillWell, there are a lot of “ifs” there. If I understand the noble Lord, he is asking, “If there’s an agreement, what should the Government do in terms of getting an endorsement of…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, as the noble Lord, Lord Purvis, said, I hope we are speeding up a little. I will speak very briefly to Amendments 27 and 28 in this group, in his name and that of the…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, I rise to speak to Amendment 35A in my name on VAT and excise. I do not wish to prolong the debate at this hour. Very briefly, noble Lords will remember back in March…02 Nov 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, it is indeed a great pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Campbell, with whom I had the honour of serving alongside for many years in the NATO Parliamentary Assembly.…31 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, if I may make a short point before the Minister gets up to speak, it is clear that we are going to have a debate on international law and so on about every set of…31 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, these amendments relate to Article 2 of the protocol. However, it is clear that Articles 1 and 2 subject that protocol to the prior treaty, the Belfast agreement. That…31 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillOther Members have had their say so I am going to proceed in terms of my speech. The amendment before us from the noble Baronesses, Lady Suttie and Lady Ritchie, has the intent of…31 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillI am grateful for the opportunity that the noble Lord gives me to clarify that point. If he looks in detail at the Bill, he will see that it does provide the opportunity for…25 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, I had not intended to take part in this debate because I had not realised that it would range so far and wide and across so many general issues. We had a lengthy debate…25 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillDo not worry, I will not be arguing that passionately for any Bill that could end up being withdrawn. We have been down this road before. All I say is that I support measures…25 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillThe noble Lord, Lord Clarke, has already spoken. I want to get on and not delay the House any longer, but I will give way once.25 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillI am grateful to the noble Baroness, and I understand what she is saying, but the issues that were being discussed at the time by Her Majesty’s Government, as it then was, and…25 Oct 2022HANSARDNorthern Ireland Protocol BillMy Lords, this debate illustrates one of the issues deeply affecting Northern Ireland politics: trust and agreements. Noble Lords have talked about agreements entered into and…25 Oct 2022