Contributions
188 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDUniversal Credit: Two-child LimitMy Lords, child poverty is undoubtedly a serious issue, and the steep drop in the number of children being born in this country is perhaps even more serious. Last week, we learned…10 Dec 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I am going to speak, in mercifully brief terms, about SMEs, but I will spare noble Lords the history of SMEs in the UK from 1910 to 2026. My point, in relation to…10 Dec 2025HANSARDOBR: Resignation of ChairMy Lords, I have two brief points for the Minister. First, given the importance of the OBR, why is it so lightly resourced? Those of us who run businesses or organisations of 50…08 Dec 2025HANSARDOffice for National StatisticsMy Lords, the ONS’s attempt to improve the quality of its data has been challenged by staff members of the Civil Service union, the PCS. They have voted once again in favour of…10 Nov 2025HANSARDPublic and Private Sector Productivity TrendsTo ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the United Kingdom’s productivity trends across both public and private sectors.30 Oct 2025HANSARDPublic and Private Sector Productivity TrendsMy Lords, I thank the Minister for his reply. Low productivity has indeed been a running sore for almost 20 years now. Frankly, there are no real signs of progress, which is why…30 Oct 2025HANSARDInternational Maritime Organization: Net-Zero FrameworkMy Lords, following up on the noble Earl’s point, the Trump Administration unequivocally rejected the net-zero framework, but it went much further than that. It issued warnings on…22 Oct 2025HANSARDGDP Per CapitaMy Lords, can the Minister confirm that the Government’s pledge still holds—specifically, that the UK will deliver the G7’s fastest growth in GDP per capita for two straight years…20 Oct 2025HANSARDLabour MarketI thank the Minister for her response, although I point out, in the interests of balance, that unemployment is rising while job vacancies are falling fast. In fact, graduate…08 Sept 2025HANSARDLabour MarketTo ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the state of the labour market.08 Sept 2025HANSARDFootball Governance Act 2025: ImplementationMy Lords, does the Minister agree that it would be wrong to single out clubs such as Morecambe and Sheffield Wednesday as outliers or exceptional? I say that because, in the last…03 Sept 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I think we have spent 13 days in this Chamber scrutinising this critical Bill. I salute the Ministers and Front Benches for their stamina and perseverance. The Bill has…03 Sept 2025HANSARDCivil Service: Artificial Intelligence Productivity GainsMy Lords—01 Sept 2025HANSARDCivil Service: Artificial Intelligence Productivity GainsMy Lords, while the results from the landmark Civil Service AI trial are clearly encouraging, does the Minister agree that it highlights the urgent need to train up public sector…01 Sept 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I promise to be very brief. I support all the amendments in this group. The arguments are building for the establishment of an independent freelance commissioner, mainly…23 Jul 2025HANSARDJobs MarketMy Lords, since the Chancellor announced the £25 billion hike in employers’ national insurance, we have seen the number of people on the PAYE payroll fall in seven of the past…23 Jul 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I will briefly speak to Amendment 167 tabled by my noble friend Lord Freyberg, to which I have added my name. It is a thoughtful, pertinent and probing amendment…23 Jul 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I support all the amendments in this group but will speak specifically to Amendments 129, 131 and 145 tabled by the noble Lords, Lord Sharpe of Epsom and Lord Hunt of…21 Jul 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I broadly support this group of amendments and, in particular, Amendment 49 in the names of the noble Lords, Lord Sharpe and Lord Hunt. My noble friend Lord Vaux’s more…16 Jul 2025HANSARDEmployment Rights BillMy Lords, I have added my name to Amendment 99 in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Fox of Buckley, which, to me, smacks of common sense, while also acknowledging that…16 Jul 2025