Contributions
449 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)Thank you for that guidance, Ms Jardine. I would suggest that the legal aid changes are a really important outcome of clause 6. In fact, I think I would come under huge criticism…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Seventh sitting)It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Jardine. As the Committee has likely anticipated, I will argue that clause 3 should not stand part of the Bill. Clause 3 is…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)It will no doubt be a relief to Members to hear that I am not going to talk for quite as long as I did this morning. I oppose clause 4 and schedule 1 standing part, and I support…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)I agree with my hon. Friend, as I normally do. Finally, there is the obvious practical point that there are better answers available. The Law Society says that reform and…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Seventh sitting)Absolutely, Ms Jardine—we can go into the early hours of the morning if we need to, and I am happy to do so this evening if that is what people would like to do. In cases of…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)If we are increasing the sentence in the magistrates court, I would imagine the Minister will agree that, in some situations, we are increasing the complexity of the case. For…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)Thank you for that guidance, Ms Jardine, but that seems to suggest that we are not allowed ever again in this Bill Committee to bring up the fact that the right to elect for jury…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)I agree with my hon. Friend. Frankly, I am shocked that a Labour Government would do that. It is the last thing I expected of a Labour Government.21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)My hon. Friend is making some powerful points. Hearing him read out what the law says brings home to me just how terrible this Bill is. Surely everyone can see that there is no…21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)Perhaps I am more optimistic about these things.21 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Eighth sitting)Does my hon. Friend agree that Government Members and the Minister have spent a lot of time talking about victims being central to all of the changes, so why on earth would they…21 Apr 2026HANSARDSecurity VettingSeven months ago, a national newspaper ran the story that Mandelson had failed security vetting, so how is it even possible that no one in No. 10 knew until last week?20 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)I apologise if the Minister is about to come to this, but is she saying that she does not expect this process to take very long?16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)Is the Minister saying that judges will not be required to review CCTV footage or understand the impact on the victim? Is she saying that that is not required in this process?16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)I thank my hon. Friend for making that important point. Returning to this debate, we are going to see real problems from this approach to allocation. I am glad that the hon.…16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)That is not the case. The hon. Lady has just set out that it is about setting out the worst possible cases with respect to the sentence—so they absolutely could do that. It is…16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)The hon. Lady is absolutely right that magistrates are doing that now, frequently and—as far as I am aware—fairly well, but we have to remember that they are doing it for…16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Sixth sitting)It is really helpful to hear the hon. Member’s perspective from her in-depth knowledge and experience, but I would challenge one aspect of her point: I might argue for a longer…16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Fifth sitting)I completely agree with the hon. Lady. She has set out a good example of the type of things that happen in reality. Life is not tidy, and unexpected things happen. As we look at…16 Apr 2026HANSARDCourts and Tribunals Bill (Fifth sitting)My hon. Friend is making a powerful point about the existing backlog starting to go down, and why it is important that we look at that and understand the impact that other…16 Apr 2026