Contributions
346 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fifth sitting)I may be misreading the evidence—if I am, I accept that—but I want to draw the Minister’s attention to the evidence given to us by Chris Minnoch and Richard Miller during the…04 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fifth sitting)That is fair enough, but the Minister stated earlier that there are no additional resources as a result of the application of the Bill.04 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fifth sitting)I rise to support the new clause, the right hon. Member for Liverpool Garston and the hon. Member for Liverpool West Derby. I believe this to be an important proposal. If the new…04 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)The hon. Member is making an important point, but am I right in thinking that his motivation—and the motivation of many people in this area—is about getting to the truth, rather…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)I welcome the Minister’s response. Having heard what she said about working with me about how we might operationalise the issue, I am prepared to withdraw the amendments. However,…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)Given the proceedings today are a matter of record, I am happy to withdraw amendment 23. Question proposed , That the clause stand part of the Bill.02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)In light of the Minister’s clarification, I am happy to withdraw amendment 25. However, with regard to amendment 23, I am still unclear as to what exactly the Minister is saying.…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)Could the Minister give an example to the Committee of such a circumstance?02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)Thank you, Mr Dowd. Pursuant to the issues already outlined by the hon. Member for Wells and Mendip Hills, amendment 22 is about affording enhanced protections. The main point I…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)Earlier, I asked the Minister for an example and she pointed to the national health service. I think that was a fair point, but not every issue here relates to a complicated…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Dowd. We have had an excellent debate on command responsibility, and I am heartened to see a very positive outcome from that…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Sir Roger. I have a number of confessions to make. First of all, this is my first Bill Committee in my 18 months as a Member, so I…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)I beg to move amendment 21, in clause 6, page 6, line 3, at end insert— “(2A) Where an obligation to give notification would have arisen under section 2(3), save for the…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)To build on my point to the hon. Member for Liverpool West Derby, the issue here is that the criminal responsibility focuses the mind of the person with command responsibility. It…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)I beg to move amendment 24, in clause 9, page 8, line 12, leave out “may” insert “must”. I am aware that we have debated amendment 48, although perhaps not as fully as I would…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Third sitting)I beg to move amendment 18, in clause 2, page 2, line 39, at end insert— “(4A) Where a public authority or public official is under an obligation to respond to or assist an…02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)Amendment 25 has already been covered in our discussions about “may” or “must”, and I am happy to take that discussion into further meetings with the Minister.02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)All I can say is—02 Dec 2025HANSARDPublic Office (Accountability) Bill (Fourth sitting)I rise to speak to amendment 23. The Minister will be aware that if the Bill is enacted, as we are all confident that it will be in due course, a large number of public…02 Dec 2025