Contributions
417 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDCrime and Policing BillMy Lords, I shall also speak to Amendment 448. In respect of Amendment 447, I am glad to have the support of the noble Baroness, Lady Jones, who I am happy to say is in her place.…27 Jan 2026HANSARDSentencing BillMy Lords, I rise very briefly to support what my noble friend has said, and, indeed, to support the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Gloucester’s amendment. I come, as it…06 Jan 2026HANSARDNorthern Ireland Troubles Bill: Armed Forces Recruitment and RetentionMy Lords, might I suggest that instead of a Northern Ireland Bill, it would better to introduce an amnesty in respect of all offences alleged to have been committed prior to the…06 Jan 2026HANSARDSentencing BillMy Lords, I express my support for the new clause which has been so ably advocated for by the noble and learned Lord, Lord Thomas, and to which I and the noble Lord, Lord Marks,…06 Jan 2026HANSARDUK-EU Common Understanding NegotiationsMy Lords, as a long-standing opponent of Brexit, I welcome the Statement. I hope it is the first of a number of steps which will improve our relations with the European Union,…18 Dec 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillOn that point, does the noble Lord accept that there is an essential distinction between vicarious liability in civil law, which is to pay compensation for people injured by…17 Dec 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillI use one of my e-bikes to go around my fields. In fact, I do not go at more than 15 mph because, first, I would fall off; secondly, it is not necessary; and thirdly, the bike…17 Dec 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillMy Lords, I am sorry again to rather disagree with my noble friend, although I have some sympathy with the underlying problem. I declare an interest in that I have three electric…17 Dec 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillMy Lords, I have a lot of sympathy with Amendments 346C and 481. I start from the premise of not seeking further reviews, but I am a bicyclist. I bicycle very regularly in London;…17 Dec 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillI am afraid I disagree. On the roads, it is certainly an offence to use an e-bike beyond a certain speed—I think it is 15 miles an hour—but, of course, e-bikes are also used for…17 Dec 2025HANSARDSentencing BillMy Lords. I shall express my scepticism about Amendments 60, 61 and 66. They seem to be, in each respect, impractical. In Amendment 60, I find myself looking at the phrase, “if…01 Dec 2025HANSARDSentencing BillCan the Minister deal with the point that the noble Lord, Lord Sandhurst, made on the amendment’s proposed provision acting as a deterrence so as to prevent further intimidation…01 Dec 2025HANSARDSentencing BillI agree with almost everything my noble friend has said. I have been on a prisons monitoring board, so I am very familiar with the inside of prison. But it troubles me that, if…01 Dec 2025HANSARDSentencing BillMy Lords, I entirely agree with the sense behind the amendment, but I notice that it would be a mandatory requirement—the judge must do it. My own preference, as is so often the…26 Nov 2025HANSARDMinisterial CodeMy Lords, while I do not wish in any way to criticise proper criticisms of breaches of the code, may I suggest that the intemperate language used on occasion, and references to…26 Nov 2025HANSARDSentencing BillIs this not a case for the Sentencing Council to express some guidance on these matters rather than go down the route of the list system in a statutory form?26 Nov 2025HANSARDSentencing BillThat may be so, but that takes you back to the point that the noble Lord, Lord Foster, was making: the fact that there is not capacity in many of the required services.26 Nov 2025HANSARDSentencing BillMy Lords, if I might, I will make a brief comment. I have a lot of sympathy with what the noble Baroness has just said. I share many of the reservations expressed by the noble and…26 Nov 2025HANSARDSentencing BillIt is not so much that I dissent from what my noble friend is saying, but a mandatory requirement on the judge implies the capacity to fulfil that requirement. I can imagine…26 Nov 2025HANSARDCrime and Policing BillMy Lords, I will just say a word about Amendment 213. I shall come back more fully to a discussion of the principles in the fifth group of amendments, but there is a danger that a…19 Nov 2025