Equality Bill [Lords]
10:30 am
Meg Munn (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry; Sheffield, Heeley, Labour)
I beg to move,
That—
(1) during proceedings on the Equality Bill, in addition to its first meeting on Tuesday 29th November at 10.30 a.m., the Standing Committee shall meet on Tuesday 29th November at 4.00 p.m., Thursday 1st December at 8.55 a.m. and 1.00 p.m., Tuesday 6th December at 10.30 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. and Thursday 8th December at 8.55 a.m. and 1.00 p.m.;
(2) the proceedings shall be taken in the order shown below and shall (so far as not previously concluded) be brought to a conclusion at 4.00 p.m. on Thursday 8th December.
Clauses 1 and 2; Schedule 1; Clauses 3 to 31; Schedule 2; Clauses 32 to 40; Schedule 3; Clauses 41 to 89; Schedule 4; Clauses 90 to 93; Remaining proceedings on the Bill.
Good morning, Mr. Gale. I warmly welcome you to the Chair and am pleased that you will supervise this morning’s discussions. I also welcome all members of the Committee. Several of my hon. Friends warmly supported the Bill on Second Reading, and I am grateful to them. Many Opposition Members who are present also took part then. I hope that our proceedings will provide a further opportunity to ensure that the Bill does what it is intended to. I was pleased that on Second Reading that, with a few exceptions, hon. Members supported the Bill in principle. I am also pleased that several of those Members are on the Committee, particularly the hon. Members for Epping Forest (Mrs. Laing) and for Romsey (Sandra Gidley).
There is wide support for the Bill among stakeholders, including business. I look forward to a constructive debate that will enable the Committee to move forward without, of course, restricting opportunities to raise points and review it as thoroughly as is appropriate. Members of the Committee will have noticed that the programme motion does not contain any knives. That gives us the flexibility to consider issues that deserve particular discussion and to move more swiftly over issues of lesser significance. The motion follows the pattern used in the Committee that considered the Bill in the other place. I hope that all hon. Members agree that it is appropriate to the proper scrutiny of the Bill, and I commend it to the Committee.