Clause 107
Equality Bill
10:15 am
Vera Baird (Solicitor General, Attorney General's Office; Redcar, Labour)
My three colleagues make a powerful case for representative actions. If I may add to the broader argument levelled by my hon. Friend the Member for Hackney, North and Stoke Newington, the general view now seems to be that the single most important thing in further reducing child poverty is equal pay for women. She has hit an important nail on the head.
All three of my colleagues powerfully argued their case, which was not spoiled by the allegation from the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green that, “It is easy to introduce these things. We can’t think why the Government don’t just up and legislate.” That attitude reflects the point made by my hon. Friend the Member for Islington, South and Finsbury, who noted how long the Liberal Democrats have been out of government and that they have no idea what steps have to be taken before sensible provisions that will meet this case can be brought into play. The analysis by the hon. Member for Forest of Dean pinpointed some of the things that the hon. Lady simply had not thought about.
There are a lot of problems with the proposals. Who would be a representative body? One possible way forward would be to allow a tribunal to certificate bodies as appropriate representatives, either for one case or as a generality. That might mean that the measure is too narrow in who it says could be representative.
The way we deal with costs is important. The hon. Member for Forest of Dean made the important point that if a representative can mobilise 2,000 people to bring an action against a business, the business might, if it is not sizeable, simply capitulate, with right or wrong never having been determined. That issue has to be balanced so that justice is not undermined.