Results 1-20 of 2,225 for speaker:Lord Grocott

EU: UK Membership — Question (13 June 2013)

Lord Grocott: Given that these days we are regularly given the benefit of different members of the Government giving different opinions on government policy, will the Minister, with his academic and political background, give us the latest definition of what he understands by the term “collective responsibility”?

Ofcom: Public Service Broadcasting — Question (12 June 2013)

Lord Grocott: In the light of this Question and the wider debate about the Leveson inquiry, is it not worth reminding ourselves of the fact that in this country broadcasters work within a democratically established regulatory framework? This is in comparison with the press, which talks at great length about freedom of the press. Of course we need to respect this and it is very important, but the...

Railways: East Coast Main Line — Question (4 June 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, is it a fair summary of the Government’s position that if an organisation in the private sector is making a mess of things and losing money, the taxpayer should pick it up and sort it out and that as soon as it is profitable again it should be returned to the private sector?

Written Answers — House of Lords: Mayoral Referendums (4 June 2013)

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty’s Government what, over and above the cost of routine local elections, was the total cost of holding 10 mayoral referendums in May 2012; and what was the cost for each individual referendum.

Daylight Saving — Question (22 May 2013)

Lord Grocott: The Minister talked about going back. Is it not worth while looking at the history book rather than the crystal ball on this issue? It has been tried once and Parliament, the Government and presumably public opinion—my memory is not that precise—decided that it was an experiment that had not been successful and that we should revert to the previous situation. In the spirit of...

Procedure of the House — Motion to Resolve (24 April 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, I certainly do not agree with the amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Trefgarne, which in effect would lead to appealing against the Lord Speaker's decision. If that were done on the Floor of the House it would mean that the Private Notice Question was aired, irrespective of whether the Lord Speaker said yes or no. I certainly do not agree with that. I am in part reassured...

House of Lords: Oral Questions — Question (21 March 2013)

Lord Grocott: Does the Leader subscribe to the basic rule of Oral Questions that you should never ask a question unless you know the answer?

Apprenticeships — Statement (14 March 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, like other noble Lords I welcome the importance that is being attached to apprenticeships. Historically they have proved to be important both to people who have gone through them and to their employers. I want to focus on one sentence in the Statement. I hope it means what I think it does, because it marks a significant step forward. It states: "And we are extending apprenticeships...

Apprenticeships — Statement (14 March 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, we have three minutes. I will take 30 seconds. Not surprisingly, the Minister was getting notes from the Box in response to my question, which was in a fairly narrow area of her brief. Will she undertake to write to me with as much detail as she has available on this subject of apprenticeships into various professions, and place a copy of whatever information she can provide in the...

Written Answers — House of Lords: Schools: Academies (11 March 2013)

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the answer by Lord Nash on 14 February (Official Report, col. 772-3), what grants are being offered to schools to encourage them to convert into academies; how many schools they forecast will do so; and what would be the cost to public funds of such grants if all of the schools forecast to convert did so.

Referendums — Question (5 March 2013)

Lord Grocott: While we are reflecting on the wisdom of the British people, would the Minister like to reflect on some very successful referendums that have been held in the past two or three years: first, on the good sense of the public in rejecting any notion of a fancy new electoral system for Westminster parliamentary elections; and secondly, on nine out of 10 British cities rejecting fancy directly...

House of Lords: Membership — Motion to Agree (28 February 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, I was just sitting here quietly, looking forward to the conclusion of the debate without, I hoped, a Division, but hoping that if there was a Division it would result in a resounding majority for the Motion of the noble Lord, Lord Steel, and my noble friend's amendment. However, the comments of the noble Lord, Lord Tyler, make it impossible for me to remain in my seat because I...

Schools: Academies — Question (14 February 2013)

Lord Grocott: Will the Minister comment on reports that heads are being offered around £65,000 as an inducement to convert their schools into academies? If that is true, what is the estimated cost to public funds if the number of academies turns out to be as he anticipates: that is, the number of schools multiplied by £65,000? At a time when we are constantly being told that austerity is the...

Ministerial Code — Question (5 February 2013)

Lord Grocott: That does not seem to square with what happened in the case of Jeremy Hunt if, as the Minister has just said, Ministers are responsible for the activities of their special advisers. We had a Secretary of State acting in what was described as a quasi-judicial capacity who was clearly and demonstrably sympathetic to one side rather than the other in a very important ministerial decision. Surely...

Business of the House — Motion on Standing Orders (31 January 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, would we not have a more informed debate if a Government Minister was able to answer a question that I and, I am sure, others have repeatedly put in Written Questions and elsewhere: what precisely in terms of numbers is the coalition commitment to establishing the party strengths in this House on the basis of the last general result? What does that mean in terms of numbers for each...

Railways: High Speed Rail — Statement (28 January 2013)

Lord Grocott: Like other speakers, I warmly welcome the Minister's Statement. After all, in this country we built the very first railways and exported the technology to build railways across the world, although sadly in recent decades we have fallen behind. This is a very positive-and for me, exciting-development. I have two points to make from our history. The Minister might find the first reassuring; the...

Written Answers — House of Lords: Government Departments: Policy Tsars (14 January 2013)

Lord Grocott: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Wallace of Saltaire on 12 November (WA 278), which policy tsars have been appointed by the Prime Minister since the 2010 general election.

Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 (Amendment of Schedule 1) Order 2012 — Question (8 January 2013)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, the Minister's whole approach in answering questions today gives the House a great deal of explanation for why he sometimes finds it difficult to get Motions, including fatal Motions, through. He clearly misunderstands the procedure, which is as follows. Yes, an order can be defeated by a fatal Motion, but a Minister given to conciliatory thinking-something that apparently does not...

Public Bodies (Abolition of the Railway Heritage Committee) Order 2013: Motion to Approve (17 December 2012)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, I will take the opportunity first and foremost to congratulate my noble friend Lord Faulkner on his unremitting commitment to this subject, on his many years of service on the committee and on the relentless way in which he has turned the issue around. I am sure that the Government must regret publishing their long list of bodies to be abolished, only to discover a little late in...

Parliamentary Privilege — Membership Motion (11 December 2012)

Lord Grocott: My Lords, this is a Joint Committee of the two Houses, which I welcome-generally speaking, I think they work very well. We are a bicameral Parliament. This may seem a minor point, but it is part of a pattern: that on the last day before the Recess the Commons are sitting and we are not, and on the first day after the Recess we are sitting and the Commons are not-or whichever way round it is....