Results 1-20 of 76 for in the 'Commons debates' OR in the 'Westminster Hall debates' OR in the 'Lords debates' OR in the 'Northern Ireland Assembly debates' speaker:Lord Bew

Queen’s Speech — Debate (2nd Day) (9 May 2013)

Lord Bew: My Lords, yesterday the noble Lord, Lord Lang of Monkton, in his witty and elegant speech, moved the Motion for an humble Address to Her Majesty. His tone was, for the most part, light and genial. He did, however, refer to one passage in the gracious Speech. He noted the words: “My Ministers will … work in co-operation with the devolved Administrations”, and added, rather...

Defamation Bill — Commons Reasons (23 April 2013)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I rise to speak to Amendment 2C. However, I feel I have to respond immediately to the words of the noble Lord, Lord Lester, which I have to say, on behalf of Northern Ireland as a region, makes me feel very uneasy. The point about this Bill is that it is not just about enhancing press freedom but about public debate more generally, including academic freedom. I find it very...

Israel and Palestine — Question for Short Debate (7 February 2013)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Falkner of Margravine, for securing this debate. I listened to her initial remarks with the same pleasure and profit as always. I declare an interest as chairman of the Anglo-Israel Association and as the outgoing chairman of the British-Irish Association. The noble Baroness, Lady Falkner, made the point that 2013 marks the 20th anniversary of the...

Leveson Inquiry — Motion to Take Note (11 January 2013)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I shall speak solely on one aspect of the Leveson debate: the Irish dimension, which clearly exists. The noble Baroness, Lady Bonham-Carter has already referred to it and, even the day before the Leveson report was published, the Scottish First Minister said that the Irish model should be the Leveson model and urged it on the Prime Minister. This showed a rare courage on behalf of...

Northern Ireland — Statement (10 January 2013)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I thank the Minister for presenting this debate and for both its tone and its detail. I would like to focus just on one point: the mode of address of government in these circumstances. One of the reasons for what has happened and for the many disgraceful scenes that we have seen on our television screens-I come from east Belfast and I have seen them happening right in front of me-is...

Israel: Arab Citizens — Motion to Take Note (13 December 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, like other noble Lords, I thank the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Exeter for securing this important debate. I start by conceding his critical point that precisely because, in the terms of the overall resolution of the problems of the Middle East, we are, unfortunately, in a period of conflict management rather than conflict resolution, the question of Israel's minority...

Defamation Bill — Second Reading (9 October 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I support the Bill. At this late stage, I do not wish to repeat many of the points that have been made so excellently in the House this afternoon, except in one respect. I want to repeat the thanks to the noble Lord, Lord McNally, for the letter that he sent earlier this week, for his introduction to the Bill and for his interest in this subject throughout. I also thank the noble...

Crime and Courts Bill [HL]: Committee (5th Day (Continued)) (2 July 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I rise briefly to speak on Amendment 148 and to express my support for the sentiments expressed so eloquently by my noble friend Lord Pannick. There is no doubt, as he made clear, that the case for this amendment has been dramatised by the events of April and May of this year, when the Attorney-General of Northern Ireland raised his intention to bring contempt of court proceedings...

Historical Manuscripts Commission — Question for Short Debate (29 May 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Cormack, for securing this debate. I thank him also, as a professional historian, for the role that he has played over the years in protecting our archives. It is always a great reassurance to those of us who are scholars in this area to know that there are Members of Parliament who care about the preservation of the nation's heritage in this respect....

Minority Ethnic and Religious Communities: Cultural and Economic Contribution — Motion to Take Note (24 May 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I thank my noble friend Lord Bilimoria for securing this debate and for the fine speech with which he opened it. I declare an interest as the chairman of both the British-Irish Association and the Anglo-Israel Association. I will speak briefly under both headings. It is easy to make a case for the Irish contribution to the cultural and economic life of the United Kingdom,...

Middle East — Motion to Take Note (16 March 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I should like first to thank the noble Lord, Lord Howell, for his masterly introduction to the theme of our debate. I should also declare an interest as chairman of the Anglo-Israel Association. However, I do not want to return to the narrow ground of the Israel-Palestine dispute in the course of my remarks today. In my brief period as a Member of your Lordships' House we have had...

Protection of Freedoms Bill: Report (3rd Day) (15 February 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I support Amendments 55A and 56. I must confess the interest of being a working professor in one of our universities. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Henley, who has spent much time with those of us who have been concerned about these matters. I am very grateful to him for that. The Government's view is that the exemptions already present mean that many of the fears held in this...

Gaza — Question for Short Debate (8 February 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, first, will the Minister confirm in his reply that it is now the view of Her Majesty's Government that there is not a humanitarian crisis in Gaza? That was the view stated in the other place last summer, confirming the view expressed at a high level within the Red Cross in Gaza just a few weeks before the Statement in the House of Commons. Of course, there is a case for continuing...

People Trafficking — Question for Short Debate (2 February 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I, too, thank my noble and right reverend friend Lord Eames for securing this debate. As he made clear in his remarks, this problem has a long-term historical and international context, something that anybody can read in the more grim passages in Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground, published in 1864. My noble and right reverend friend also referred to the Irish context, which, as...

Independent Monitoring Commission for Northern Ireland — Question for Short Debate (18 January 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, like other noble Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Harris of Richmond, for securing this debate. She is well known to be a good friend of Northern Ireland and her work in bringing about this debate is yet another example of what a good friend she is to the Province. I, too, should like to recall briefly the struggle to set up the IMC. I very much agree with the point made by...

Freedom of Information Act 2000 — Question for Short Debate (17 January 2012)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I thank my noble friend Lord Hennessy for initiating this debate. My remarks will follow broadly in the spirit of his remarks and, like him, I have to declare an interest as a practising university historian, at Queen's University Belfast, and as secretary of the All-Party Group on Archives and History. There is an important Irish dimension to this question, relating to the decades...

Human Trafficking (Further Provisions and Support for Victims) Bill [HL]: Second Reading (25 November 2011)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I support the main principles of the Bill of the noble Lord, Lord McColl. I will concentrate my remarks on Clause 11 and the Irish and Northern Irish dimension of this problem, which Clause 11 deals with in a skilful and important way, as an attempt to strengthen the criminal law in Northern Ireland with respect to human trafficking as an offence. In 2007, at the time of the...

Terrorism Prevention and Investigation Measures Bill: Report (15 November 2011)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I support the amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Hunt. Coming as I do from Northern Ireland, I regard control orders with great suspicion and concern, as with anything that smacks of internal exile. That is one of the implications of control orders and it is quite right that the House should take an extremely sceptical view of them. None the less, there are two important...

Remembrance Day — Motion to Take Note (10 November 2011)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I, too, thank the noble Lord, Lord Selkirk of Douglas, for securing this debate and for his moving opening speech. I echo his words that it is a privilege to speak in a debate of this sort in this House. My remarks will follow partly in the spirit of my noble friend Lady Flather. I make the point before I start that it is enormously important to acknowledge the varied nature of the...

Protection of Freedoms Bill: Second Reading (8 November 2011)

Lord Bew: My Lords, I welcome the main thrust of the Bill. With regard to the reform of counterterrorism powers, the Bill has a good balance. I say that as a Member of this House who has had reservations about the control order legislation that the Minister has before the House. In this case, I am glad to say that the Bill has got the balance right between public safety and a proper liberalisation of...