Results 1-20 of 206 for speaker:Lord Stevenson of Balmacara

Queen's Speech — Debate (3rd Day) (13 May 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Deighton, for introducing the debate on the humble Address and for making a fair fist of it, despite the relatively sparse material he had to work with. I am sure that he will not mind my saying that he had to rely on more than a few previously announced policies-housing, infrastructure, training and planning come to mind. Of course, there is always a...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Commons Amendments (24 April 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, we are extremely pleased that the Government have now accepted the need to legislate for legal protection against discrimination on the grounds of caste. Everyone agrees that caste has absolutely no place in our society and that, if there is even one case of such discrimination, proper action must be taken and there must be proper access to redress. I also join the thanks for the...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Commons Amendments (24 April 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, this is a good day for equality. I think we have heard enough from all around the House to explain where this has come from. We are all in considerable debt to the exemplary work done by the noble Baroness, Lady Campbell. We think tremendously of her for doing it, particularly when we reflect that in taking on that task she had no greater foe than the noble Lord, Lord Lester, who...

Crime and Courts Bill [HL] — Commons Amendments (23 April 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: I can inform the Minister that the Box looked absolutely transfixed by that recent exchange. I do not know who is more surprised, them or us, by the ability of the noble Lord, Lord Avebury, to come to the white heat of the technological revolution and ask a question that has stumped us all. On this side of the House, we would venture to say that we think they are covered, but that just adds a...

Succession to the Crown Bill — Third Reading (22 April 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, like several noble Lords who have just spoken, I take the view that this would insert into the Bill an unnecessary recital with no legal force. It would have the complication, as has been mentioned, of making it more complex and difficult to obtain agreement among all the 16 realms that need to agree to the proposals. The intention of the noble Lord, Lord Cormack, is to seek further...

Crime and Courts Bill [HL] — Commons Amendments (25 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I am grateful to all noble Lords for participating in this debate, which has echoed a number of occasions on which we have been able to touch on these topics in the context of several Bills over recent months. We have not always stood opposite the noble Lord, Lord McNally, although he has been quite strong, particularly as we saw his cherished Defamation Bill begin to slip away from...

Higher Education in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics: Science and Technology Committee Report — Motion to Take Note (21 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I start by thanking the noble Lord, Lord Willis of Knaresborough, for introducing the report in such a good way and for giving us an insight into the thinking that went into it. I also thank the noble Lord and his colleagues for the report itself. This has been a very high-level debate indeed and one that will live long in the memory. However, I still never get answers when I raise...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Third Reading (20 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, it would be wrong of me to let the noble Viscount's concluding remarks pass, particularly as I was named. I also thank him for his considerable work on the Bill, his courtesy during debate, and his incredible letter-writing abilities. I have never been in receipt of so many letters, both by e-mail and by hand. Sometimes people actually checked up whether a letter had arrived that I...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Third Reading (20 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, my noble friend Lord Howarth, when introducing this amendment, mentioned that in Parliament as a whole there was a genuine sense that issues to do with copyright were dealt with in a non-partisan way, and he explained some of the background to the CDP Act 1988 and to the Digital Economy Act. This debate has shown that the spirit lives on. I stress that I do not think that this is a...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Third Reading (20 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: I am sorry to interrupt the noble Viscount but this is a crucial point. Will he go back over what he said as I was slightly confused by the wording? Is he saying that before any decision is taken about how the money held in the escrow account is to be utilised if no claims are taken up in the five-year period-that money is held against potential claims-there will be full consultation about...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Third Reading (20 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I echo the initial comments of the noble Lord, Lord Clement-Jones, on this. The Minister has again shown his willingness to listen to some of the concerns that have been expressed on this matter. I welcome the two amendments in this group, although I note the points recently made, which may bear further thought. However, the Government are in the right place on this. It is a...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill — Third Reading (20 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for introducing these amendments. We are broadly happy with the majority of them. I have just a couple of points concerning the territorial issues he talked about in relation to the royal charter, which may have eluded me. I am sure that he will be able to put me right. As I understand it, the royal charter will operate across the whole of the United...

Broadband: Communications Committee Report: Motion to Take Note (18 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I was briefly a member of the Communications Committee and participated in about one and a half reports. It was good to hear so many of my former colleagues speak today on this very important topic. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Inglewood, for his very helpful introduction to the debate which helped those of us who are not so expert in some of these issues to get a handle on what the...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (5th Day) (18 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, the last few comments made by noble Lords obviously need to be picked up and looked at by the Minister. He has promised several letters, so I will not try and anticipate them, but I think that several of the questions bear on a point that was made earlier, which I would like to endorse. What we are looking at today is, of course, a compromise. It is a compromise in the best...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (5th Day) (18 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I hesitate to interrupt what is a bit of a spat on this, but perhaps I may make it clear, as the prime mover of the amendment, that it was not my intention in any sense to commit future Parliaments to the amendment that has been tabled today. In other words, I hope that this amendment will be passed by this House today, and then by the House of Commons, by simple majorities. It is...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (5th Day) (18 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, the amendment is jointly in my name and that of the noble Viscount, Lord Younger of Leckie. Although the words are overused almost to the point of lacking any meaning, today is, I believe, a historic one. In signing up to this amendment and agreeing to support its inclusion in the Bill, the Government are joining with the Opposition in putting in place an agreed, all-party,...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (4th Day) (Continued) (11 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: I start by warmly welcoming the amendments tabled by the Minister, which respond in a very positive fashion to the amendment that I moved in Committee. I had no idea I was being so persuasive. That was a trick I should learn in other places. I clearly have something that I did not know I had. The points that the noble Viscount went on to make are also well taken. Even so, there are a couple...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (4th Day) (Continued) (11 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: My Lords, I agree that the Government are making good steps in this area. I do not want to in any sense take away from them the change that they are introducing through their substantive amendment. I agree that the insolvency processes in the UK generally are very good. They may be slightly better in Scotland, which is moving ahead with another Bill, and I hope that the lessons that Scotland...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (4th Day) (Continued) (11 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: I thank the Minister very much for that full response. I am glad that he recognises the issues we raised. We are probably pulling in the same direction on this. In particular, the work streams to which he referred are obviously very helpful and seem to be widely inclusive. I am glad to hear that they will report in the summer, at the point where they can inform any regulatory steps that are...

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill: Report (4th Day) (Continued) (11 March 2013)

Lord Stevenson of Balmacara: In moving this amendment, I apologise that my noble friend Lady Hayter is unable to be present and has asked me to speak on her behalf. I will also speak to Amendments 84AHNB, 84AHNC and 84AHND. I start by making it clear that we on this side support the broad thrust and intent of Midata, which is to give consumers increased access to their personal data in a portable, electronic format so...