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Donate to our crowdfunderBaroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, I have two questions for the Minister. The first is slightly longer and may give her the chance to provide an answer by the end of the debate. It was asked by my honourable friend Mr Simon Hughes in another place and is about exemptions. He asked: "What about organisations such as provident societies or mutual societies, in which members have a self-help set of...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, this is indeed a serious, important and shocking report, as the Minister has indicated. Many of us believe that it needs full debate. Are protocols in place to deal with how relationships operate between informants and security forces and, if so, will a statement be made about how these now work?
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, it is extremely rare to see so many of your Lordships in the Chamber when we are debating matters to do with Northern Ireland. I think perhaps tonight I understand why. It is very good to see the interest being taken tonight. I will be very brief. I have had from Stonewall two examples which may help your Lordships make up your minds about which way you will vote. One gay couple...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, I echo what the noble Baroness, Lady O'Cathain, has suggested. In fact, that was going to be my point. Why can householders who are not pensioners or in newly built houses not have water meters fitted during the early period of charging? Do the Government not think it would be a good idea to provide the meter free and let people install them at their own expense? That would...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, moving the responsibility for social housing and development to the Northern Ireland Housing Executive should certainly lead to more efficient management of housing provision in Northern Ireland. Unanimous support has been given to the measure. We give it our full support.
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, surely the noble and learned Lord is wrong to say that, due to reasons of commercial interest, he is not able to tell us the cost. As Bow Street has now been sold, surely that is a matter for open explanation.
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, it is always a great joy to follow the noble Earl, Lord Ferrers, even if I rarely agree with him. For a change, my contribution to the debate on the gracious Speech will concentrate on Northern Ireland, as I was advised that this was the appropriate day to do so. Two of my main interests there are in policing and, more recently, integrated education, about which I shall speak in a...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: I am grateful to the Minister for that response to the amendments. I am grateful for the Government's recognition that the amendments are important, even though they do not feel that they are necessary.
Baroness Harris of Richmond: I have a number of amendments in this grouping—Amendments Nos. 31, 32, 33, 35 and 37, about which I shall speak briefly. Those are about district policing partnerships—DPPs— which have the job of holding the police to account on local issues. They are composed of a majority of political members drawn from Northern Ireland's councils as well as a minority of independent members. Schedule...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: I am grateful to the Minister for that thoughtful and comprehensive response to my amendments. I am also grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Trimble, for recognising the problems that Alliance had with designations in the past and no doubt will have also in the future. I have spoken at length on these amendments, I shall speak no further. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Baroness Harris of Richmond: Why are some issues of public policy listed in the Bill but not others? Why does the Bill require any new Executive to address some policy issues but not others? What is the basis for requiring specific action on poverty and language issues but not, for example, on a shared future, equality or victims matters? What was the rationale for these selections? Why are the Government putting such...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: moved Amendment No. 9: Page 12, line 4, at end insert— 29C Review of community designations (1) Standing orders shall require the committee established by virtue of section 29A to consider— (a) the operation of community designations; and(b) in particular, whether to recommend that the Secretary of State should make an order amending this Act and any other enactment so far as may be...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: I will be speaking to Amendments Nos. 9 and 11 in the group. Amendment No. 9 places a statutory duty on the review committee to look at community designations. Liberal Democrats have always been opposed to the use of designations within the Assembly. It has been clear from the beginning that there are problems with this system. It institutionalises sectarian divisions, there is inequality of...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords—
Baroness Harris of Richmond: The example given to us by the noble Lord, Lord Trimble, was anything but out of the ordinary. It was a straightforward indication that, while he was First Minister, one of his departmental heads had wanted something to be done and his civil servants effectively tried to bar him.
Baroness Harris of Richmond: I support Amendments Nos. 6 and 7 of the noble Lord, Lord Trimble. When speaking to Amendment No. 7, he brought to our attention an extraordinary state of affairs. The Committee should thank him most sincerely for having managed to winkle out what has been going on in Northern Ireland all these years. The fact that Ministers can only give a direction to permanent secretaries, and permanent...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: It is nevertheless our responsibility in this House to ensure that all the areas on which noble Lords feel uncomfortable and unhappy are properly and thoroughly aired. Having said that, I indicate to the noble Lord, Lord Trimble, that we will support him if he presses his amendment at the proper time. I thank the Minister for responding to my opposition to Clauses 3 and 17 standing part of...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: Earlier this year when we were debating the Northern Ireland Act 2006, the Government persuaded Parliament that if the Assembly was to be up and running again on 24 November, the next set of elections to the Assembly due in May 2007 should be postponed to May 2008. At the time, the Secretary of State said: "If restoration is achieved, we have provided that the Assembly's life should be...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: When we passed the Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2006, we did not know that there would be an election before the end of the disapplication period provided for, as the emergency legislation that we had already passed contained an election date of May 2008. We therefore agree with the amendment to end the disapplication period earlier than provided in the 2006 Act. We support...
Baroness Harris of Richmond: My Lords, I give a cautious welcome to these amendments, which were introduced in the other place. They represent significant progress in addressing the concerns that I raised in previous debates on this matter. I am certainly very pleased that the Government have listened to the arguments about the balance of powers within the tripartite relationship and, equally, the need to balance central...