Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, does my noble and learned friend agree that the matter has been well handled in Scotland where the legal system has been entirely in the hands of the Scots for many centuries? Does he further agree that any knock-on effect on English law can only benefit from the considerable experience that Scotland has had in dealing with matters of this kind?
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: asked Her Majesty's Government: What arrangements have been made to monitor the effectiveness of functions devolved to the Scottish Parliament.
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that reply. She will accept that, so long as the Westminster Parliament votes the money that the Scottish Parliament spends, it would be responsible for the Westminster Parliament to retain a close interest in all that goes on. Will my noble friend assure the House that the central aim of our constitutional policy is to ensure the better governance of...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: rose to ask Her Majesty's Government what their long term objectives are for the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency as part of the development of the United Kingdom's knowledge-based economy. My Lords, I am most grateful to the House for affording me the opportunity to raise what I believe to be an important matter. I am reinforced in that belief having read the business section in...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I am pleased to be able to contribute to this important debate. Transport has been an interest of mine for a long time and throughout my parliamentary life. At one stage I was chairman of the all-party Road Passenger Transport Group. Therefore I am delighted that transport is such a high priority of the Government. An efficient transport system is vital not only for the economy but...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: Amendment No. 143, which stands in my name, is linked with Amendment No. 142B. The purpose of my amendment is to ensure that compensation is paid to bus operators who lose business--no doubt in some cases their entire business--as the direct result of the imposition of a quality contract. The lack of a clause allowing for the payment of statutory compensation raises a number of issues: moral...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, can the Minister tell the House what the Government are saying to employers to encourage young people not to start smoking? Those of us who live up in the City during the working week see groups of young people standing outside the offices of great banks and so forth smoking--having a smoking break. They are all very young. It is most unfortunate that the role models that young...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I am sure that the noble Lord has forgotten that there is European government. He is supposed to be telling us that he is against it. It would be dreadful if he forgot to do so, particularly in the run-up to an election.
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, that is very interesting. How does the Minister view the impact of that process on central government and on the democratic structure of central government? Will we reform the House of Lords further? What will we do in relation to the House of Commons? How will it "gel" with that? If we are to have democratic regional government, how will it impact on central government?
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I hope that I may press my noble friend a little further. How many elected members do we have to have in the United Kingdom before we have a properly elected democracy?
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, is my noble friend aware that Ceefax services have been withdrawn from the digital service provided by the BBC through subscription television? That hardly helps the case for switching from analogue to digital television because the text service provided is very much inferior to Ceefax. Viewers are constantly referred to Ceefax numbers—where one can look up addresses and obtain...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: asked Her Majesty's Government: How many fatal accidents have occurred on British mountains in each of the past five years.
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I thank my noble friend for that Answer. Does he agree that the number of people losing their lives on our hills and mountains is unacceptably high and that the loss of life and the level of injury far exceed that for any other sport or outdoor activity? Can we improve the information available to walkers and climbers, particularly information about weather conditions, the level of...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Palmer, made a powerful speech. However, as the evening wears on, he may discover that the Scottish Parliament has some supporters and that the picture is not quite as black as he has portrayed. However, his initiative has two great merits. First, it affords us the opportunity to say something about Scotland, which, in these post-devolution days, is a little...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I must first declare an interest. I am a consultant to the Confederation of Passenger Transport and chairman of the Bus Appeals Body, the consumer body for the bus industry in this country. Does my noble friend agree that the picture is much more patchy than is suggested by the 1.5 per cent figure and that there has been a marked growth in bus ridership in areas where there is close...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, will the study to which my noble friend referred have regard to the expertise gathered in the north of Scotland following the electrification of the whole of that area, which was a considerable engineering achievement? Will it have regard to the expertise built up by what was then the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board for dealing with adverse weather conditions? That expertise...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I note what my noble friend says about the attitude of Her Majesty's Government. None the less, it is the responsibility of the Israeli Government to do everything possible to protect their people against the kind of barbaric terrorism that is being directed against them. Is it not responsible of the Israeli Government to warn off foreign nationals from entering parts of the West...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, does my noble friend recognise that, on these not-quite-so-radical Back Benches, there are those of us who are pro-European but none the less in favour of a referendum on this important matter, recognising that the Government have set precedents for referendums? There were referendums ahead of devolution in Scotland and Wales, there are proposals for referendums on regional...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I beg to move that this Bill be now read a second time. Today is something of an occasion and I am the first Back-Bencher to address the House. I take this opportunity to congratulate the new Lord Chancellor on his appointment and I wish him well in the great office of state to which he has been called. I want to say also how much I enjoyed the tenure of office of the former Lord...
Lord Hogg of Cumbernauld: My Lords, I am most grateful to noble Lords who have taken part in the debate. It has been useful. I am grateful to my noble friend Lord MacKenzie, who brings to the House considerable knowledge of trade union practice and how the matter will be worked out in the workplace. I am also grateful to the noble Earl, who always supports measures that I bring before the House, so I always refer to...