Results 181–200 of 300 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 Blackwell

Pensions Bill ( 3 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I am delighted to follow the noble Baroness, Lady Turner, who has a distinguished record in campaigning on these issues. I remind the House of my interests as the director of a life and pensions company and as a director of companies which provide workplace pension schemes. The test for this legislation is not the impact it will have on interest groups but what it will do for future...

European Union (Amendment) Bill ( 4 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I am continually struck that those who tell us how important this treaty is, hasten to say, as soon as the consequences of a provision are pointed, that that provision will not change anything and is not important. It is difficult to understand whether they believe that the treaty provisions are significant. I happen to think that the treaty provisions on the development of an ever...

European Union (Amendment) Bill ( 4 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I suspect that I am not the only one in the House who finds it difficult to follow the twists and turns of the Liberal Democrat explanation of its position. These are not trivial provisions. We are talking about the possibility of changing the conditions of the treaty in ways that are very substantive and which, under normal circumstances, would require a new treaty with all that...

European Union (Amendment) Bill ( 9 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I would like to speak briefly in favour of both these amendments which follow on from some issues raised in an amendment I tabled in Committee. In particular, I will address the issue raised in relation to the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Article 1 of that charter offers the protection that the charter cannot be used to extend the ability of the ECJ to find that laws and...

European Union (Amendment) Bill ( 9 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, this is one of the most significant provisions in the treaty and it is sad that having run out of time to discuss it in Committee, we are now considering it at this late hour on Report. The noble Lord, Lord Hannay, says that it is not a passerelle, but this is a measure which allows the EU, through the Council, to extend its competences. Under this clause, the EU can take powers to...

European Union (Amendment) Bill (11 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, it is a great privilege to follow the noble Lord, Lord Ramsbotham. As he says, the question before the House today is not whether this House approves of referendums and not whether this is a good treaty, but simply whether the Government should be held to their promise to hold a referendum on the constitutional treaty. The Government have erected two lines of defence in order to...

European Union (Amendment) Bill (11 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, the noble Baroness says that no one challenges that. I put it to her that all of us who have spoken so far in favour of the referendum have challenged her point. If treaties that contained exactly the same clauses were to be replaced by one constitutional treaty, why is the legal effect any different if the treaty clauses here are exactly the same? It is a nonsensical argument.

European Union (Amendment) Bill (11 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, perhaps I may just let the noble Baroness know that I did check that it was appropriate because the case was adjourned yesterday evening.

European Union (Amendment) Bill (18 Jun 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I have consistently opposed this treaty because I believe that it fossilises an outdated structure for Europe rather than introduces a structure fit for the 21st century. However, this is not the time for those debates. I support the amendment on the ground of trust. Listening to this debate, I am tempted to think that the expedient way forward for people like me who have opposed...

Pensions Bill ( 7 Oct 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I welcome the amendments that the Minister has put forward but perhaps I may add my voice to those urging him to go a bit further along the lines of the amendments tabled by my noble friend Lady Noakes. In this case, it is a matter of the prize of simplicity being more important than the prize of precision. If my arithmetic is right, someone whose basic earnings were at least 75 per...

Banking: Financial Stability ( 8 Oct 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, while joining in the general welcome, I should like to ask a few questions of detail about the guarantees on bank lending and, I assume, by corollary, the counterparts—wholesale inter-bank deposits. As the Chancellor's Statement made clear, while the underlying problem is one of bank capital and solvency, the immediate crisis is one of liquidity, and that is a question of...

Counter-Terrorism Bill (13 Oct 2008)

Lord Blackwell: Is the noble Lord saying that if a person is released, rather than being held in custody at the end of 28 days because the threshold test is not met, that significantly increases the threat of a subsequent terrorist event? Are the public not entitled to expect that in those exceptional circumstances, that individual, once released, would be kept under surveillance to reduce that risk?

Royal Mail — Statement (16 Dec 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I should like to ask the Secretary of State about two points. Although I have not read Richard Hooper's report, on the basis of the Secretary of State's summary I welcome it. As he said, it is very clear that the status quo is not tenable. My first question is on pensions. Is it envisaged as part of the package that there may need to be changes to future pension arrangements? Any...

Second Reading (16 Dec 2008)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, it is a daunting task to follow such a distinguished economist as the noble Lord, Lord Peston, in this debate, particularly when I find myself in the unusual position of agreeing with much of what he said. I should like to draw attention to my various interests relating to the Bill, and emphasise that I speak here in a purely personal capacity. Although there are some detailed...

Committee (1st Day) (13 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: I have some sympathy with my noble friend's amendment but, like the noble Lord, Lord Newby, I wonder whether three years is a slightly arbitrary timescale. It seems to me that the intent behind "temporary" is important. The intent is for this legislation to be used to bring about restructuring, and I wonder whether an alternative way of achieving this objective is to require the Government,...

Committee (1st Day) (13 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: The Bill states: "Objective 5 is to avoid interfering with property rights". Clause 4(9) states: "The order in which the objectives are listed ... is not significant; they are to be balanced as appropriate in each case". In considering this amendment, we need to understand whether the objective, "to avoid interfering with property rights in contravention of a Convention right", is merely...

Energy: Carbon Capture and Storage — Question (14 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, I recognise the importance of carbon capture but, given the potential energy shortage in the next decade, will the Government commit to not stand in the way of new build coal power stations while we are waiting for CCS to become available?

Banking Bill: Committee (2nd Day) (14 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: Can the Minister clarify the nature of board membership in this situation? It is important that we understand whether the directors appointed through the public sector to represent the public sector interest will be classed as independent directors, or whether they will be connected persons who are representing directly a particular shareholder interest—that is, the Government. In a normal...

Banking Bill: Committee (3rd Day) (19 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: I have sympathy with the amendment proposed by the noble Lord, Lord Eatwell, not just for equity reasons, but because, if there is speculation that a bank might be taken into the special resolution regime, it is important that people do not close down positions in advance, thereby precipitating a need to take action. Is the Minister saying that it would be appropriate to compensate...

Financial Markets — Statement (19 Jan 2009)

Lord Blackwell: My Lords, in assessing whether these measures are now adequate to the task, do the Government have a target for the level of credit they believe is necessary to support the economy in the next year to replace the previous aspiration of banks continuing to lend at 2007 levels? It is clear from the Statement that bank credit is contracting in the economy, both because, as the Minister said,...


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