House of Lords written statement – made at on 19 March 2013.
Lord de Mauley
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
My Right Honourable Friend the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Owen Paterson) has today made the following Statement.
The next Agriculture and Fisheries Council is on Monday 18 and
The two-day meeting will concentrate on the CAP reform package. Negotiations will centre on the four regulations that make up the package. The Irish Presidency is seeking to agree a mandate on the CAP reform package at this council to enable it to start negotiations with the European Parliament. If this can be achieved it will pave the way for a full political agreement in June.
There is one item under Any Other Business regarding a Dutch request to discuss EU trade in plants with Russia.
The house of Lords is the upper chamber of the Houses of Parliament. It is filled with Lords (I.E. Lords, Dukes, Baron/esses, Earls, Marquis/esses, Viscounts, Count/esses, etc.) The Lords consider proposals from the EU or from the commons. They can then reject a bill, accept it, or make amendments. If a bill is rejected, the commons can send it back to the lords for re-discussion. The Lords cannot stop a bill for longer than one parliamentary session. If a bill is accepted, it is forwarded to the Queen, who will then sign it and make it law. If a bill is amended, the amended bill is sent back to the House of Commons for discussion.
The Lords are not elected; they are appointed. Lords can take a "whip", that is to say, they can choose a party to represent. Currently, most Peers are Conservative.
When speaking in the House of Commons, an MP will refer to another MP of the same party who is a member of the Privy Council as "my Right Honourable Friend"
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
