Serious Crime Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 47: 47: Clause 4, page 5, line 13, leave out subsection (4) The noble Baroness said: I shall speak also to Amendment No. 129. Amendment No. 47 would remove the Secretary of State’s power to amend Schedule 1 by order. If he wished to vary the list of serious crimes in Schedule 1, he would therefore have to be directly accountable to Parliament by bringing forward primary legislation. Schedule 1 lists the range of offences to be treated as serious crimes. Some, such as people-trafficking, drugs, arms-trafficking and money-laundering, are easily recognisable, but it is more difficult to see others as coming within that range. Our concern is that the Government may bring forward a curate’s egg of an order: a long list most of which would be acceptable to the House but perhaps with an offence which could not easily be considered serious. As we cannot amend orders and as we so very rarely reject them in this House—that will remain the case unless we become an elected House—the imperfect whole might have to be accepted. The Government have a track record of trying on a curate's egg of an order. I well remember one from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport which offered a goodie to the nation of a free—in other words, to be borne by taxpayers—television licence for over-75s, but in the same order there was a huge increase, well above the usual, in the cost of television licences for everyone else. Another one is about to hit us, as we understand that the Government are to bring forward a casino order which will designate Manchester as the location for the super casino and provide a long list of other sites for less gargantuan casinos. They know full well the strength of feeling, even on their own Benches, against the selection of Manchester and the very firm strength of feeling in favour of those who appear on the long list of smaller casinos. A long list does have defects. The Minister will say that the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee considered this matter in its fifth report and concluded: "““Although this is an important power, and its exercise may impact significantly on the rights of the individual, we do not consider it appropriate””." Sometimes I take a different view from the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee for political reasons or for practical reasons. On this occasion, I can well understand why it came to that conclusion. I have tabled this amendment only to ask the Government to justify their proposals. Primary legislation could be a better way of dealing with something as serious as a schedule of offences, given that a Committee of the House is to be asked to give way in Part 1 on some serious changes to how people are dealt with by way of civil order. I beg to move.