Northern Ireland Bill (Allocation of Time)

The right hon. Member for Belfast, East (Mr. Robinson) speaks for his people, and he is correct about Parliament’s duties and expectations. One reason for having a Committee stage is to fine-tune legislation, not to oppose it. A Committee stage allows us to probe and understand the problems and to consider whether all eventualities have been taken into account. It also enables us to indicate and flag up any omissions in the Bill.