Justice and Home Affairs Opt-out

I am grateful to the Chairman of the Home Affairs Committee for setting out the reason behind the...

Paragraph 85 of the Home Affairs Committee ninth report, which dealt with the matter, states:

I will refer to one or two specific measures in relation to that, but as I have just indicated to...

I endorse what the Chairman of the Home Affairs Committee said with one qualification. It is not ...

Of course, by definition, the Government’s role is negotiating with the parties I have just indic...

To ensure the fullest engagement with Parliament, ought not it to be the case that we vote on eve...

The Government have always seen this clearly as a number of measures, some of which interlink and...

In what precise form will any vote be taken? Would it have legislative effect if the House added ...

The Government will not bring forward legislation to the House on this matter, because that is no...

I am most grateful to the Home Secretary for giving way a second time. Has she seen reference mad...

I am aware of a number of reports in the press in relation to documents that, it is claimed, have...

Will the Home Secretary give way?

I will be very generous to the hon. Gentleman.

The Home Secretary is always very generous to me; I have never complained about her generosity an...

It will be an opportunity for this House to debate on the basis of a motion that the Government w...

I am grateful to the Home Secretary for many of the changes that are being made, but, as she know...

My hon. Friend’s constituent has particular experience of the operation of the European arrest wa...

My right hon. Friend has set out the safeguards that will apply to the European arrest warrant, w...

It is true that the measures that we opt back into will be subject to the European Court of Justi...

Will the Home Secretary say a little more about the extradition of British citizens to the United...

I have made a number of improvements. The most obvious one is the introduction of the forum bar. ...

Before my right hon. Friend leaves the subject of proportionality, may I ask whether she has seen...

I am aware of the report in today’s press, but I do not think that it referred to a Council of Mi...

In how many of the recent cases is the European arrest warrant making extradition quicker, rather...

The argument I make in relation to the European arrest warrant is on both those aspects of its op...

The Home Secretary has given us a number of indications of concerns that have arisen in some memb...

No it is not, and I have to say to my hon. Friend that he is not party to the discussions that we...

The Home Secretary is absolutely right to highlight the huge importance of the European arrest wa...

Today’s debate has probably generated a first in parliamentary history: my hon. Friend the Member...

I wonder whether the Home Secretary is going to mention any of the other 35 opt-in measures, incl...

My hon. Friend is referring to CEPOL, which has been based at Bramshill in the United Kingdom in ...

Today’s debate is one that the Home Secretary and Justice Secretary did not want to have. They ha...

rose—

I will give way to the hon. Lady, who is a member of the Fresh Start group and who, I am sure, mu...

Does the right hon. Lady regret the fact that the previous Government did not give the British pe...

I must say to the hon. Lady that we do not think that it is a muddle to have co-operation with Eu...

The Home Secretary has boasted a lot about giving the people a referendum, but up until the last ...

My hon. Friend has a point, but it is not just about referendums; those on the Front Bench do not...

rose—

I cannot resist giving way to the hon. Gentleman given that he and I ended up agreeing with each ...

I hope that the right hon. Lady will agree with me. Does she recall that the former Prime Ministe...

The hon. Gentleman seemed to be opting out and opting in all over the place there. The problem wi...

Does the right hon. Lady not understand that if we opt back in to many of the big and serious mea...

I must say that I am baffled how the right hon. Gentleman could consider a bit of guidance on thi...

Of course I do not want to deny us that right, but I want us to have that right in a way that is ...

Unfortunately, the right hon. Gentleman wants us to sign huge numbers of different extradition tr...

On the European arrest warrant, is there not also an obligation on member states to consider thei...

My right hon. Friend makes an important point. We have said that we should argue within Europe fo...

The right hon. Lady gave a useful list of the fluff and nonsense that we are opting out of, but o...

The hon. Gentleman points to a series of areas where the Government have proposed opting out or w...

rose—

I shall give way one last time.

Will the right hon. Lady clarify for the benefit of the House whether the Opposition would invoke...

We debated this last year when we had the vote. We do not object to the opt-out in principle. We ...

Before I get into the substance of the arguments on the matter before us, I would like to refer t...

Will my hon. Friend confirm that this is a desperately serious matter because if we opt in to any...

Indeed, and not only that, those people are no longer able to have recourse to our courts system ...

The hon. Gentleman is right. One of the key issues now is how many opt-ins there should be. I wou...

I am rather attracted to the idea of an amendable motion. Indeed, in effect, I have just said so ...

I am very exercised about the application of the role of the European Court of Justice. As my hon...

Yes, I am deeply concerned about the matters that my hon. Friend raises. Indeed, the whole questi...

I presume the hon. Gentleman would accept that it is much harder for someone to negotiate when th...

What I am saying is that voting in this House is a test of our democracy. We have already had amp...

The hon. Gentleman needs to forget about the Liberals, because there is a big elephant sitting in...

I do not think so. The driving force behind the arguments being made by the Conservative part of ...

So do not make that mistake.

Let us be in no doubt about that, as my right hon. Friend and distinguished colleague says—and mo...

It is a pleasure to follow the Chairman of the European Scrutiny Committee, the hon. Member for S...

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for the work that he is doing. Like him, I think that it is fund...

That is a very important point. We need to be able to debate these issues and vote on them. The E...

It is a pleasure, as always, to follow the right hon. Member for Leicester East (Keith Vaz), the ...

In the House, one always “follows the hon. Gentleman”, which often highlights differing views. It...

The hon. Gentleman does not seem to want any of these opt-outs, but is not the great argument for...

This is the difference between me and the hon. Gentleman: he wants to opt out of Europe and be a ...

I start by commending my right hon. Friend the Home Secretary for her courage in tackling this pr...

I am hugely enjoying my hon. Friend’s speech. Is she saying that the House of Lords, in its great...

Actually, yes, my hon. Friend is right. I made a similar point to members of the scrutiny Committ...

That was a good joke at the end.

It seems to me that there are an awful lot of ironies in t...

The hon. Gentleman must accept that that argument does not stack up. Let us look at the number of...

No, I am not. The hon. Lady complained that the Government and Members of the House of Lords adva...

rose—

I shall give way to the 16th century in a moment.

I wholly support the European arrest warr...

rose—

I cannot give way to the hon. Lady because I have to give way to the 16th century.

The hon. Gentleman is extremely kind. I was going to point out that Ronnie Biggs was in Brazil wh...

I realised that there might be some clever soul in the Chamber. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely ...

My point was not that we should not be party to the European arrest warrant; nor was it about the...

I understand the point that the hon. Lady makes, but the problem for her argument is that that op...

The treaty provides for transitional arrangements if an opt-in has not been agreed, so the fear t...

The provisions on opting back in are not very clear. The one thing that is clear is who has to pa...

It is a pleasure to be called to speak, after a characteristically entertaining contribution by t...

On a point of clarification, I thought that the Syria vote was on the option to keep a military o...

My hon. Friend is right on the technicality that there would have been a second vote, but the pri...

The hon. Gentleman raises the question of those people for whom the word “Europe” raises all kind...

I thank the hon. Gentleman for that enlightening quote. He can choose to describe himself how he ...

The hon. Member for Rhondda (Chris Bryant), who speaks extremely interestingly on these matters a...

Is my hon. Friend suggesting, or in agreement, that we might give some power to Europe provided t...

If we opt into any of these measures and they are justiciable by the European Court of Justice, w...

The hon. Gentleman has fallen into uncharacteristically misleading language. Over what court does...

My right hon. Friend is fully aware that Parliament can overrule any court in this country by an ...

If we were to take that path, would the resulting international agreement be judiciable in The Ha...

In my view, it would be judiciable in our own courts and, like any other international agreement,...

I must first explain to the House that I had to leave during the middle of this debate, after the...

Will the right hon. Gentleman give way?

It is quite early to give way, but very well.

In response to the right hon. Gentleman’s first point, how many of our own citizens—who had done ...

One measure that we are opting into ensures that people do not have to be detained in foreign pri...

rose—

I want to make a little progress.

I want primarily to speak about the Justice Committee’s w...

It is a pleasure to follow the right hon. Member for Berwick-upon-Tweed (Sir Alan Beith). We have...

I was referring to the remarks of the hon. Member for North East Somerset (Jacob Rees-Mogg), who ...

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his intervention. He is the Chair of the Justice Committee, ...

I very much agree with what my hon. Friend is saying. Of course, the matter would also become sub...

My hon. Friend is absolutely right. I was going to come on to the other areas of creeping suprana...

I agree with many of the points that my hon. Friend is making. Will he clarify whether, in his op...

Of course it could be reached. I was a Foreign Office lawyer for six years. I would love to obses...

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

I am sure that the hon. Gentleman will correct that impression.

I just want to say that I do have concerns about the individual cases involving the European arre...

I am glad that I took that intervention. The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right.

We need to...

I seek clarification from my hon. Friend. Interpol has a red arrest warrant. Is that in any way c...

I want to be very careful in not passing judgment about any arrest warrant on my hon. Friend that...

It is a privilege and an honour to follow my hon. Friend the Member for Esher and Walton (Mr Raab...

Many examples have been given of perceived injustices as a result of the European arrest warrant ...

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for drawing that example to the attention of the House. It goes t...

Does my hon. Friend agree that this issue is of such constitutional importance that it might be b...

My hon. Friend has made a very sensible point. I think that, as we get nearer to the election, we...

There is yet another example. The Liberal Democrats and the Labour party agreed to allow the Euro...

I think the Liberal Democrats will ultimately find that as we act to others, so they will act to ...

The hon. Gentleman is becoming awfully exercised about the Liberal Democrats, but the party about...

Order. We do not want to speculate on what will happen in the European elections. We do not want ...

The debate is about the opt-out, Mr Deputy Speaker, and other Members have spoken at length about...

We have had a very good debate, which has lasted for nearly four hours. We heard 11 speeches from...

Is the right hon. Gentleman aware that on 27 June 2007—the very day on which he handed the reins ...

I thank the hon. Gentleman for reminding us all of his excellent memory of historical facts and d...

Unfortunately, I did not have time to give notice that I would participate in this debate; we onl...

My hon. Friend gives one of the many examples of how there can be problems operating the EAW in p...

I should like to start by expressing my thanks to all those who have spoken in the debate today. ...

The Secretary of State says that he does not want to hand over powers over Justice and Home Affai...

If I may, I shall answer that question by setting out for my hon. Friend where we stand.

Th...

I am grateful to my right hon. Friend the Lord High Chancellor for giving way, not least because ...

I set out clearly to the House at the start of this process where I believe we stand. We are abso...

My right hon. Friend might recall giving evidence to the European Scrutiny Committee in respect o...

Let us be clear: what the last Government said about the charter of fundamental rights was simply...

I am sure that we will debate the charter of fundamental rights report, which divided the Europea...

Order. We have got the point. Let us not make these interventions too long.

I say to the hon. Gentleman that it would not be right for me to deal with a constituency case at...

The Justice Secretary just said that he would give the House a chance to “endorse or reject”, but...

We will discuss the detail of that motion in due course, but of course we will give the House the...

There is one group the Justice Secretary has not had any discussions with: the devolved Parliamen...

With respect, what the hon. Gentleman says is simply not right. We have had extensive discussions...

Will the Secretary of State give us a clear indication as to the extent to which the decisions th...

We have had long discussions across Government about how best to shape the right package for the ...

I am grateful to the Lord Chancellor for giving way once again; he is being enormously generous. ...

Madam Deputy Speaker might deem me to be out of order if I followed too far down that route tonig...