Trade Union Bill

My Lords, I will speak in particular to Amendment 93, which is in my name, but will also make a g...

My Lords, I support the amendments in this group, particularly those in the name of the noble Lor...

My Lords, I concur completely with the comments made by the noble Lords, Lord Kerslake and Lord B...

My Lords, before I come to the specifics of Amendment 94, it is fair to say that these Benches ec...

Where does the noble Lord get his 20% figure from? What surveys has he done? Why does he think th...

I have talked to many unions in the public sector, and that is the sort of feedback I get. It is ...

I might be able to help the noble Lord, Lord Tebbit. If he checks with the Prison Officers’ Assoc...

The Government imply, without ever spelling out anybody specifically, that they have support for ...

Does the noble Lord realise that he has now spoken for 18 minutes and we are still waiting for hi...

With great respect to the noble Lord, Lord Cormack, I think that many of my colleagues will think...

My Lords, perhaps I could be allowed a brief intervention—I was not making a particular point abo...

I am sure my noble friend will agree that I could not be characterised in quite the way in which ...

There we are: we have the entire spectrum of the Conservative Party in agreement on this matter. ...

My Lords, it is quite an exceptional pleasure to follow the speeches of two distinguished Members...

It is certainly no cherry orchard, is it, my Lords? I am delighted to support my noble friend Lor...

My Lords, I have three amendments in this group and I give my full support to the amendment of my...

My Lords, I am fearful of keeping noble Lords from their lunch, but I have several points that ha...

My Lords, I point out that Baroness Williams, who has just departed from us, continued to pay due...

I think it needs such sources of money at the moment.

Another issue that has not been raise...

Perhaps I can help the Minister to join the consensus on how awful the clause is by stressing one...

I put to the Minister a question that she might consider before she comes to the Box. She will ha...

I thank the noble Lords, Lord Balfe and Lord Kerslake, for their contributions and particularly w...

My Lords, I approach this from a slightly different angle. I looked at the Bill for the first tim...

Does my noble friend appreciate that some people on some very low incomes may not have bank accou...

I would be very interested to know the number of those people. Clearly, the numbers have changed ...

Yes, but we are concerned about every individual. Even if it is only a few hundred people, surely...

Of course, exceptions can be made for a few hundred, if it is a few hundred, as with others. But ...

I am most grateful to my noble friend. I have no idea what the numbers are, but it will be more t...

I am not sure the noble Lord knows my particular social circle, but I took the figure of a few hu...

The point I was making was that even if it is only a tiny number, why are we doing this?

Yes, I thank the noble Lord—I have taken the point. The point that I was making was that the dire...

My Lords, this has been a fascinating debate, and I have begun to feel a bit sorry for the Minist...

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Wheeler, for her clear, comprehensive and relatively s...

What about Tesco?

I suspect that if it was starting now, rather than 100 years ago, things would be different becau...

The Minister said she would be clear and objective. Will she state what evidence she has been giv...

I think we have set out clearly in our impact assessment and elsewhere the way things are going. ...

I shall give the Minister a simple fact. She talked about Tesco. She was part of a partnership ar...

I think check-off existed for a number of years at Tesco, long before I arrived. We had the partn...

The Minister has been very clear about the notion that there is evidence of the direction of trav...

The noble Lord is right in saying that the direction of travel is driven by digital change—I am n...

I remind the Minister about workplace pensions. They are a very recent auto-enrolment initiative....

My Lords, I do not wish to be discourteous to the Committee in any way, but there have been five ...

I am grateful to my noble friend. We are debating check-off in relation to Clause 4. The Public a...

I am finding difficult the suggestion that there is now some prescription that direct debit is th...

My Lords, the noble Lord makes a fair point. Having said that, the growth of direct debit in lots...

Will the Minister explain why it is deemed necessary to impose a new arrangement on two parties, ...

My Lords, the difference is that the cost falls on the public sector.

But the premise—the burden of the amendments that we are discussing—is there would be no cost to ...

The answer is that I think the impact assessment says there is a cost of £7.2 million. I was seek...

My Lords, I am very sorry to interrupt, as we have had a long debate. I make an appeal to the Min...

I thank the noble friend for his intervention. I have said from the very beginning that we are li...

Could the Minister answer this question, which I have great difficulty in understanding? Why is i...

I have already sought to answer this question. Deductions for things like pensions, childcare vou...

It is a long time ago for me but I remember that part, if not all, of the subscription for craft ...

I am not sure I entirely understand the point. If I may, I will reflect on it.

I am sorry—I am irritating my noble friend by intervening. I am just worried about this principle...

I thank my noble friend. I am not making any commitments about government policy in any of these ...

My Lords, I thank the Minister for her response. This has been a powerful, detailed and consensua...