Northern Ireland (Executive Formation) Bill

I shall speak very briefly to Amendment 3A in this group, which is in my name. It might be for th...

My Lords, I think everybody agrees that this is a very curious device and in many ways a very cur...

My Lords, I too support this amendment, in the context of the European dimension, which has been ...

My Lords, it seems to me that it does not matter whether one supports leaving the European Union ...

My Lords, they say that Brexit drives people crazy and I think there is something in this. It cer...

My Lords, the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, reads far too much into this simple amendment, which is...

My noble friend Lady Deech would have made a marvellous Permanent Secretary. We heard about a dan...

My Lords, I spoke against these amendments in Committee, and will not repeat all my arguments. Bu...

I did not suggest that it would be improper. I was merely stating a fact. The next Prime Minister...

The noble Lord also said other things, which the Hansard writers will record, including his sayin...

What the noble Lord says is clearly true, and I do not dispute it. However, Mr Johnson has been i...

I think in life it is never good to answer the question, “Have you stopped beating your wife?”. T...

Oh! Outrageous!

Outrageous? Let us be grown-up here. Everybody understands the purport of the remark. Mr Johnson ...

I would like to make two points. First, I voted for Brexit, not for a no-deal Brexit, and that mu...

My Lords, I admitted at the outset that I am unlikely to take this House with me. However, there ...

May I put to my noble friend some alternatives to his four points? This amendment is not about st...

I did not count how many words there were in her conditional thing about “expressly used to force...

My Lords, as I said on Monday, I reject the idea that this amendment does not have an important i...

My Lords, we have begun a debate today on the extension of Executive formation opportunities in N...

We all hope that the Minister receives a call next week, whether from Mr Johnson or Mr Hunt. We w...

The aspect of a no-deal Brexit that has been discussed here is an important one and has been disc...

I am most grateful to all noble Lords who have spoken and in particular to the Minister for his c...

Moved by

Lord Anderson of Ipswich

3: Clause 3, page 2, line 20, leave out subsection ...

Moved by

Baroness Butler-Sloss

4: Clause 3, page 3, line 32, at end insert—

“( ...

My Lords, in moving Amendment 4 I will speak also to Amendment 10, which is consequential upon it...

My Lords, I would like to make some brief comments on this modest amendment. It provides an excel...

My Lords, I will comment briefly on this issue. It is a very important one, but there are some di...

My Lords, this is an example of the fact that a number of things which would normally be dealt wi...

My Lords, I thank the noble and learned Baroness, Lady Butler-Sloss, for her brief introduction, ...

I am very grateful to those who have spoken in this short debate, and to the Minister, who I spok...

Moved by

Lord Empey

5: Clause 3, page 4, line 2, at end insert—

“( ) The Secret...

My Lords, I have tabled Amendments 5, 6, 7, 8 and 9. They may not be in the same order as they we...

My Lords, I welcome Amendment 7, as tabled by my friend, the noble Lord, Lord Empey, as a trustee...

My Lords, not for the first time the noble Lord, Lord Empey, has put his finger on urgent issues ...

My Lords, I support these amendments, which I hope the Government will be able to accept—I think ...

My Lords, in the debate on Monday evening I joined many noble Lords in supporting the issues that...

My Lords, I want to make two points in support of what the noble Lord, Lord Empey, has done. He h...

To clarify, while I understand how the noble Lord has interpreted what I am doing, does he accept...

I wholly accept what the noble Lord says: he does not intend to push things towards direct rule. ...

My Lords, I do not think that the noble Lord, Lord Alderdice, was here on Monday, for reasons tha...

My Lords, I strongly support the view that what we need is a devolved Government in Northern Irel...

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Empey, for bringing forward these amendments. There seems ...

My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Empey, has raised important issues and made some very valid points...

My Lords, I am extremely grateful to all noble Lords who have participated in this debate, and fo...

Moved by

Lord Empey

6: Clause 3, page 4, line 2, at end insert—

“( ) The Secret...

Moved by

Lord Hayward

11: Clause 8, page 6, line 3, leave out subsections (1) to (4) ...

My Lords, in moving Amendment 11, I will speak also to Amendments 15 and 22 in my name and, on a ...

I assure the noble Lord that I had a great time. I hope for an invitation to the next party.

I will look in my diary and make sure that the noble Baroness has a free slot in her diary to com...

I notice that Amendment 11 often states that the Secretary of State “must” do something, but new ...

During the debate on Monday I indicated my willingness and understanding and, I must say, determi...

My Lords, I should tell the House that if Amendment 11 is agreed, I cannot call Amendment 11B by ...

Moved by

Lord Morrow

11A: Clause 8, leave out subsection (6) and insert—

“(6) T...

My Lords, I listened very carefully to what the noble Lord, Lord Hayward, said. He said that it w...

I was to trying to comment on the speech of the noble Lord, Lord Morrow, and I thought I would be...

That does not diminish my real concern here. I have to be frank and open with the House—and that ...

My Lords, it is a fairly good general rule that, when we are faced with legislation that is the s...

My Lords, I support Amendment 11 in the name of my noble friend Lord Hayward and other noble Lord...

My Lords, I support these amendments, to which I have added my name. I commend the eloquence of t...

My Lords, I had occasion to take part in the same-sex marriage legislation in this House with one...

My Lords, concern has been expressed about the future of Northern Ireland. I have been very impre...

My Lords, I was pleased to be a signatory to the amendment of the noble Lord, Lord Hayward, and I...

On that point, the noble Lord must recognise the political feeling within Northern Ireland. In on...

I do not dispute that whatsoever. I am taking the specific issue of same-sex marriage, and on tha...

My Lords, I would draw to the noble Lord’s attention the fact that assertions by English politici...

I think the noble Lord is misinterpreting what I said. I was quoting what had been said by Northe...

My Lords, given that the noble Lord, Lord Elton, has raised the question of whether people from t...

My Lords, I also very much support that, as well as what the noble Lord, Lord Brennan, said. It i...

My Lords, I have no doubt whatever of the sincerity of the noble Lord, Lord Hayward, or of anyone...

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Hayward, for the way he introduced this amendment and for ...

My Lords, this is a historic moment. I am struck. Let me begin in an unusual way, with a quote fr...

My Lords, I have listened very carefully to what has been said around the House this evening. I t...

If Amendment 12 is agreed to, my successor will not be able to call Amendments 13 and 14.

C...

Moved by

Baroness Barker

12: Clause 9, page 6, line 16, leave out subsections (1) to ...

My Lords, I hope we can continue in a similar vein on this next set of amendments. I rise to move...

My Lords, forgive me for rising at this particular juncture, which I would not normally do; I wil...

My Lords, I speak in support of Amendments 12, 19, 21 and 24 but if I may address what the Minist...

My Lords, I think the House knows that I was the person who piloted the Abortion Act 1967 through...

My Lords, I have amendments in this group. I tabled a manuscript amendment, which I think, in lig...

My Lords, this is a strange Bill, and it seems to get stranger as we go along. Clause 9, we were ...

My Lords, in speaking to the suite of amendments in the names of the noble Baroness, Lady Barker,...

I remember, and the noble Lord, Lord Empey, may remember as well, that many years ago, on Belfast...

I do not question that things have changed a great deal, but I do say to my noble friend on the F...

My Lords, as the noble Lord, Lord Alderdice, said, some parties have whips on the issue of aborti...

My Lords, I know that this debate is going on somewhat—I notice some faces that are dismayed that...

Is the noble Lord referring to a change for the better in regard to that particular point?

I am making no comment whatever. I had a long personal relationship with the noble Lord in the No...

My Lords, I had not intended to speak but I would like to ask about two matters in the light of w...

My Lords, this is a conscience issue and a sensitive one and, certainly on these Benches, it is a...

My Lords, the noble Lord ends on a note I would have started on. I think all noble Lords would fa...

When we talked about amendments being “outside of scope”, we were talking directly about the othe...

This House has no remit over what the other House says is in scope, but I am sure the clerks and ...

I always thought that the scope of the Bill was articulated in its Long Title, which in this case...

I refer the noble Baroness to the Companion and the Standing Orders of the House: if an amendment...

Is the noble Baroness not going to take any notice at all of the fairly fatal criticisms, in some...

I listened carefully to the noble Baroness, Lady O’Loan, and there is some distance between us; w...

My Lords, I have a large number of pieces of paper. If you will forgive me, I will just assemble ...

To what period does that apply? My understanding was that the legislation said “twenty-eight week...

There seems to be some discussion on this, but I have the answer to that as well. There is some d...

The Minister was talking about 22 to 28 weeks; then he said “the foetus”. A child born at 22 week...

In response to the noble Lord, I am a scientist. On occasion I will use scientific words, and on ...

I am sorry; I must be missing something here. Can my noble friend just explain to me why it is th...

It is important to recognise here that we are not discussing the 1967 Act at all, I am afraid. Th...

No, it is not an instruction.

Let me answer my noble friend Lord Elton. If we are not able to move it forward, it will not be j...

This is a minor point, in some ways, but it is fundamental. Nothing can be law unless both Houses...

The challenge that my noble friend sets me is a difficult one. I cannot give a guarantee in that ...

It might be helpful to the Minister to be aware that, in the Assembly of 2007 to 2011, the then H...

As someone who had to work with the guidance before the legislation came through— and this is for...

I remind the noble Lord that we may speak only once at this stage.

I heard the noble Lord, if that helps, so I understand the point that was about to be made. I wel...

I am sorry. I need clarity on this. It is very important. The Minister just said that, under the ...

Yes.

But the Criminal Justice Act would need amendment to get to 24 weeks.

Not as I understand it, no. It would not. If I am incorrect, I will happily correct the record.