UK Parliament / Open data

Elections Bill

Committee of the Whole House (HL) and Debate on bills on Tuesday, 15 March 2022, in the House of Lords, led by Lord True.
Lords committee stage second day. Clauses 18 to 20 agreed to, as amended. Clause 21 agreed to. (Part 1 of 2).

About these Parliamentary proceedings

Reference

820 cc176-233 

Session

2021-22

Legislative stage

Committee stage

Procedure

New clauses

Chamber / Committee

House of Lords chamber

Proceeding contributions

Lord Holmes of Richmond | 820 cc176-7 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord Holmes of Richmond

20: After Clause 17, insert the following new Clause...

Lord Holmes of Richmond | 820 cc177-8 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, it is a pleasure to begin day two of the Elections Bill, and to move Amendment 20 and s...


Show all contributions (95)
Baroness Lister of Burtersett | 820 cc179-180 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I support these amendments, so ably introduced by the noble Lord, Lord Holmes. I will s...

Lord Kerslake | 820 c180 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I would like to lend my support for the amendments in this group. Interestingly, the Bi...

Lord Thomas of Gresford | 820 cc180-1 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, Article 29 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ...

820 c181 (Link to this contribution)

She is not in her place.

Lord Thomas of Gresford | 820 cc181-2 (Link to this contribution)

Thank God. The EBU report is an exhaustive study of the methods used in European countries. In Ru...

Lord Harris of Haringey | 820 c182 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I rise very briefly in support of this group of amendments. I will speak briefly as I w...

Lord Low of Dalston | 820 c182 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I have here a speech in support of the case which has been deployed already with great ...

Lord Cormack | 820 cc182-3 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, if an amendment has been tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Blunkett, and my noble friend L...

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb | 820 c183 (Link to this contribution)

We do not really need to say much more, but I think I might try. I want to add a little layer of ...

Lord Scriven | 820 cc183-4 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, it is slightly disappointing that the Committee is having to debate this issue in this ...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 cc184-7 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, this has certainly been an important debate. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Holmes, for h...

Lord True | 820 cc185-8 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I thank all those who have spoken in what has been a very welcome debate. I am sorry to...

Lord Harris of Haringey | 820 c188 (Link to this contribution)

I do not want to interrupt the Minister while he is in full flow, but his description of the way ...

Lord True | 820 c189 (Link to this contribution)

No, my Lords; the reality is that the current position is confined and the Government are seeking...

Lord Scriven | 820 c189 (Link to this contribution)

I must press the Minister here. Following on from what the noble Lord, Lord Harris, said, the imp...

Lord True | 820 c189 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, we are seeking to move to a better, more flexible and more complete approach for blind ...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c189 (Link to this contribution)

My question was really about the cost of the system trialled in Norfolk and whether the problem w...

Lord True | 820 cc189-190 (Link to this contribution)

I do not believe that was the case but I am not briefed on the specific point. I will of course g...

Lord Scriven | 820 c190 (Link to this contribution)

Clearly, the Minister has not read the impact assessment. It makes it clear that the list will be...

Lord True | 820 c190 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I have said that the Government anticipate a very important role for the Electoral Comm...

Lord Scriven | 820 c190 (Link to this contribution)

It is not the Electoral Commission but the Government’s own impact assessment which says that the...

Lord True | 820 cc190-1 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, the Government’s desire and wish is that all people who wish to vote and have voting ac...

Lord Holmes of Richmond | 820 c191 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who participated in this afternoon’s debate. It is invidious to...

Lord True | 820 c192 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord True

21: Clause 18, page 28, line 7, after “(1)(b),” insert “except as ...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c192 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord Collins of Highbury

24A: Clause 18, page 29, line 15, at end insert—

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 cc192-4 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am taking the unusual step of trying to get a debate going about a particular word. I...

Lord Stunell | 820 cc193-5 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I rise to ask some questions very much in parallel with those the noble Lord, Lord Coll...

Lord Grocott | 820 c195 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I agree very much with what has been said by both my noble friend Lord Collins and the ...

Lord Sentamu | 820 cc195-6 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I share the sentiment of what the noble Lord, Lord Grocott, has just said. The noble Lo...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c196 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am often grateful I was never an election agent. I fought five elections and was once...

Lord True | 820 cc196-8 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am grateful for this short debate. I will not enter into the discussions of election ...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c198 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the noble Lord for that response. Clearly, we are coming to a much more detailed debate a...

Lord Rennard | 820 cc198-201 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, the reason for the Clause 18 stand part debate is that we should not let this important...

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle | 820 c200 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I rise very briefly to speak in favour of this clause not standing part of the Bill. I ...

Lord Stunell | 820 cc200-3 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, we have already explored what the exact meaning of “encouraged” is. I thought the answe...

Lord Grocott | 820 cc203-4 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, a kind of fiction has prevailed over a very long period of election history that, someh...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 cc204-5 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, one of the things on which there was consensus from all the various reports that fed in...

Lord Grocott | 820 c205 (Link to this contribution)

I agree so much about the importance of the close connection between individual candidates and in...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c205 (Link to this contribution)

We need not discuss the various alternative forms of voter registration. “Not necessarily” is the...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 cc205-7 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I come back to the comment I made on the earlier group of amendments: what is broken? W...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 cc207-8 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I will start by answering the noble Lord, Lord Collins. He asked twice, once of my nobl...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c208 (Link to this contribution)

I am sorry to interrupt, but one has to see the context of that response. Our argument tonight is...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 c208 (Link to this contribution)

I suggest that the Government believe that it does clarify; that is exactly what it does, so we w...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c208 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, if I have understood the argument that the noble Baroness has been making, this clause ...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 cc208-9 (Link to this contribution)

No, what I am saying is that it will clarify for candidates and agents what is required and what ...

Lord Rennard | 820 c209 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for that reply. She mentioned the PACAC report into some ...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 cc209-210 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Baroness Hayman of Ullock

25: After Clause 18, insert the following new Clau...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 cc210-2 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am speaking to my Amendment 25. In this group there is also Amendment 25A in the name...

Lord McNicol of West Kilbride | 820 c212 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, Amendments 25 and 25A appear to be alternatives.

Lord Rennard | 820 cc212-4 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, this debate has shown that the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman, is definitely right that we...

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts | 820 cc213-5 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I just want to intervene, not about the substance of the matter we are debating but abo...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c215 (Link to this contribution)

This is an important principle. The noble Lord and I have spent some time looking at the Charity ...

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts | 820 cc215-6 (Link to this contribution)

I think the Electoral Commission is a special case because we are talking about an elections Bill...

Lord Stunell | 820 cc216-7 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I may be able to join up some of the dots in what has just been said, particularly to d...

Lord True | 820 cc217-8 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, again I welcome this short debate. It was very good to hear from my noble friend Lord H...

Lord Hodgson of Astley Abbotts | 820 c218 (Link to this contribution)

When my noble friend says that he has confidence in the Electoral Commission, which I understand,...

Lord True | 820 cc218-9 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, there is reference in Clause 19(1) to a duty to provide guidance. I cannot give all the...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c219 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his thorough response to this debate.

On the amendment i...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c219 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord Collins of Highbury

25B: Clause 19, page 29, line 22, at end insert—

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 cc219-221 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I hope the noble Lord, Lord Hodgson, will speak in this debate, as Clause 19 sort of ad...

Lord Stunell | 820 c220 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, on Amendment 28B, which is about transparency, perhaps the Minister could comment on so...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 cc220-2 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, these amendments from the noble Lord, Lord Collins of Highbury, relate to existing prov...

Lord Stunell | 820 c222 (Link to this contribution)

I apologise if I was misunderstood. I was referring not to digital campaigning but to the digital...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 c222 (Link to this contribution)

I will take that back and get an answer for the noble Lord. It is an important issue, as the way ...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c222 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the Minister for her comments. Of course, I am trying to get on record some political poi...

Lord True | 820 cc222-3 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord True

26: Clause 19, page 29, line 25, leave out subsection (2)

Me...

Lord True | 820 c223 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord True

29: Clause 20, page 30, line 7, after “incurred” insert “, otherwi...

Lord Khan of Burnley | 820 c223 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord Khan of Burnley

30A: Clause 20, page 30, line 23, at end insert—

...

Lord Khan of Burnley | 820 cc223-4 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, it is with great pleasure that I introduce Amendment 30A on behalf of my noble friend L...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 cc224-5 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, the Bill delivers on the Government’s manifesto commitment to secure the integrity of e...

Lord Khan of Burnley | 820 c225 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the Minister for that comprehensive response. Just to reiterate, we will continue to have...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c225 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Baroness Hayman of Ullock

30C: Clause 21, page 30, line 38, leave out “£500”...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 cc226-7 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, we have now come to the seventh group of amendments, where there are two amendments, Am...

Baroness Noakes | 820 c227 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I have one further question to add to the questions that have been put to the Minister....

Lord Stunell | 820 c227 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I will comment on Amendment 31, which is about record-keeping. I return to the point I ...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 c227 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, as part of the registration process, political parties are not currently required to su...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c227 (Link to this contribution)

If it was a 2013 report, and thinking of inflation, I wonder whether that should have been recons...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 cc227-8 (Link to this contribution)

The noble Baroness has now undermined the argument about going up rather than down. I have checke...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c228 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the Minister for her response. Like her, I thought that the noble Baroness, Lady Noakes, ...

Baroness Scott of Bybrook | 820 c228 (Link to this contribution)

I will endeavour to find out exactly what was behind that and let the noble Baroness know, and I ...

Baroness Hayman of Ullock | 820 c228 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the Minister for that clarification. I look forward to her response. I beg leave to withd...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c229 (Link to this contribution)

Moved by

Lord Collins of Highbury

31A: Clause 21, page 31, line 34, at end insert—

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 cc229-230 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, this is a probing amendment, but it is highly topical. I am trying to see the relations...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 cc230-1 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am conscious that there are other democracies in Europe which have parties on the rig...

Lord Scriven | 820 c231 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I too rise to support the probing amendment in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Collins...

Lord True | 820 c231 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Collins, for initiating this debate, which has be...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c232 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I in no way suggested that. I merely remarked that the question of where the largest do...

Lord True | 820 c232 (Link to this contribution)

I made no joke. I drew attention to the noble Lord’s remarks, and they will stand on the record. ...

Lord Scriven | 820 c232 (Link to this contribution)

The Minister talks about inuendo; can he say which innuendo? What I spoke about is on the record:...

Lord True | 820 c232 (Link to this contribution)

I stand by the remarks I made in response to comments from the Front Bench of the Liberal Democra...

Lord Wallace of Saltaire | 820 c232 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I do not know whether the noble Lord reads the Sunday Times—perhaps he only reads the S...

Lord True | 820 cc232-3 (Link to this contribution)

My Lords, I was working on my allotment on Sunday morning. I will come to the point that was rais...

Lord Collins of Highbury | 820 c233 (Link to this contribution)

I thank the noble Lord for that response. We will return to this issue. I opened my remarks with ...

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