argyrotsipi/train-dataset huggingface dataset:
Renters’ Rights Bill [HL] — House of Lords, 2016-11-18
Topic: Housing
Rosalind Grender (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, again it will not surprise the House to hear that I am minded to accept Amendments 2 and 3. This is a Government leaning on the rented sector for support, like leaning on a walking stick that has woodworm, damp and dry rot. We need to improve the rented sector to meet the needs of people over at least the next decade, if not two. Shelter’s research states that one-third of privately rented homes in England do not meet the Government’s decent homes standard, while almost one-fifth pose serious health and safety hazards. The lack of compulsory electrical checks plays a significant part in that As I conclude on the final part of this amendment, I would like to pay tribute to Electrical Safety First, which has been campaigning, along with my noble friend Lord Tope, to bring about these changes. More widely, I would like to thank Debrief and its petition, Generation Rent, Shelter, Crisis and Citizens Advice, all of which supported the Bill. I would also like to thank Hull City Council, which yesterday passed a motion at full council supporting the Bill. The motion was proposed by Liberal Democrat Councillor Charles Quinn and supported by Labour councillors. I am sure that the Minister will be pleased to hear that Conservative Councillors John Fareham and John Abbott also voted in favour in Hull, because all three parties think that renters now need a fairer deal and that getting rid of up-front costs will help I want to take the opportunity to say that I am pleased that the earlier clause on rogue landlords received the support of the noble Baroness, Lady Gardner. That information should be publicly available in the same way that, for instance, employers who flout the national minimum wage are made public. I see no reason why information on rogue landlords cannot similarly be made public In conclusion, and in the knowledge that there possibly will not be a Report stage for the Bill, I want to say that we on these Benches will not let any of the issues in the Bill rest here. My colleague Tom Brake in the Commons will take up as many of them as he can. If a White Paper is to be forthcoming, we will try to ensure that all four of the substantive clauses are continued through other legislation. In particular, we will continue to pursue, with some passion and vigour, the issue of up-front costs to tenants, which is hurting tenants every day.
Renters’ Rights Bill [HL] — House of Lords, 2016-11-18
Topic: Mixed Topics
Graham Norman Tope (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for accepting my amendments. It does not come as too much of a surprise to me, but, in my 22 years in your Lordships’ House, it is a very rare pleasure for me to have an amendment supported so willingly and with so much pleasure I am grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Kennedy, and his colleagues for their continuing support, and to the Minister for his reply. I believe that the working group to which he referred has its last meeting next Monday. I understand, therefore, why he feels it would be inappropriate to comment before it has even had its last meeting, let alone produced its report. If it produces that report by the end of the year, and I hope that it does, I hope that the Government will not take too much longer to measure it. Successive Governments have taken measured approaches to this for years—not months. Therefore, my reference to six months was perhaps a little optimistic. The Minister has said, and I believe him, that the Government are taking this seriously and that they have a pragmatic approach. It is hard to see why, if that is so, they are not yet able to commit to at least making safety checks mandatory, even if they are not yet in a position to go into the technical detail necessary for the publication of the draft regulations As my noble friend Lady Grender said, I do not know how much further this particular Bill will go in its progress, but this issue and the issue raised in the previous debate will not go away. They will be pursued. We will continue to pursue them and I feel sure that the Labour Opposition will continue to pursue them. We hope that the Government will indeed take their pragmatic, not-too-long, measured view and bring forward draft regulations for debate within the foreseeable future, by which I mean the first part of next year.
Tributes — House of Lords, 2016-12-21
Topic: Mixed Topics
Benjamin Stoneham (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, as a new boy to the usual channels, I join my colleagues in thanking all the staff for the work they do in the House, especially during the past year. They do vital work in keeping the show on the road and provide a very important service to all of us. I have the task of paying tribute to four members of staff who have retired during this year Graeme Quin worked for 32 years in the service of the House, joining in 1984. He worked in the accounts department, in Hansard and, most memorably, in the Printed Paper Office. My own group staff always regarded him as an extremely friendly and helpful member of staff and are missing him hugely. In 1987, Graeme was involved in an accident on the way home from late-night duty in Hansard, resulting in serious injuries during which he lost a knee. Determined to return to work, he always expressed extreme gratitude to the Administration for the help and support that he received following his accident. Graeme’s passion is photography. He has often been seen around the House taking photographs of events such as the State Opening. He hopes to return as a visitor for State Openings and to continue with his photography. Rolando Olivares was a housekeeper and served 12 years in the House from January 2004. He worked for many years cleaning offices for Members and staff in the House of Lords outbuildings and in the Palace. He was a very valued and helpful colleague who had a genuine affection for working in such a heritage-rich environment. His appreciation of our buildings was helped by having worked in similar positions in a number of London museums. He displayed an appreciation of the history of the Palace of Westminster. His retirement plans will mainly revolve around his family here in England and his extended family in Chile and Sierra Leone Toto Dje was a housekeeper with nearly 12 years’ service to the House, starting in 2004. He worked in Fielden House and then in a number of areas of the House of Lords. He was a very diligent member of the team, with a keen eye for detail and also an appreciation of the heritage rooms he was tasked with keeping clean. A very popular and friendly colleague, he is now enjoying a well-deserved retirement Finally, Jacqueline Wheatley was a housekeeper with eight years’ service from 2008, a well-respected and very hard-working member of staff who kept high standards and whose work was appreciated by the many people whose rooms she cleaned. Jacqueline’s cleaning patch was the second floor west front. She took much pride in ensuring her rooms were always presented to the highest standards. She has a number of priorities for her retirement: free time with her family; to get out and travel more; and, particularly, caring for other family members. She would like to spend time practising T’ai Chi and she also volunteers at St Joseph’s Hospice in Hackney We thank all of them for their loyal and dedicated service and wish all noble Lords and staff members a very happy, healthy and good New Year. It will certainly be a challenging one.
House of Lords: Size — House of Lords, 2016-12-05
Topic: Other
Richard Newby (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): I stand corrected. I had better be careful because the noble Lord will correct what I am about to say, but I believe that many countries have more than one Chamber and that a minority, at best, have a non-elected second Chamber.
Historical Sexual Abuse in Football — House of Lords, 2016-11-29
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Dominic Hubbard (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, it is very good that we can echo on a cross-party basis the sentiments that have already been expressed here—and, indeed, the international support for that very unfortunate football team. Will the Minister give us an assurance that there will be a concentration on the one-to-one contact between coach and player, particularly when they are juniors, and how that is monitored? That will ensure that not only parents and participants but also potential coaching staff know what the correct boundaries are and what safeguards apply on both sides. Without them, we are in danger of doing considerable damage.
Historical Sexual Abuse in Football — House of Lords, 2016-11-29
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): Does the Minister agree that it is important to make a distinction between professional coaches, who have such power over young people in terms of determining their future in the sport, and volunteers who do not have such a degree of influence?
Historical Sexual Abuse in Football — House of Lords, 2016-11-29
Topic: Domestic Commerce
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): Does the Minister agree that a distinction needs to be made between professional coaches, who have a considerable amount of power over young people in terms of determining their future in the sport, and volunteers who do not have such influence?
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Immigration
Brian Paddick (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, I support the amendments of the noble Lord, Lord Rosser, to which my noble friend Lady Hamwee and I have added our names. My argument is quite simple: when we were discussing the Immigration Act, the Government proposed a philosophy of full cost recovery for visa applications and the Immigration Service generally. On 18 March this year, they increased the fees for visa applications, in some cases by 25%. Family and spouse visas are now £1,195, adult dependent relative visas are £2,676, and settlement applications have increased to £1,875. British citizen naturalisation certificates are now £1,156 for adults and £936 for children There is currently a government consultation on immigration appeal fees, which proposes an even greater increase to ensure full cost recovery. The consultation suggests a fee for an appeal on the papers to the First-tier Tribunal should increase from £80 to £490, and from £140 to £800 for an oral hearing. If the Minister is not going to agree with these amendments to ensure full cost recovery for the issuing of firearms certificates, will she explain why a different approach is being taken to the principle of full cost recovery when it comes to immigration? In particular, can she refute the obvious allegation that the Government are discriminating against foreign nationals as set against those who go hunting with guns for sport?
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Other
Sally Rachel Hamwee (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, perhaps the noble Baroness can assist this Committee with the timing. I imagine that the Select Committee will probably be required to report in February, but this Bill is likely to have concluded its passage before then. As a result, I am unclear how recommendations from the committee can affect the content of the Bill, but she may have information about the relative timings that could help this Committee.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Other
Rosalind Grender (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): The Minister has said we cannot deal in hypotheticals, and yet we are about to accept some amendments which may well, in the light of the conclusions of our committee, be hypothetical. It seems to me that the most sensible solution is to not currently have amendments in this area, because those very amendments may be hypothetical.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Mixed Topics
Celia Marjorie Thomas (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, my name is also on Amendment 210 which, as the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, has said, is one of the recommendations of our committee. I am particularly speaking about how the amendment would apply to existing, rather than new, premises. Before I go any further, I should say something about the Select Committee on the Licensing Act. I do understand what is being said but my mind goes back to the words of a pop song of the 1960s: "Catch a falling star and put it in your pocket Save it for a rainy day" This might be, "Catch a passing Bill and put it in your pocket". That is an important point: maybe some Members do not quite appreciate how difficult it is to get Bills into the legislative programme The vague terms used by the then Secretary of State for Education and Minister for Women and Equalities in her evidence to the committee about spreading good practice rather than legislating in this area simply will not do, as it does not work. The licensing solicitor at Sheffield Council, Marie-Claire Frankie, was clear when she gave evidence to our committee: "What could strengthen the licensing authority and give them the ability to enforce it is to make a fifth objective related to equality" She said specifically that a friendly word in somebody’s ear at the premises, even if followed up by a letter from the local authority, just did not work. She went on: "For old and existing premises that transferred over before the Licensing Act, there is not anything that we can go back and revoke licences on or anything that we can add conditions on. Because of the licensing objectives, there is no way of getting it before a committee because they are not breaching crime and disorder; they are not committing public nuisance; they are not publicly unsafe; and they are not endangering children. If there was an additional objective relating to equality, there would be a mechanism to get it before a committee, to enable the local authority and the licensing authority to do something". We are talking only about reasonable adjustments, not a mandatory lift, say, if a small club, restaurant, pub or other entertainment venue is entirely upstairs. No one wants premises closed down, but what those of us who are disabled want is as much accessibility as possible, and we do not want to have to go to court to get such access. I hope the Government will accept the amendment.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Other
Timothy Francis Clement-Jones (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, I shall speak to Amendment 214A, which I believe is in the same group. I had rather assumed that the noble Lord, Lord Brooke, was going to speak to his amendment, and I am quite happy to wait and let him do so now, as he is in the Chamber.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Civil Rights
Anthony Lester (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, during the Second World War, Archbishop William Temple once said: "Whenever I travel on the underground I always intend to buy a ticket, but the fact that there is a ticket collector at the other end just clinches it" The reason why I strongly support Amendment 210, moved so powerfully already, is that it just clinches something that ought not to need an amendment of that kind. What it clinches is the need for licensing authorities to perform their duty by complying with the terms of the Equality Act 2010 The noble Baroness, Lady Howe of Idlicote, when she was deputy chair of the Equal Opportunities Commission, and the noble Lord, Lord Low, with regard to the Disability Rights Commission, will both remember how those two commissions carried out strategic law enforcement functions effectively. The problem at present is that the Equality and Human Rights Commission, which has far too broad a mandate, especially in terms of human rights—it lacks needed resources and having priorities determined—is not carrying out the kind of duty in the way that was done by the previous equality bodies. It is not giving effective, strategic law enforcement. Therefore, there is no use relying on the admirable Equality Act 2010 by itself if it is not going to be translated into practical action.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Immigration
Sally Rachel Hamwee (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, Clause 140 provides for a requirement to produce a nationality document in the case where, "an individual has been arrested on suspicion of the commission of an offence", and, "an immigration officer or constable", gives, "the individual a notice requiring the production of a nationality document" This amendment comes from the Joint Committee on Human Rights, of which I am a member. The committee regarded Article 14—the anti-discrimination article—as being engaged. The organisation Liberty has argued that if these powers, "are to operate in a similar fashion to powers in the Immigration Bill", which a number of us will recall, "immigration checks would become a routine aspect of every police engagement with a suspect. It is difficult to think how suspicion", which is required, "will be generated if this is not the intended model, short of the police making assumptions about an individual’s status on the basis of appearance or accent" The committee noted the risk in this provision that requirements to confirm nationality could have a differential impact on BAME UK citizens. As our report says: "We also questioned whether a person asked to produce a passport or other nationality document should instead be entitled to supply documentation sufficient to demonstrate an entitlement to such a document", since not everyone has a passport. We contacted the then Minister for the subject, who told the committee in the summer: "Before deciding to issue a notice requiring a nationality document to be produced, as a matter of operational best practice, officers should check whether or not there is an immigration interest with Home Office Immigration Enforcement. If, having undertaken these checks, it is confirmed that the individual is not a UK national (or it is suspected the person may not be), it is a proportionate response to require the production of a document in order to properly establish identity. Should a UK national not possess a passport but are able to produce evidence (documentary or otherwise) that they are entitled to one under the terms of published guidance, it is reasonable that officers should take that into account. We"— the Government— "do not consider it necessary that such eventualities are set out on the face of the Bill, but will instead issue guidance to officers in that regard" The Joint Committee made the following point: "If the Government accepts that alternative documentation may be required in circumstances where an individual does not possess a passport or driving licence, it is not clear why this fact should not be stated on the face of the Bill". This is a safeguard, after all, and something more than operational guidance would be appropriate. I beg to move.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Civil Rights
Sally Rachel Hamwee (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, four minutes has achieved more than I might have expected. I realise that perhaps, in reading the content of the report fairly quickly, I might not have sufficiently stressed the risks of discrimination with which we were particularly concerned. Having said that, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Civil Rights
John Kevin Sharkey (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, I shall also speak to Amendment 214F. Both amendments are in my name and those of the noble Baroness, Lady Williams of Trafford, and the noble Lords, Lord Lexden and Lord Black of Brentwood. These amendments each do one simple thing. Amendment 214E grants posthumous pardons to those men, now deceased, who were convicted under the dreadful Labouchere amendment and other homophobic legislation, for acts that would now not be crimes. Amendment 214F provides that a pardon is granted to those living who were similarly convicted and who have, or will have, obtained a disregard under the Protection of Freedoms Act. I am very glad to say that the Government have said they will support these amendments and I thank the Minister for her help and encouragement If these amendments pass, it will be the culmination of a long campaign to put right a historic injustice. Some 65,000 men were convicted under the Labouchere amendment and other anti-gay statutes. Of these, 16,000 are still alive and 49,000 are dead. When we passed the Protection of Freedoms Act in 2012 we made provisions for the living 16,000 to have their convictions disregarded. That is, for all practical purposes, the convictions would no longer have any effect. That was a great step forward. We recognised a terrible injustice and did something to make amends and to put things right. At the time it seemed to me that the 49,000 men convicted but now dead deserved exactly the same treatment. It seemed a straightforward argument. The disregard for the living acknowledged a wrong and offered a partial remedy. Simple justice suggested that we do the same for the dead. We should acknowledge the wrong done to them and should provide some comfort to their relatives, their friends and their memory I tried, with other noble Lords, notably the noble Lords, Lord Black of Brentwood, Lord Lexden and Lord Faulkner of Worcester, to amend the Protection of Freedoms Act to do exactly that—to extend the disregard posthumously. I tried via the LASPO Bill in March 2012 and via the Criminal Justice and Courts Bill once in July 2014 and again that October. During this process the Government’s position began to shift. The initial and rather blunt refusal to take action became a willingness to discuss and, eventually, a willingness to help. I was encouraged to persevere and to promote a posthumous pardon for Alan Turing. There was a feeling that, if Turing were pardoned, it would be morally impossible not to extend that pardon to all those others similarly convicted but now dead. So it would prove, if these amendments now pass. If they do, we will finally be putting right a cruel and unjust historic wrong—a wrong that has wrecked the lives of thousands of gay men. I urge your Lordships to support these amendments and I beg to move.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Other
John Kevin Sharkey (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, I thank all those noble Lords who have spoken in favour of Amendments 214E and 214F, and all noble Lords who have spoken in this brief debate. I also want to claim some fellowship as a Mancunian with the Minister. Wigan is only 17 miles from Manchester, and while I was at the University of Manchester as a mathematics undergraduate, I was taught by a man called Robin Gandy who was the only doctoral student that Alan Turing ever had. Robin Gandy was full of stories about Alan Turing and I knew these from a very early age In closing, I thank the noble Lords, Lord Lexden, Lord Black of Brentwood and Lord Faulkner of Worcester, who have been supporters of these amendments in their current form and in all their previous forms. It is also appropriate to thank my noble friend Lord McNally and the noble Lords, Lord Bates, Lord Faulks, and their officials for listening to the case we have made and for helping to arrive at a solution.
Policing and Crime Bill — House of Lords, 2016-11-09
Topic: Other
Sally Rachel Hamwee (Liberal Democrats, Centre to centre-left): My Lords, we on these Benches very much support the noble Baroness’s amendment. She has obviously been working at this for some time—I see from her face that she has—and her explanation is clear and obviously based on the experiences of which she is aware. So we give her our support.