Lord (Paul) Tyler is a colleague and a friend but I disagree with him on Lords reform. When he writes that the Government White Paper on House of Lords Reform is the product of a majority of MP votes and the leaders of the political parties in the Lords – he is, of course, right.…
The economic/financial crisis emerged during Parliament’s summer recess, although of course the roots go much further back. Some peers have beeen grumbling in the tea rooms that Parliament should have been recalled at least to debate this historic event, with potentially far-reaching political consequences. The most recent Finance Act authorised the Government to take decisions about the…
As parliamentarians we have constant opportunities to learn about almost every conceivable topic. First there are the All Party Parliamentary Groups (APPG) open to members of both Houses and covering for example topics from euthanasia, animal welfare and modern languages to first aid and monuments. Almost every country has its own group of interested politicians. Then there are the…
Many years ago when I set up a small research institute with a focus on development aid in crises – we chanced upon some rather peculiar (or they seemed that at the time) features of famine. To cut short a very long (and very interesting) time of research and testing here are the main conclusions: Famine is almost never due…
As any student of English history will know the original Parliament buildings burnt down in the 19th Century, apart from Westminster Hall which mercifully was spared. Today a fire alarm sounded in the mid-afternoon. This time not the usual mournful voice advising us over the speaker system to await further news or a test alarm …
