I am always impressed by the versatility of some of my colleagues. I have previously mentioned Lord McColl, who spends his summers performing surgery on Mercy Ships off the coast of West Africa, and Lord Forsyth, who has just climbed Mount Vinson. Another peer builds and flies his own aircraft. (Single-seater ones, that is.) Lord MacGregor…
When a vote is held in the Lords, there is no means of recording abstentions. It is far from uncommon for peers who disagree with their own side to absent themselves from a division. However, when a peer’s name does not appear in the division list, it is usually impossible to know whether that peer is unavoidably…
The Administration and Works Committee has issued a report recommending changes in the rules as to what electronic devices can be used by members in the chamber, in committee and in other parts of the House. It is designed to ensure the rules keep abreast of the rapid changes in technology. There is a recognition…
I agree with Lord Knight’s assessment of the Public Bodies Bill. It is making slow progress through the House. This is in part because of time being taken by the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill and also because peers are keen to discuss the bodies included in the different schedules of the Bill. A number are…
The extended debate on, and attempts to delay, the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill have derived from some misunderstandings. One, variously expressed over the past few weeks, is that peers have to utilise the power of delay because the coalition now enjoys an effective majority in the House. However, it doesn’t. Up to the Christmas…
