Lord Soley refers to the brief debate, during committee stage of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Bill, on the issue of votes at 16. Whenever the issue comes up, I normally contribute but on this occasion could not be there – otherwise I would have drawn attention to the problems associated with the arguments…
Former Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth (pictured) has caused something of a political storm for calling for the legalisation of drugs so that they can be available, probably on prescription, as a way of tackling the major problems presently caused by the supply and consumption of drugs. Some of the responses to his call have been predictable. However,…
The Lord Chief Justice, Lord Judge, appeared before the Constitution Committee this morning. It was a very revealing session. Lord Judge, in a dinner for Her Majesty’s Judges at the Mansion House in July, said that “my deepest concern at the moment is directed to the increased use of what are described as Henry VIII…
Lord Knight mentions that it is a convention that the House of Lords does not reject delegated legislation. As I pointed out in the House recently, when this issue, came up, it has been the usual practice of the House to agree to orders but it has not amounted to a convention. As the Companion…
The debate in the chamber yesterday, in which teams from four schools each advocated one of the options for the future of the Lords (all appointed, hybrid, abolition, all elected) produced the following results: Fully appointed: 81 Hybrid: 48 Abolition: 26 Fully elected: 8 Congratulations to the team from the Robert Clack School in Dagenham…
