I was one of the (many) people who was privileged to have a brief meeting or two with Nelson Mandela in his lifetime. In my case it was because I was, for a while, a trustee of the Rhodes Scholarships and of the Mandela Rhodes Foundation. The Mandela Rhodes Foundation was established in 2003 as a…
How wonderful that the Minister has now agreed to the Earl of Listowel’s amendment giving young people in foster care the right to stay with their foster family until the age of 21. This is a listening, compassionate government indeed.
There was an unusual event in the Lords chamber on Friday when 146 cadets and 46 veterans filled the government and opposition benches. Friends and family occupied the galleries and cross benches. Many were in uniform and amongst the veterans were Chelsea pensioners in their red coats. A lively and colourful scene in the grandeur…
I am giving below a message recieved this month from the mother of a family in Gaza. I have twice visited Gaza in recent years. “I am Um Ali, Hanyya Ibrahim a mother from Gaza. Me and my four children have lived through the enemy’s bombing, occupation and seige and we have survived. They will never…
I thought readers would want to know that Google have been in touch with me to make clear that one cannot pay to get to the top of their standard rankings. It is only possible to pay for a sponsored ad, which all of course appear above the standard list of results. They also say…
The Select Committee on Communications, which I chair, has now taken its last evidence in its inquiry into media plurality. Our sessions, running from June until now, have included a packed and diverse schedule of witnesses. The time has now come, therefore, to put pen to paper and let you and the Government know what…
An apparently innocuous Question from Lord Brabazon of Tara last week motivated some rigorous self-inquiry amongst Peers. How many of us have been caught by official looking websites, topping the list when we googled, selling us services like visa or congestion charge applications at inflated cost, when we could have obtained them free or much cheaper…
I am pleased to see that the Musicians Union has strongly condemned the actions of Camden Council who have voted to introduce punitive measures against buskers in the borough from early 2014.This means that buskers will have to pay for licences in order to busk and will risk large fines and having their instruments confiscated if they…
After Parliament has passed a Bill, it receives Royal Assent and becomes an Act of Parliament. Provisions of an Act take effect upon Royal Assent unless provided otherwise. In practice, it is common to provide otherwise, with ministers being empowered by order to make commencement orders, stipulating the date on which the provisions, or particular…
