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Lighter Evenings (Experiment) Bill [HL]

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Laing, and the noble Baroness, Lady Billingham. Their speeches—one comprehensive and one brief—were to the point. I agree with both of them. So far, so good—three up and several more to play. In his reply to my Unstarred Question on Central European Time in January, the noble Lord, Lord Sainsbury, said that revisiting this issue was like flogging a dead horse. This horse is not dead; it is very much alive and well and in a very good state of training, as has been demonstrated so far. The Bill introduced so comprehensively by my noble friend Lord Tanlaw is more than adequate proof of this and has my wholehearted support. There is no need for me to rehearse too many arguments on this matter, because I made them in January and during a whole number of speeches in the 1990s. However, what is proposed today is a new and quite excellent idea—to have an experimental period. The fact is that circumstances since 1968, as have already been pointed out, have changed radically; lifestyles are different, we are all doing different things and we are much more involved with trade overseas, particularly in Europe, where we do 60 per cent of our trade, as the noble Lord, Lord Sainsbury, knows very well. So we have quite a different situation: we have moved on. There is no doubt that this Bill has considerable support. What is being suggested is the right way to go forward, and I hope the Government will take it seriously. I have a feeling that this debate will go on longer than originally anticipated, so, before I sit down, I should give an explanation, because I may not be able to stay until the very end. We are currently enjoying a visit from the President of the Dominican Republic. This is an official visit—indeed, we were the first country to recognise that country when it gained independence over 160 years ago—and the first visit by the president of that country. As noble Lords know, I am heavily involved with Latin America, of which this is a member country. Therefore, I must go to lunch with the president on his last day here. I mean no discourtesy to my noble friend Lord Tanlaw or, particularly, to the noble Lord, Lord Sainsbury, from whom I know we will continue to hear a good deal on this subject. I very much hope that this Bill will receive a brief passage through this House and be acclaimed wholeheartedly in the House of Commons. An experiment is an experiment. That is just what we need to do. We have moved on in 40 years, and it is time to try it again.