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Serious Crime Bill [HL]

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, for tabling these amendments. As she said, I made clear it in Committee that we were sympathetic towards them. My notes start with the word ““Resist””, but I shall explain in short terms why that is. We agree that where a person uses a gun or other offensive weapon to commit a robbery, it might be appropriate to use these orders post-conviction in order to prevent a person associating with others who were involved or with those they received the weapon from. As a result, I would like to give effect to the proper intent behind Amendment No. 26, but I cannot accept it without some further work being undertaken with counsel on the amendment to ensure that the means of giving effect to it are the most appropriate ones possible. I am sure the noble Baroness Lady Anelay, will feel able to withdraw the amendment, with that very strong and heartfelt commitment from me to ask parliamentary counsel to try to draft something that produces the end result that both she and the Government are looking for. We will bring forward amendments to the schedule as are necessary when we have fully and properly considered this before Third Reading and we will of course be willing to discuss them with the noble Baroness before we do so. Perhaps as a courtesy we should jointly sign up to the amendments; that may be the most appropriate way of dealing with it. I am content, if the noble Baroness will withdraw her amendment, to leave it at that. We have a common view here, and a common purpose. The noble Baroness was right in the first instance—all we need to do is go away and perfect it.