My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, who is very wise, and to echo her remarks about the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, who is a glutton for punishment; she actually extended her term of office in order to deal with this issue and it is a...

My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness, who is very wise, and to echo her remarks about the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, who is a glutton for punishment; she actually extended her term of office in order to deal with this issue and it is a...

My Lords, I start by pointing out that both Chief Whips have disappeared, which may be a reflection on this part of the speakers’ list, of course. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, for the report and for the courtesy that she showed me when we met to discuss...

My Lords, I start by pointing out that both Chief Whips have disappeared, which may be a reflection on this part of the speakers’ list, of course. I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, for the report and for the courtesy that she showed me when we met to discuss...

My Lords, this report is the culmination of the Conduct Committee’s review of the Code of Conduct and the Guide to the Code of Conduct, launched last spring. We chose to embark on this review—and sometimes I wondered whether that was a wise move. We were not asked to do...

My Lords, this report is the culmination of the Conduct Committee’s review of the Code of Conduct and the Guide to the Code of Conduct, launched last spring. We chose to embark on this review—and sometimes I wondered whether that was a wise move. We were not asked to do...

Moved by

Viscount Hailsham

Moved by

Viscount Hailsham

My Lords, in speaking to the amendment in my name and in response to the question posed by the noble Baroness, I begin by saying that it is not my intention to divide the House.

The report before the House reaffirms the House’s commitment to the inquisitorial method of dealing with...

My Lords, in speaking to the amendment in my name and in response to the question posed by the noble Baroness, I begin by saying that it is not my intention to divide the House.

The report before the House reaffirms the House’s commitment to the inquisitorial method of dealing with...

My Lords, first, I congratulate the Conduct Committee on reducing the amount of the Code of Conduct by 30%. If this lesson was followed in other areas by Whitehall, we would have less legislation to worry about. Perhaps the team that has done this might offer its services to other...

My Lords, first, I congratulate the Conduct Committee on reducing the amount of the Code of Conduct by 30%. If this lesson was followed in other areas by Whitehall, we would have less legislation to worry about. Perhaps the team that has done this might offer its services to other...

My Lords, I chair the Steering Group for Change, which advises and supports the House of Lords Commission and the management board on continued efforts to improve the workplace culture of the House. We create a space where Members and staff can work together in an open and collaborative way....

My Lords, I chair the Steering Group for Change, which advises and supports the House of Lords Commission and the management board on continued efforts to improve the workplace culture of the House. We create a space where Members and staff can work together in an open and collaborative way....

My Lords, I will not repeat what the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, has already said in opening this debate, nor do I have time, sadly, to comment on the two amendments moved by my noble friends Lord Hailsham and Lord Hamilton of Epsom.

That said, I doubt that the noble Baroness...

My Lords, I will not repeat what the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, has already said in opening this debate, nor do I have time, sadly, to comment on the two amendments moved by my noble friends Lord Hailsham and Lord Hamilton of Epsom.

That said, I doubt that the noble Baroness...

My Lords, I, too, welcome the report, both for its brevity and for its rejection of the idea of introducing an offence of bringing the House into disrepute. But I want to raise some questions that I hope will be considered in any future review, though I do not want...

My Lords, I, too, welcome the report, both for its brevity and for its rejection of the idea of introducing an offence of bringing the House into disrepute. But I want to raise some questions that I hope will be considered in any future review, though I do not want...

My Lords, I offer my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, on restoring some sanity. But time is limited, so plaudits are postponed. Instead, let me raise my reservations.

I am especially disappointed at the replication of existing rules on bullying and harassment, which are unfairly lumped in with sexual...

My Lords, I offer my congratulations to the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, on restoring some sanity. But time is limited, so plaudits are postponed. Instead, let me raise my reservations.

I am especially disappointed at the replication of existing rules on bullying and harassment, which are unfairly lumped in with sexual...

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness and her committee for all the work they did. My few remarks are based on the work I undertook in the City, where I was involved in the first introduction of statutory regulation to what had hitherto been an entirely self-regulatory system. Over...

My Lords, I thank the noble Baroness and her committee for all the work they did. My few remarks are based on the work I undertook in the City, where I was involved in the first introduction of statutory regulation to what had hitherto been an entirely self-regulatory system. Over...

My Lords, I welcome this shortened version of the code, particularly the replacement of the original appendix B, which had ridiculous definitions that made it seem as if we were all living in some kind of red-light district. Can the noble Baroness clarify whether the commissioner will still be able...

My Lords, I welcome this shortened version of the code, particularly the replacement of the original appendix B, which had ridiculous definitions that made it seem as if we were all living in some kind of red-light district. Can the noble Baroness clarify whether the commissioner will still be able...

I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, and the committee for the review of the code and the guide. I want to pick up on an issue that the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, touched on when she referred to how being notified of a Conduct Committee investigation sends shivers down...

I thank the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, and the committee for the review of the code and the guide. I want to pick up on an issue that the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, touched on when she referred to how being notified of a Conduct Committee investigation sends shivers down...

My Lords, with your Lordships’ indulgence, I shall raise a narrow point in the gap, one that I have already raised privately with the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, on whose report I congratulate her, as I congratulate others who worked on it.

I made this point to the committee in written...

My Lords, with your Lordships’ indulgence, I shall raise a narrow point in the gap, one that I have already raised privately with the noble Baroness, Lady Manningham-Buller, on whose report I congratulate her, as I congratulate others who worked on it.

I made this point to the committee in written...

On the points that the noble Baroness made about social media, can we take it that what she has told the House on record will be used by the commissioner and the committee going forward? The clarification that she has provided is fundamentally important.

On the points that the noble Baroness made about social media, can we take it that what she has told the House on record will be used by the commissioner and the committee going forward? The clarification that she has provided is fundamentally important.

Yes. I like short answers.

On declaration of interests, at the end of the day, failure to declare a financial interest in a debate is a matter for the committee. It seems to us that the Privileges Committee and the processes of the House need to decide whether noble Lords do...

Yes. I like short answers.

On declaration of interests, at the end of the day, failure to declare a financial interest in a debate is a matter for the committee. It seems to us that the Privileges Committee and the processes of the House need to decide whether noble Lords do...

I am grateful for that, but I am slightly worried about who is checking our offices and emails. I am of course referring not to Hancock-type activity in the offices but to the general running of one’s business, where there is a blur between private and parliamentary.

I am grateful for that, but I am slightly worried about who is checking our offices and emails. I am of course referring not to Hancock-type activity in the offices but to the general running of one’s business, where there is a blur between private and parliamentary.

Did I understand the noble Baroness to say that people were checking her emails?

Did I understand the noble Baroness to say that people were checking her emails?

I do not understand how one would investigate or where a complaint would come from in relation to being told that one was using one’s office for the wrong sort of activity. How would anybody know?

I do not understand how one would investigate or where a complaint would come from in relation to being told that one was using one’s office for the wrong sort of activity. How would anybody know?

Well, we have had complaints in this area before, which we have acted on, from information from people involved.

I say to the noble Lord, Lord Lilley, that the behaviour code was meant to cover everybody. I hope that I have answered the question on politics. The rules do not constantly...

Well, we have had complaints in this area before, which we have acted on, from information from people involved.

I say to the noble Lord, Lord Lilley, that the behaviour code was meant to cover everybody. I hope that I have answered the question on politics. The rules do not constantly...