Air Quality: London

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Baroness Garden of Frognal

Tuesday 24th March 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

My Lords, air quality has improved significantly in recent years. Average roadside concentrations of NO₂ levels have fallen by 15% since 2010. However, I entirely agree with the noble Lord that more needs to be done, and a great deal is being done. For example, we are using the tax system on vehicles and cars to encourage the purchase of cars with low CO₂ emissions regardless of whether they are petrol, diesel or other fuel types. A great deal is going on with buses and other forms of public transport to ensure that their emissions are as low as we can make them.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes (Con)]

My Lords, I live in the most polluted part of the UK—central London—and I am still, fortunately, surviving. However, is the Minister aware that when traffic calming measures were introduced—I received this answer in your Lordships’ House—they resulted in greater air pollution? They slowed down the traffic so much in places such as the road through Hyde Park that it created a conflict: how do you deal with both of these issues so that you can slow traffic but not increase pollution?

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

My noble friend is right: there is work to be done on road design, road junctions, local planning and the design of buildings, all of which can have an impact on air pollution. Certainly traffic calming measures sometimes cause pollution to rise, but that is part of the constant review to find different ways of cleaning the air.

Deregulation Bill

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Baroness Garden of Frognal

Wednesday 11th February 2015 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

I am now rising to speak very briefly to the group—

[Baroness Garden of Frognal (LD)]

I apologise to my noble friend but I think that under the rules of the House we are still on Amendment 47 and Amendment 48 has yet to be called. There has obviously been some confusion in that people are speaking to two groups of amendments. I think that Amendment 47 is still being debated.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

I am waiting for the Minister to reply before I do.

[Baroness Garden of Frognal (LD)]

I hope my noble friend will agree that the Minister has already given his reply.

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

I am sorry to hear that, because he really has given no reply on so many points. I find that unsatisfactory but at this time of night, and with so few people here, I would not think it at all fair to test of the opinion of the House. I therefore beg leave to withdraw my amendment.

Medical Innovation Bill [HL]

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Baroness Garden of Frognal

Friday 12th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

Perhaps I may raise a point. When you table an amendment, you are usually sent a draft list of the groupings. You are asked whether you are happy with that or whether you want your amendment to be grouped separately. I wonder why that has not happened in this case.

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

My Lords, I thank my noble and learned friend for his suggestion. I think that the noble Lord, Lord Winston, suggested moving Amendment 13 into the group which begins with Amendment 5 but leaving Amendments 11 and 12 in this group. If we proceed on that basis, then, as my noble and learned friend said, when Amendments 11 and 12 are called, he will have the opportunity to speak.

Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Baroness Garden of Frognal

Wednesday 20th March 2013 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

I thank the noble Lord for that. Unfortunately I had to wait for the lift and I got stuck getting here. Apparently there is no way we can go back to my amendments. Is that correct? Perhaps the Minister or someone else will answer. I had every intention—I had waited here all day specifically—to move these amendments.

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

I am sorry to say to my noble friend that her amendments were called and not moved, so I am afraid that we have now moved on to Amendment 7.

Tourism: UK Economy

Debate between Baroness Gardner of Parkes and Baroness Garden of Frognal

Tuesday 9th November 2010 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Gardner of Parkes]

My Lords, does the Minister think that a large amount of tourism at the moment is due to our weak currency and that those people who come for shopping particularly love to come because they think they are getting very good value? How will the Government ensure that when our currency strengthens, as we wish it to, we can still provide value for money?

[Baroness Garden of Frognal]

My Lords, I hope that people are coming here to spend money not just because the currency is weak, although I acknowledge that that may be an added attraction. We hope that as the economy picks up so the attractions of coming to this country will be even greater, even if it costs people a little more when they come here.