Brexit: Consumer Rights Policy

Debate between Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town and Lord Prior of Brampton

Thursday 9th February 2017 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what plans they have to protect consumer rights after the United Kingdom leaves the European Union.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Prior of Brampton) (Con)]

My Lords, we are working with a range of stakeholders to understand the impact that withdrawal from the EU will have on consumers. We will work to ensure the best possible outcome for UK consumers. Wherever practical, the great repeal Bill will convert current EU law into domestic law to give consumers as much certainty as possible.

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

My Lords, the EU has been good for consumers: we have the European health card—there are some 26 million in the country—safe food and products, because of the European rapid alert system; lower mobile roaming charges; and compensation for delayed flights. But despite what the Minister says, none of those can be entrenched in the great repeal Bill, because they depend on our negotiations with the remaining 27. Regrettably, consumer interest does not appear in the 12 negotiating principles in the Government’s White Paper. Will someone in the Minister’s department or another department undertake to set up the same meetings with consumer reps as are taking place with industry, so that consumer interests can be embedded into our negotiations for our relationships with the EU 27 after we leave?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, the great repeal Bill will incorporate consumer protections in the European Union into UK domestic law, wherever it is practical. Noble Lords may shake their heads at that but of course it is “wherever practical”; if we were to say that we would incorporate it where it is impractical, the noble Baroness would be the first person to point it out—this is a perfectly common-sense approach. In terms of ensuring that consumer interests are properly represented, my right honourable friend the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy is having regular meetings with consumer representatives and we will ensure that consumer interests are properly represented in the negotiations.

Healthwatch England

Debate between Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town and Lord Prior of Brampton

Tuesday 26th April 2016 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

My Lords, is this not just another attempt to bring the private sector into patient representation—just another example of the Government trying to place their business friends everywhere? The new guidelines on ministerial appointments give the Minister three bites of the cherry: to be able to suggest names; to meet some of the candidates before shortlisting to make recommendations to the panel; and then to have the final say. That is completely different from previous practice. If we really are to have an open process, should we not have the Minister involved only at the end, when the panel has made the decision?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I honestly do not think that the noble Baroness is correct. I really do not feel that this process has been politicised in the slightest. It is interesting that the chief executive of NHS England and the new chief operating officer were both previous special advisers to a Labour Government, so it is pretty hard to say that we are politicising appointments in the NHS.

Alcohol

Debate between Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town and Lord Prior of Brampton

Wednesday 9th December 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, as I say, an independent assessment of the responsibility deal will be done by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. It is important that the assessment is independent and certainly is not undertaken by the industry or, indeed, by the Department of Health. It is worth noting that the consumption of alcohol seemed to peak in 2005 and has declined slightly since then. I am not in any way minimising the appalling damage that alcohol does to the lives of many people, but consumption is coming down slowly.

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

My Lords, the BMA concluded that the Government’s alcohol policy had been weak and ineffective due to an overreliance on working with the alcohol industry. Does the Minister concur with the BMA’s judgment that the responsibility deal has pursued initiatives that are known to have little effect in reducing alcohol-related harm and that the responsibility deal should now be abandoned?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I can only repeat that we will have an independent review of the responsibility deal, at which point we will have objective evidence on which to assess it. I agree entirely with the noble Baroness that the health world, including the BMA and many of the royal colleges, takes a very strong view about alcohol. Many doctors see the appalling impact that it has on individual lives day in and day out, so we take their views extremely seriously.

Sex-selective Abortion

Debate between Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town and Lord Prior of Brampton

Monday 7th December 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I am afraid I cannot confirm or deny that. I will write to the noble Baroness.

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

I thank the Minister for his original reply; it is one with which we concur—we do not have the evidence and, like him, we consider that the Act is sufficient as it is. Some of the stories are partly, I think, just about the lack of self-worth that some girl children sometimes feel; that is partly about their education and that of their mothers. Can the Minister say something about what the Government do to encourage greater self-worth among young women and, indeed, older women?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

My Lords, I encourage anyone with an interest in this matter to read some of the case stories put together by Jeena International—they are really quite shocking. They are anecdotal, but they are very real for a small minority of women who lack self-worth. That is, tragically, part of some of the cultures in England and we must do everything we can to improve women’s self-worth. I think that, in the long run, that will be done by education, education, education.

Gender-based Violence: Women with HIV

Debate between Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town and Lord Prior of Brampton

Wednesday 25th November 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I believe that some 103,000 people are HIV positive in England, of whom two-thirds are men. The majority of people who are HIV positive come from sub-Saharan Africa. The noble Baroness made the point that some who know they are HIV positive are not taking appropriate action and asked what we can do about them. It is also worth pointing out that some 18% of people who are HIV positive are ignorant of the fact. We have a very big communication programme ongoing to try and educate and inform these men, and we will continue putting the necessary resources into those programmes.

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

My Lords, given that today is the UN International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, has the Minister taken a moment to see the associated ActionAid exhibition in the Upper Waiting Hall? In respect of women with HIV, the only survey we seem able to find about the prevalence of domestic violence is a 2013 one from Homerton, which showed that probably half of women with HIV reported experience of partner violence. Could the Minister undertake that there should be more research on this and that, if such a figure is found to be confirmed, everyone dealing with HIV women should be taught to be aware of their vulnerability to domestic violence?

[Lord Prior of Brampton]

I have not been to the Upper Waiting Hall to see the exhibition but will endeavour to do so if I have time after Questions this afternoon. The noble Baroness referred to the research done at the Homerton in 2013. I think the figure that study came up with was 52%. There has been a subsequent study but I cannot remember the name of it. It may not have been as extensive as the one done at the Homerton and put a figure slightly less than 52%—but it was still very significant. I will ask officials the status of that subsequent research to see whether we need more.