BBC
Debate between Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall and Earl of Courtown(8 years, 2 months ago)
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The Earl of Courtown
The noble Lord will be very glad to know that I will not sing it. However, he is quite right in what he said, and I do wish Radio 3 a happy birthday. It is such an important station and I have listened to it for many years. It has turned me towards listening to a little more classical music than I did in the past. I was also glad to hear what the noble Lord had to say about matters relating to the transparency of salaries paid at the BBC.
Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, I hesitate to disagree with the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, or indeed with the Minister. But, as far as I am aware, there is not a competitive market for the services of Members of your Lordships’ House. Nor is there a competitive market in a number of other areas where this kind of transparency is commonplace. The fact is that the BBC is part of one market for the services of the talent that is being sought. The Minister referred in his opening remarks to the widespread consultation that had gone on with the public about the BBC. As far as I am aware, there was no great call in that consultation for this particular kind of transparency and there was a very high degree of support for the value for money that the BBC represents. In those circumstances, frankly, the only beneficiaries of this particular kind of transparency will be the BBC’s competitive rivals, who will not have to provide the same kind of information themselves. Will the Minister tell the House what the thinking behind this is, if it is not just to clip the BBC’s wings?
The Earl of Courtown
The noble Baroness makes an interesting point, but the fact is that to follow through on the transparency that runs all the way through the charter review, it was important that we arrive at this point and have transparency around individuals earning more than this amount. I disagree with her slightly about public bodies being competitive. I know that in a former life as a contractor, we had to compete on price for jobs against people in the public sector. We knew their costs but it was not a very easy game, I must admit. I understand the noble Baroness’s view, but our view is different.
Companies: Remuneration
Debate between Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall and Earl of Courtown
Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, in an earlier answer the Minister made a somewhat surprising statement to the effect that his right honourable friend the Chancellor had been working throughout his tenure to reduce inequality. Can he tell the House how things would have been different if he had not?
The Earl of Courtown
Inequality is reducing, my Lords. As I said earlier, we are working hard on the national minimum wage increases, which are the highest ever, and we have the national living wage coming in in April.
Creative Industries
Debate between Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall and Earl of Courtown
The Earl of Courtown
My Lords, as ever, the noble Lord makes an important point relating to overseas, the BBC and Channel 4. I know he is aware that the charter review is in progress at the moment and many representations have been made. I also know that there was a Question last week on Channel 4, which was answered by my noble friend.
Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, on the Answer given by the noble Earl to the noble Baroness, Lady Afshar, it is true that the creative industries are doing very well just now. However, she made a serious point about whether they will do so in the future. Does he agree that the problem about them not being included in the EBacc is that there is a systematic erosion of their status in education and that, over time, the implication grows that they are not important and will not lead to good jobs? This is fundamentally untrue and unhelpful. Will he talk to his colleagues in the Department for Education to see whether that can be changed?
Rob Lawrie
Debate between Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall and Earl of Courtown
The Earl of Courtown
My Lords, I understand that we are working on a redistribution, and I know that this is something which my honourable friend in another place, Mr Richard Harrington, is looking at.
Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, following on from the question of the noble Lord, Lord Hylton, the Minister will be aware that outcomes for looked-after children in this country are not especially good, and one might suspect that children who have had a particularly rotten start in life as refugees from a war zone are more vulnerable than most. What will the Government do to ensure that those children are looked after in a way that ensures that they have a good outcome for their adulthood?
The Earl of Courtown
I apologise, but I did not catch the whole of the question. It is our duty to do as much as possible to help these children and thus ensure their futures. I will write to the noble Baroness if there is anything more I can add.
Diplomatic Missions: Parking Fines
Debate between Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall and Earl of Courtown
The Earl of Courtown
This problem has been going on for many years. I think that there is a particular problem at the moment with the congestion charge, as the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley, said, where some overseas diplomatic missions consider that it is a tax as opposed to a charge.
Baroness McIntosh of Hudnall (Lab)
My Lords, if, as the noble Earl says, diplomatic cars and, presumably, their occupants, are inviolable, why is so much time and, indeed, parliamentary time, wasted on levying these fines in the first place?
The Earl of Courtown
My Lords, I do not think that parliamentary time is used in levying these fines. This is a matter for Transport for London.