Benefits: Two-Child Limit

Debate between Lord Bates and Lord Skelmersdale

Monday 26th March 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bates]

In respect of the kinship carers, that was a decision of your Lordships’ House when the legislation was going through, and of course we uphold that principle. However, here we are talking about cases where there is a third or subsequent child and the initial two places have been taken by either their own children or other children. The noble Baroness is shaking her head and obviously I respect the approach that she is taking. If we could talk about the specifics of the case afterwards, I will certainly make sure that it is taken up with colleagues.

[Lord Skelmersdale (Con)]

My Lords, I remember when the replacement ratio—the number of children per couple to maintain a stable population—was 2.7. What is it now, and has this had any bearing on the decision that we are discussing?

[Lord Bates]

The Office for National Statistics says that the average family size in the UK is 85% with two or fewer children and 87% for lone parents. Those are the statistics that we are currently working to.

HIV: Global Response and Young People

Debate between Lord Bates and Lord Skelmersdale

Thursday 30th November 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Skelmersdale (Con)]

My Lords, my noble friend will not be aware but a couple of years ago I went to Lusaka and visited a male prison where AIDS was in an incremental state. Does he accept that overcrowding in prisons is one of the causes, and one of the solutions, to reducing AIDS among men?

[Lord Bates]

By making sure that people are educated and aware, there are many ways in which infection can be prevented—and prevention is far better than cure in virtually every circumstance. We are looking for opportunities to provide better education and sexual and reproductive advice to inmates as well as the wider population.

Population: International Migration

Debate between Lord Bates and Lord Skelmersdale

Monday 16th March 2015 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bates]

It could well be that when the Prime Minister made those remarks the country was in the depths of despair in 2010. Since then, we have had a jobs miracle. We are creating more jobs than the rest of Europe put together. As a result of that, not surprisingly, the place where people want to come to find work is the only place where the jobs are being created. That is in the UK.

[Lord Skelmersdale]

My Lords, would my noble friend accept that the real problem is not immigration but integration?

[Lord Bates]

That is a more philosophical point—and a good one. It is one reason why we need to work on those other programmes of integration through the education system and through ensuring that people have a sense of what British values are and feel part of this country.