Representation of the People Bill

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

2nd reading
Monday 14th September 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, it is a great privilege and a real pleasure to be the first to congratulate my noble friend on his powerful, eloquent and witty speech. I should not be surprised, however. I have known him for decades. I kent his faither, as we say in Scotland. His father was a very distinguished rector of the Royal High School, as well as a great Gaelic expert, and his mother, who was here when he was introduced—I had the great privilege of discussing with her politics—is a wonderful lady. She was also a head teacher of one of our schools in Edinburgh. He comes from that great background.

My noble friend’s own experience qualifies him well to be a Member of this House. He was a very distinguished Member of the Scottish Parliament and he was a great Presiding Officer—that is Speaker for those who do not exactly understand our system. He was very good at it. I think, not just from what we have heard today but from what I know of his past, that he will speak again on many occasions and contribute greatly on the Floor of this House. I think he will contribute to this House in many other ways, and we look forward very much to every part of his contribution. I thank him very much.

And now to the Bill. We have been talking a lot about these two crypto billionaires and their donations. I do not want to go into that, but this is not new: we have been worried about the huge amount of money coming into our political system from outside the United Kingdom for some time, in particular from the United States and in particular to people, policies and parties on the far right. We must be very careful. It is not new.

That is why I endorse everything that was said by my noble friend Lady Royall, the noble Lords, Lord Wallace and Lord Wills, and others. We need to impose limits, not just on overseas donations but on domestic donations, and not just to political parties but, as the noble Lord, Lord Wallace, said, to think tanks, which have a subtle but insidious influence.

I hope that, in the Minister’s reply, she will acknowledge that a lot of views have been expressed by a lot of Members of this House on all sides and say that she will discuss this with her colleagues and see whether we can bring forward legislation faster and more strongly to deal with the way money is being funnelled in and to prosecute vigorously where this is carried out improperly.

That brings me to one or two other provisions of this Bill. I am strongly in favour of automatic voter registration. I listened carefully to the opposition spokesperson and others, and I can find no reasonable arguments for not having automatic voter registration. We want to encourage as many people to vote as possible, and that would certainly help. I am also in favour of votes at 16. As my noble friend Lord Macintosh pointed out, we have had it in Scotland for 10 years now. When we first introduced it, I went to talk to the 16 and 17 year-old pupils at Portobello High School. They understood the political issues better than most of the adults that I have spoken to about them. In fact, as my noble friend said, there was a 75% turnout in the referendum among people of that generation, compared with a much lower percentage of older people.

I am in favour of compulsory voting. The noble Lord, Lord Patten, spoke about Australia. Australia, Belgium and a number of countries in South America have it and the huge increase in participation from compulsory voting is astonishing. For those who do not like any of the candidates, we could put in the option, as they do in Nevada and one or two other places, “None of the above”. If voters do not like any of the candidates, they can choose that.

Finally, I say to the Liberal Democrats in particular, be very wary about changing the voting system. I know they keep going on about proportional representation, but look at some of the examples. Look at what happened in Scotland with the voting system we had there. It is so perverse. I got elected by mistake. I had to serve four years in the Scottish Parliament because I put my name on the list, having been told I would never get elected—and I got elected. I did not have a speech; I did not have any meetings; I did not put out any leaflets—and I got elected. Then a Green MSP got elected on this list, and they have not had any surgeries during the whole four-year period. So, be very careful before you change the voting system, and understand exactly what is going to happen.

I support this Bill, and I would go further. I say this to the Minister: there are a lot of people on this side—and indeed on other sides as well—who would prefer the Government to go even further and faster.

Voter Registration, Election Turnout and Compulsory Voting

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Thursday 3rd September 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, the Minister very kindly gave me a Written Answer saying that Government have no current plans to introduce compulsory voting. However, since an amendment will be proposed by my noble friends Lady Royall, Lord Kinnock and Lord Blunkett, and me to the Representation of the People Bill, will she talk with her colleagues in government and see if this is an opportunity to consider compulsory voting, since there are no rational arguments against it?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I very much look forward to debating this when we start the Representation of the People Bill on 14 September. I am sure there will be lively discussions about all matters to do with elections. Of course, I am always happy to debate things that are already in the Bill or things that people want to have in the Bill as we go through that process.

Electoral Commission Investigations

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Wednesday 2nd September 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

We have significantly strengthened the ability to identify, freeze and recover illicit crypto assets in recent years through a combination of legislative reform, operational capability uplift and system-wide co-ordination. We are going further now, following the introduction of the Financial Services and Markets Act regulations this year, implementing a broader crypto asset regulatory regime, which I hope will do exactly what the noble Lord referred to, covering activities such as trading, custody and consumer protection. We need to make sure that we know the source. The “know your donor” provisions in the new Bill make sure that political parties are taking serious account of where their funding is coming from.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, I strongly support the Liberal Democrat Front Bench in saying that we should look at amendments when we consider the Representation of the People Bill on 14 September and beyond. I also suggest that this might be a good topic for a special committee of this House to examine. Just to be really helpful, I have submitted a proposal to that effect.

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I thank my noble friend for his point. I think that there will be several days of “special committee” exploring these issues when we consider the new Bill. I look forward to debating it with him.

Donations to Political Parties

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Monday 1st June 2026 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock]

To ask His Majesty’s Government what plans they have, if any, to tighten the rules regarding donations to political parties.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (Baroness Taylor of Stevenage) (Lab)]

My Lords, foreign interference is a threat to our democracy. That is why we are currently legislating to tighten the rules on who can make political donations and strengthening checks on and the transparency of those donations. We are also acting on the recommendations of Philip Rycroft’s independent review into foreign financial interference. We are capping donations from overseas electors and bringing forward a moratorium on crypto asset donations. We will issue a full response to the Rycroft report in due course.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, I am grateful to my noble friend the Minister for that really helpful Answer. I agree with everything that she has said. However, will she now consider tightening the rules on the expenditure of Short money which is allocated specifically to opposition parties at Westminster? If there is any misspending of that money, who is responsible for dealing with it? Is it the Public Accounts Committee or the Government? Does she agree with me that whoever it is should be dealing with it as a matter of urgency?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

It is important that any money spent from the public purse is spent in a way that commands the confidence of the public. It is critical that processes are in place to monitor that spending and to make sure that it is used for the purposes it is there for. It is critical that it is properly and legally audited, so that we can all be assured of that. One of the big problems we have in the political world is an undermining of confidence in the political system. That is not helped when people do not have confidence in the financial systems that surround it. Those things are really important, and we continue to keep them under review.

Grenfell Tower: Bureau Veritas

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Tuesday 9th September 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

My Lords, that is part of the Remediation Acceleration Plan, and we will be looking very closely at how we properly validate. The noble Lord will be aware of the changes that were made to building control inspection under his Government. We need to move forward with a proper system of building control inspection so that we can make sure that the buildings that are constructed are safe. We have also announced some significant changes to the building safety regulator, with stronger leadership, new governance and a new fast-track process, which we hope will speed up building control for new build applications by bringing in in-house specialists. I hope that that will drive this forward as fast as possible.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, is the Minister aware that almost all of the £97 million allocated to the Scottish Government for remediation has been diverted to other functions, particularly some of their vanity projects? Will she have a word with her colleagues in the Cabinet Office and the Treasury to see what can be done to stop this misappropriation of money?

Rutland Lieutenancy

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Tuesday 15th July 2025 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

We are still in the process of working with that local area on its proposals for unitary local government. We invited its proposals, and councils in the area sent us their interim plans in March and received detailed written feedback on those submissions in June. At this stage, no decisions have been taken on those interim proposals, so decisions will be taken on that in due course. The legislation to enact the devolution proposals has just been introduced in the other place. So, as that proceeds, we will be considering carefully the sequencing of any further legislation that is needed in respect of these ceremonial boundaries, which we all want to protect and safeguard.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

The Minister is absolutely right that it is a great tribute to the House of Lords that we can look after the interests of the 41,000 people of Rutland, the lord-lieutenant and the 12 deputy lieutenants. Does she also agree that if President Putin and President Trump did the same in their own countries, the world would be a better place?

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I think that is probably a question for my noble friend Lord Collins to answer, rather than me. But the point is that this issue of devolution will provide greater power and decision-making, and greater funding, for all our local areas. That is a benefit to all of us in the country, and I look forward to working with all areas, including Leicestershire, Leicester and Rutland, as we move these proposals forward. It is a great project we are working on, and the community empowerment part of the Bill is as important as the English devolution part.

Cladding: High-rise Buildings

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Tuesday 17th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

My Lords, I have some excellent news for the noble Baroness. Fresh from the spending review, we can confirm over £1 billion of new investment between 2026-27 and 2029-30 to accelerate the remediation of social housing by giving social housing providers the same access to government funding as private building owners. This will support providers of social housing to supply more affordable homes while also improving the living conditions of tenants. This Government recognise that social landlords face significant barriers to accelerating remediation of building safety risks, including access to upfront funding.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

Is the Minister aware that the situation is even worse in Scotland, where money allocated under Barnett consequentials precisely for this purpose has been diverted into futile legal cases and the added costs of ferries? Will the Minister talk to his colleagues in the Treasury to make sure that money allocated for this purpose is earmarked in the future?

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

I will take my noble friend’s request forward. I am always happy to talk to colleagues across other government departments, and let me assure my noble friend that I am always happy to talk to him.

Political Parties and Elections Act 2009

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Thursday 12th June 2025 Lords Chamber

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

My Lords, to the noble Lord’s question, your Lordships will have to wait until summer, when we will set out our strategy. The Deputy Prime Minister is absolutely keen, in her role as Secretary of State for MHCLG, to ensure that we have strong electoral reforms ready for the next election.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords—

[Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD)]

My Lords, if we are talking about motes and beams in different parties, will the Government now publish the redacted elements of the Intelligence and Security Committee’s Russia report on Russian money flowing into the Conservative Party? While I am on my feet, do the Government intend to simplify in any sense the great mess of electoral law, given that the Law Commission has done a lot of work on this and that electoral registration officers struggle with the various Acts—some of which are still extant, others of which have largely been expunged—in accordance with which they have to conduct their affairs?

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

First, I thank the noble Lord for informing me. I know that he has great depth of experience in this area. Any suspected violations of donation rules fall under the jurisdiction of the Electoral Commission or the police. The Electoral Commission has the authority to investigate breaches and impose civil penalties when necessary. As part of efforts to enhance the regulations surrounding donations, including donations in kind, we are reviewing whether adjustments to the regulator’s role and powers are needed to ensure effective enforcement across the political finance framework.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, if I am going to be pre-empted in a question by anyone, it has to be William Wallace, has it not? But he is absolutely right. Of all the disgraceful donations the Tory party has had, those it got from Russia are the worst. I support the noble Lord, Lord Wallace of Saltaire. I hope that my noble friend the Minister will go back to the department and say that there is a strong view in the House of Lords that the report on donations from Russia should be made public as soon as possible.

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

Let me assure my noble friend that the Government remain steadfast in addressing the threat posed by disinformation and foreign interference in our democratic processes. Safeguarding the UK against such threats is and will always be an utmost priority.

Older People’s Housing Taskforce

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Monday 16th December 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

My Lords, my noble friend makes a very important point. On carers, the Government are committed to ensuring that families have the support that they need. I want to ensure that people who care for family and friends are better able to look after their own health and well-being. The Department for Work and Pensions announced its intention to bring forward an independent review of the issue of overpayment of carer’s allowance in cases where earnings have exceeded the entitlement threshold. The Government are committed to reviewing the implementation of carer’s leave and examining the benefits of introducing paid carer’s leave.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, does my noble friend agree that it is very important to have intergenerational development so that there are not ghettos of older people in one place and ghettos of young people, particularly students, in another? If developments are intergenerational, they can help each other. Will he therefore discourage the kinds of developments I see in Edinburgh—no doubt they are elsewhere too—where private developers build blocks for students which seem to me to be purely to make some additional money rather than in the interests of the students themselves?

[Lord Khan of Burnley (Lab)]

My Lords, the noble Lord makes an interesting point about intergenerational living. Unfortunately, I cannot comment on that particular case, but I am happy to take it away with me and have a private conversation with him.

Council Tax

Lord Foulkes of Cumnock Excerpts

Tuesday 19th November 2024 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

As a former Chancellor, the noble Lord will have detailed knowledge of this, and I am sure he made similar representations to his own Government. We all know that problems are caused by outdated valuations and the regressive nature of council tax. However, widescale reform of the council tax system at this stage would be time consuming and complex. We would still have winners and losers whichever way we did it. Instead, this Government are committed to fairer funding. We will start it in this year’s funding settlement, with a further review in the 2025 spending review.

[Lord Foulkes of Cumnock (Lab Co-op)]

My Lords, does my noble friend agree that it would have been great if we had had a much higher threshold in the European referendum so that we could have avoided the disaster of Brexit? It has been particularly disastrous for farmers.

[Baroness Taylor of Stevenage (Lab)]

I hear my noble friend’s point, which he has made in the House several times before. The impact of Brexit is widespread, and I completely understand his point.