"I am grateful for that answer. I want to pay my own tribute to the late David Cairns, who was a fine Minister and a fine man.
With a new Executive and new Assembly in Northern Ireland, and as this issue is a fundamental part of the Good Friday agreement …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"It is a great pleasure to serve, as always, under your Gower chairmanship, Mr Caton. I welcome the opportunity to have this debate for a number of reasons. It gives me the chance to reflect on an issue that was important in the 10 years that I spent as a …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"None. The Welsh dimension is important, but the West Lothian question affects Northern Ireland and Scotland as well. The issue is of particular interest to Welsh Members because, as the Chamber will know, a few weeks ago the referendum result in Wales was a decisive vote in favour of increased …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"I do not think that Wales is over-represented. I think that in the House of Commons, Wales is represented differently from England, as are Scotland and Northern Ireland. I will come to that in a moment, because the issue of how Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland exist constitutionally within a …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"It is one hell of a leg, actually, in terms of its size. That is the point; 85% of MPs, 85% of the population, and 85% of the resources spent on public services in the United Kingdom are English. The voices of Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, within that enormous …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"No, I do not accept that for one second, because the Union is not an union of shires. The Union is a union of countries and regions: the Province of Northern Ireland, the old Kingdom of Scotland and the old Principality of Wales make up the Union, together with England. …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"Yes, indeed. I very much accept my hon. Friend’s point about the result of the referendum. Devolution is unquestionably here to stay. People accept that devolution is the best way to deal with the issues in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland within the United Kingdom.
"The whole business of the devolution settlement is that devolved areas can decide what they spend their money on. It could equally be argued, incidentally, if one lived in north-east England, the midlands or the north-west, and if one were to divide England into regions, that certain regions do better …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"My right hon. Friend wants a vote and will get it. He eloquently expressed my next point, which I will not make because he made it better than I could...." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech
"The issue of whether England, by which I mean English regions—I shall come to that in a second—should have its own regional governments is a different matter. That is, ultimately, the answer to the question. Incidentally, I say this to the hon. Gentleman, who is leaving: I recently read a …..." Lord Murphy of Torfaen - View Speech