Rugby: 200th Anniversary
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
Happily, we have seen in recent years the successes of women’s professional sports teams inspiring women and girls of all ages to be more active and take up sport. We are determined to get more women and girls playing sport and want to see women in leadership positions across it, whether that is in playing or coaching, on the medical and support side or at board level.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, will make a virtual contribution.
Football: Illegal Entry to Matches
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(1 year, 2 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My noble friend is right to point to the impact on people being followed through ticket barriers. Fare evasion is a criminal offence and Transport for London publishes its revenue enforcement and prosecutions policy. If convicted, people face a criminal record and a fine of up to £1,000, as well as compensation for the fares they have avoided, a victim surcharge and prosecution costs—so this is something that should not be done.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, we have a remote contribution from the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton.
Baroness Brinton (LD) [V]
My Lords, one of the most shocking parts of the review from the noble Baroness, Lady Casey, was, yet again, the lack of information sharing and joined-up working between key bodies. That has been an issue at a number of serious and tragic events, including the Manchester Arena bombing. What are the Government doing to ensure that all relevant responsible bodies—whether statutory, voluntary or, as in the case of football, business—including the police, share information before, during and after events to keep people safe and to learn lessons after each event?
Football Clubs: Ownership Test
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(2 years, 4 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, what Tracey Crouch meant in her report is a question for her, but, as I have said, we are studying the report and its recommendations and will take them forward. The takeover of Newcastle United has always been a matter for it and the Premier League. Without knowing the specifics, it is hard for me to say what impact such a recommendation would have. As the noble Lord will know as well as I do, Newcastle United fans have welcomed the new investment in the club, but have done so with open eyes and while engaging in the dialogue that is an important part of sport.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Charities and Civil Society: Ministerial Responsibility
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(2 years, 4 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, the Government highly value the contribution of volunteers across the whole of society. We witnessed the huge difference they can make during the pandemic, as well as in the examples my noble friend raised. Volunteers are represented in discussions with government by a variety of sector representatives and bodies, but I will take her interesting suggestion back to my honourable friend the Minister and discuss it. I have also pointed to the volunteering futures fund, which the Government have announced to support more people to volunteer and play their important role.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Ofcom: Appointment of Chair
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(2 years, 5 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, the full criteria will be set out in the advert, which will go out once the new campaign is being run. The noble Baroness’s point about the range of areas in the sector that need to be regulated is a pertinent one.
Lord McNally (LD)
It is McNally—the noble Lord and I have known each other for only 30 years. It has already been pointed out that Ofcom will shortly be given unprecedented responsibilities for regulation, once the Bill on internet harms has passed this House. Noble Lords have already expressed widespread concern about how this appointment is being made. The Minister mentioned that an appointments panel is about to be appointed. Would it not restore public confidence if that panel were genuinely cross-party and independent in its judgments?
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, the appointments panel will of course be governed by the public appointments rules. The job description and the names of those on the assessment panel will be available on the public appointments website when the campaign relaunches. The noble Lord is right also to point to the importance of the ongoing preparatory work for Ofcom’s role in online safety.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
Now that I have my glasses on, I offer my sincere apologies to my friend, the noble Lord, Lord McNally. Now I am sure that it is the noble Baroness, Lady Fox of Buckley.
Baroness Fox of Buckley (Non-Afl)
Will the Minister note that one specific issue that the new Ofcom chair needs to urgently address is an egregious example of compromised media impartiality due to the powerful lobby group Stonewall, as revealed by the superb BBC Sounds 10-part podcast series “Stephen Nolan Investigates” on the influence of Stonewall’s gender identity on the output of the BBC, skewing impartiality? Perhaps the Minister can comment on the content of episode 9 revealing that Ofcom itself was using its judgments on audience complaints as evidence to Stonewall, as though it was judge and jury, to prove its LGBT credentials. That is not comforting from a neutral regulator.
UK Fashion Industry
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(2 years, 6 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
The sector certainly has not been forgotten. We continue to work very closely with the fashion industry to understand the challenges it faces and to identify new opportunities to develop it. It is a world-leading sector, of which we are very proud. I mentioned the working group which includes the chief executive of the British Fashion Council; that is just one of many ways we have engaged with the sector. My noble friend Lord Frost chaired the Brexit business task force on fashion and textiles in May, we have two trade advisory groups from DIT, and we have hosted a number of online seminars. We continue to engage with the industry, and I look forward to working with the noble Baroness and others as we do so.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this question has elapsed.
Bahrain: Human Rights Abuses
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, we continue to monitor the cases of Mr Mushaima and Dr Al-Singace and, where we have concerns, we have raised them at senior levels with the Bahraini Government. The policy of Her Majesty’s Government on torture is clear: we do not participate in, solicit, encourage or condone the use of torture or mistreatment for any purpose. We urge all allegations of this nature to be reported to the appropriate national oversight body, whose duty it is to carry out a full and independent investigation. We will continue to raise concerns about human rights with the Government of Bahrain wherever we have them.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked. We now move to the third Oral Question.
Global Education Summit
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, the noble Lord is right to point to health being an important factor. Through the GPE’s Covid-19 response grants, we have been able to support the Government of Tanzania in building 1,000 new classrooms to help with overcrowding and social distancing when schools return there. Similarly, in Rwanda, GPE funds are supporting handwashing facilities for 2,500 schools. So through this work we are tackling health outcomes as well.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Universities: Compulsory Redundancies
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
During the last year, we provided support through the SURE fund to address the impact of the Covid pandemic. It will continue to be an important consideration in the next spending review and in our plans significantly to boost R&D funding. Through the Office for Students, we continue to monitor the financial stability of research in higher education, which is an important factor in the consideration of the balance of the dual funding that the noble Lord referred to.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Violence in Israel and Palestine
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
Hamas’s military wing, as the noble Lord will know, has been proscribed as a terrorist organisation by the UK since 2001. The UK retains a policy of no contact with Hamas in its entirety. The UK unequivocally and strongly condemns the firing of rockets into Israel. We want them to stop, and we want a permanent end to this incitement and rocket fire, and a de-escalation of the situation today.
The Lord Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Higher Education: New and Returning Students
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
Students around the world will have seen how UK universities have reacted admirably to the challenges posed by the pandemic, designing and delivering high-quality online learning and offering exceptional well-being and mental health support. The UK was one of the first countries to introduce immigration flexibility for students, and our new post-study work route, the graduate route, will launch on 1 July, further encouraging international students to choose to come and study in the UK.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Sheikha Latifa bint Mohammed al-Maktoum
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
My Lords, we have a close relation with UAE and we are therefore able to raise matters directly with it. The Integrated Review, to which I have referred, sets out the UK’s policy and stance to make us a force for good in the world.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, all supplementary questions have been asked and we now move to the next Question.
Global LGBTI+ Rights
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith(3 years, 4 months ago)
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Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
I have not yet had a chance to read my right honourable friend’s speech, but I saw some of the coverage in advance of it, and in particular her quote about the key value of our country, that in Britain
“you will have the opportunity to succeed at whatever you wish to do professionally, that you can be whoever you want to be, dress however you want to dress, love whoever you wish to love and achieve your dreams.”
I hope that that is a sentiment we can all agree with across your Lordships’ House.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the fourth Oral Question.
UCAS End of Cycle Report 2019
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)
I will certainly follow up on that. As I say, the Office for Students has a responsibility to work with universities that want to charge the higher-rate fees to have such plans in place and to make sure they are enforced.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.
Healthcare Students: Tuition Fees
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
The noble Lord is absolutely right: nurses have brought a great deal of comfort not just to those who have received their support directly but to their families and the general public, who have been watching on. However, as I said, those who have chosen to join the NHS early during their studies have been paid for their service and are receiving pension contributions. We are extremely grateful to them for doing so.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed. We now come to the second Oral Question.
Student Loans
Debate between Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay and Lord McFall of Alcluith
Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay
The noble and gallant Lord makes an important point about the provision made for students during this pandemic, but universities have responded very swiftly and have very ably risen to the challenge. They have continued to provide high-quality education to people throughout the crisis, using a variety of means—online as well as in person—and we commend them for doing so.
The Senior Deputy Speaker (Lord McFall of Alcluith)
My Lords, the time allowed for this Question has elapsed.