Zoological Society of London (Leases) Bill

Debate between Lord Randall of Uxbridge and Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay

3rd reading
Friday 24th May 2024 Lords Chamber

[Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con)]

I wonder whether King’s consent comes in now. Anyway, I beg to move.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay) (Con)]

A member of the most excellent Privy Council has to give King’s consent, so I suggest that the House adjourn during pleasure for two minutes so that a privy counsellor can join the Government Front Bench.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con)]

My Lords, I will say a very few brief words. First, I will redress an omission from my Second Reading speech in not paying tribute to the noble Lord, Lord Paul, who has been a very generous donor to the Zoological Society of London. We should all recognise his valuable contributions.

Yesterday, I advised the excellent director of the Zoological Society of London, Matthew Gould, that he might have to invest in some groundhogs, because this Bill was threatened with extinction and I was not sure that we would get it through. However, with my extremely grateful thanks to so many people both in your Lordships’ House and down the other end, the civil servants and a lot of people from the very highest—or almost the very highest—to Back-Benchers like me, we are where we are today. I thank everybody for bringing this Bill back from the brink, just as the Zoological Society of London has over the years brought back species that were threatened with extinction. I particularly mention my honourable friend Bob Blackman, who did so much work down the other end.

This Bill will give us certainty for important conservation work, which will create an opportunity for the Zoological Society of London to create a world-leading centre for nature. I hope, understand and can see that nature is shooting up the international agenda. ZSL will also be able to update and improve a lot of the facilities in the zoo. As we heard at Second Reading, the zoo gives a lot of pleasure not just to noble Lords but to people all over, young and old. I advise any noble Lords who get a little fed up with the endless election broadcasts to go and have a few minutes talking to the animals and refreshing themselves.

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

I will very briefly add my thanks to my noble friend Lord Randall of Uxbridge, who has stewarded the Bill expertly through your Lordships’ House, not least in the last 24 hours, when he has been a redoubtable champion for it. I echo his thanks to our honourable friend Bob Blackman MP, who championed it in another place. I thank my noble friend the Chief Whip, who sprang like a gazelle into your Lordships’ Chamber to make sure it could reach the statute book. As my noble friend Lord Randall says, it enjoys the wholehearted support of the Government and, as we saw at Second Reading, unanimity of support from across your Lordships’ House. I am grateful to officials in my department who have worked on it, not least to my private secretary Rebecca Tuck and our colleagues in my private office, Jack Mattless, Claudia Harper and Nausheen Khan, who have been excellent zookeepers to me over the past couple of years.

Asylum Seekers: Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina

Debate between Lord Randall of Uxbridge and Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay

Wednesday 18th November 2020 Lords Chamber

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

My Lords, yes, I think the British people do take great concern at the reports we have seen, and we have seen that in questions from all corners of your Lordships’ House today. This is a matter of human dignity. That is a point that Her Majesty’s Government are making to the Croatian Government and others, and we are working with international organisations to reinforce that.

[Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con) [V]]

Does my noble friend agree that these border tensions only increase the serious problems of gender-based violence and human trafficking? What can Her Majesty’s Government do to assist with this problem at the moment?

[Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay (Con)]

My noble friend is entirely right, and I commend his work in this area. Our work in countering gender-based violence in Bosnia and Herzegovina and more widely has had a significant impact. We have seen positive improvements, for instance, in the collection of evidence, the protection of witnesses, providing safe spaces for people to testify and making sure that survivors and victims are treated with the respect that they deserve.