Procedure and Privileges

Debate between Lord Sentamu and Baroness Goldie

Wednesday 16th September 2026 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Goldie (Con)]

My Lords, further to the point raised by the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes—as I think he likes to be addressed—in relation to bringing Oral Questions under control, I am grateful to the Senior Deputy Speaker for his efforts to do that and I think the proposals are sound, but may I seek clarification from him that in attempting to monitor these newly introduced time limits, the clock will, as it does when we exceed speaking allocation limits, flash in red and show the speaker they are out of time? That might be a more reassuring prospect to the noble Lord, Lord Foulkes, than the thoroughly alarming prospect of the Lord Speaker intervening.

[Lord Sentamu (CB)]

My Lords, I appeared in your Lordships’ House in 2006 and Questions were being asked. I had listened, time was nearly running out, and I spoke, but I had a piece of paper. All around the House, word went out: “Reading, reading, reading!” And I showed my piece of paper, which did not have a word on it. So, dear friends—I say “friends” because “Lords” sounds a little too grand here—for a self-regulating body to give power to the Lord Speaker to intervene in a debate is trying to imitate what happens in the other place.

We need to discipline ourselves. For example, if there are only 20 seconds left of the 10 minutes at Question Time on a particular Question, people should not ask a question. We have been breaking the time limit, so we need to discipline ourselves, and I, for one, want to endorse the report of the committee that worked on this. Let us try it out and see what happens. Maybe next time when I hear a very long, read speech, I will stand up and say, “Reading, reading, reading!”

European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill

Debate between Lord Sentamu and Baroness Goldie

Committee: 2nd sitting (Hansard): House of Lords
Wednesday 1st March 2017 Lords Chamber

[The Archbishop of York]

My Lords—

[Baroness Goldie (Con)]

My Lords, we shall hear next from the most reverend Primate.

[The Archbishop of York]

My Lords, Uganda was referred to by the noble Viscount, Lord Hailsham. It was regrettable that Idi Amin kicked out two types of Asians—British citizens and Ugandan citizens. My opposition to him was over the Ugandan citizens, who were the largest number. He kicked them out and my coming here in 1974 was as a result of my opposition to such behaviour. So I know how minorities can feel in a place. I know that we need to reassure our European friends who are resident here and want to remain here.

However, I have one great difficulty. Your Lordships’ House can scrutinise and revise legislation, but this simple Bill is simply to confer power on the Prime Minister to notify under Article 50 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union that there is an intention to withdraw. It is giving her the power which I believe only Parliament—not the royal prerogative —can give her. At the meeting of the Lords Spiritual before all this came about, I questioned her right to simply use prerogative power because of what had gone on way back in 1215 in Magna Carta. Clause 39 says:

“No free man shall be seized or imprisoned, or stripped of his rights or possessions, or outlawed or exiled, or deprived of his standing in any way, nor will we proceed with force against him, or send others to do so, except by the lawful judgment of his equals or by the law of the land”—


and by “man” of course we now mean “woman” as well. Clause 40 says:

“To no one will we sell, to no one deny or delay right or justice”.


I think that is still enshrined in the rule of law in this country.

As far as I am concerned, until we have done the negotiation two years down the road, European citizens who are living here now will have every right to be here, like anyone else. People want to give assurance, but I think the assurance will be when the big Bill comes and we begin the debate. Remember, the European Union has free movement of people, free movement of goods and free movement of services. All that this little Bill is doing is starting a race: on your marks, get set, bang—and then they take off.

It will take two years to run this race. During the running of the race, we want to be sure that the concerns that are raised in this debate will come back. If, as I do, we want to see the Government take this decision on behalf of all of us—that EU citizens should be given a guarantee to remain—the best way to do it is to call the bluff of Angela Merkel by saying that we have now triggered Article 50, we will talk about it and unilaterally give the guarantee. It will be much quicker than the three months proposed in this amendment. I want it to be quicker than three months.