Brexit: Petition to Revoke Article 50 Notification

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 26th March 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

We have explored this issue many times in response to the noble Baroness. We respect the result of the referendum, which was the largest participatory democratic exercise ever carried out in this country, and we are committed to implementing that result.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, does my noble friend have any idea of how many of the signatories are British subjects and how many are foreigners?

[Lord Callanan]

No doubt my noble friend is an avid follower of social media and will therefore have seen some doubt being cast on some of the signatories, but I do not doubt that the vast majority were indeed British citizens.

Brexit: No-deal Preparations

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Wednesday 20th March 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

I do not have the up-to-date figures in front of me, but my information is that the uptake of these ERO numbers, as they are known, has increased markedly in recent days. This applies only to businesses that would need them, which exported only to the EU and did not already export outside it. I do not have the up-to-date figures, but I know there has been a sharp uptake in applications and the granting thereof.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, could my noble friend remind me—

Brexit: Negotiations

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Thursday 24th January 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

Well, there are different forms of remain—an extension to Article 50 or a revocation of Article 50, both of which have the effect of remaining. But we are very clear that that is not the policy of the Government. We believe the referendum result should be honoured, and we will be leaving.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords—

[Lord Tebbit]

Privy counsellors have precedence. Do sit down, please.

I wonder if my noble friend the Minister has read the splendid statement by the boss of Wetherspoons, the pub owners, setting out his method for dealing with a possible no-deal Brexit. He has ceased buying brandy from France and is buying better and cheaper brandy from Australia, and so on with his wines and others. The customers are getting better and cheaper liquor, and the company is making better profits. Is that not a typical result of leaving with no agreement?

[Lord Callanan]

I am not sure I want to give from the Dispatch Box advice to Wetherspoons on its purchasing policies. I hope it will continue to serve its customers well, and I hope it will continue to make a profit. I say to my noble friend that no deal is not our preferred outcome, but as I said earlier it is the legal default. The best way to avoid no deal is to vote for a deal.

Brexit: Economic Forecast

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Wednesday 28th November 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Tebbit]

My Lords, will my noble friend remind the questioner that square one for this country was to be a free, democratic country in which we elected our own Government and could sack our own Government? That is not the European Union.

[Lord Callanan]

I will agree with my noble friend briefly and then perhaps we can hear from the noble Lord, Lord Bridges.

Brexit: Negotiations

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Thursday 6th September 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

No, they do not.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, does my noble friend not agree that we have to get those who are opposed to our proposals to leave the European Union used to the idea that the people of this kingdom are well capable of running their own affairs? We did it successfully for rather a long time before our friends on the continent got round to the idea. We have constantly, over the centuries, had to come to their rescue against the dictatorships which have sprung up on the continent. This is another case of a dictatorship springing up on the continent from which we have to break free.

[Lord Callanan]

I am delighted to say that, in his advancing age, the noble Lord has lost none of his robustness. I am not sure I quite share his sentiments but we are committed to Brexit. In future, we want to be a nation in charge of our own laws, our own borders and our own money. This is what Brexit is all about. This is what people voted for and that is what we will deliver.

Brexit: European Council and Commission

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 27th March 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Tebbit]

My Lords, could my noble friend perhaps arrange some sort of education process for those people on the other side of the House who do not believe that the British people are capable of running a democratic process? We had been doing it for quite a long time before most of those on the continent got round to the idea of having a democratic process.

[Lord Callanan]

I see that my noble friend is as provocative as ever. We believe in democracy; part of the referendum was about taking back control. I am sure that this House, and the other place, are quite capable of organising our own affairs in the future.

Brexit: Revocability

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Wednesday 20th December 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

The noble Baroness will be well aware that the Government always follow the advice of the Prime Minister.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, does my noble friend not agree that this Question has been a waste of time? There is simply no doubt that the British people voted in the referendum to leave the European Union and it is their will that must be upheld, not that of a bunch of tame lawyers or other people on the Liberal Benches or anywhere else.

[Lord Callanan]

When I was a young student politician, my noble friend was one of my political heroes.

Roads: Congestion

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 5th September 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

As I have said, we are spending record sums on local authority networks, including many of the pinch-points the noble Lord has identified. Between 2015 and 2021 we will be spending £1.548 billion on small-scale transport schemes, in addition to all the money I have already outlined that we are spending on major schemes. Of course, I fully accept that there will always be further demands on resources and there are always individual schemes that people can bring forward. It is a competitive bidding process, and we are prepared to receive submissions and bids from local authorities against the latest bidding round and in future bidding rounds. I think that we have a record to be proud of.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, may I offer my noble friend my support, at least, for the proposal to charge utilities and other companies for the rent of the roads while they are digging them up and impairing the traffic flow?

[Lord Callanan]

I thank my noble friend. We have trialled the lane rental scheme that we announced last week in London and Kent, where it has been extremely successful. The scheme has forced utilities to work together and at weekends and in the evenings in an attempt to reduce congestion and the inevitable annoyance caused to motorists. We are consulting on extending the scheme nationwide and if that consultation is positive, we will push ahead with extending it to the rest of the country.

Southern Rail: Gibb Report

Debate between Lord Tebbit and Lord Callanan

Tuesday 27th June 2017 Lords Chamber

[Lord Callanan]

Chris Gibb’s report sets out several reasons why Southern Rail faced problems last year, including disruption from infrastructure works, the process of introducing new trains and insufficient numbers of drivers at the start of the franchise. The Secretary of State has now ordered the operator to reduce reliance on overtime, which means that it has started to increase the number of drivers, although that has an 18-month lead time. We decided to proceed with 34 of Chris Gibb’s 38 recommendations, but the transfer of additional lines to TfL was not one that we proceeded with.

[Lord Tebbit (Con)]

My Lords, will my noble friend refrain from giving TfL any more responsibilities until it has cleared up the mess of the roadworks around the Palace of Westminster, which are being conducted in an inconceivably incompetent manner? Will he also consider whether it is really sensible to have the ownership and management of the track and of the trains in separate hands? It did not work in that way in the great days of the LNER, the GWR and the Southern Railway before the Second World War. It would be better to put those aspects back together again; then, we might have sensible management.

[Lord Callanan]

I agree with the first part of my noble friend’s remarks but disagree with the second part.