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Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 13 Jan 2020
European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill

"My Lords, this debate has been conducted predictably, with political and ideological arguments articulated by each political faction. The people have spoken twice. The UK will not be moving on from Brexit but will move forward. Many of the existential issues that have driven this period of prolonged introversion that …..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 21 Oct 2019
Brexit: Preparations

"My Lords, really detailed scrutiny is needed to take account of the long-term consequences, in whatever form they take, for decades to come...."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit: Preparations
Speech in Lords Chamber - Thu 17 Oct 2019
Brexit: Customs Controls at Holyhead

"My Lords, does the Minister wish to pay tribute also to Mrs May for the work that she did to bring us to this point—albeit that Prime Minister Johnson has taken us to the final hurdle?..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit: Customs Controls at Holyhead
Speech in Lords Chamber - Wed 16 Oct 2019
Queen’s Speech

"My Lords, given the hour, I shall be brief. No matter the outcome of the negotiations, which we await with keen anticipation, the complexity of political hoops still needs to be overcome. I hope that shortly we can move on, but it must be right to do so only when …..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Queen’s Speech
Speech in Lords Chamber - Tue 08 Oct 2019
Brexit: Preparations

"My Lords, this has been a tortuous process, but there will come a point when we will need to rally around the flag. Does the Minister agree that the time will come to keep politics out of this process and that we will start accepting the practical reality of no …..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit: Preparations
Speech in Lords Chamber - Wed 02 Oct 2019
Brexit

"My Lords, we cannot be dismissive of 45 years’ shared partnership. There is much to reflect on and respect. We need the EU 27 by our side. It has been a long haul and our country deserves a long bout of optimism. We are apparently in the Brexit home straight. …..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit
Speech in Lords Chamber - Wed 03 Jul 2019
Brexit: Appointment of Joint Committee

"My Lords, I beg the indulgence of the House for a minute. A blindfolded march to the cliff edge is unpatriotic, irresponsible and would for ever levy the charge of our not having carried out our duty. The staunchest of proponents, on whichever side of the argument they lie, could …..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit: Appointment of Joint Committee
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 01 Jul 2019
EU: Law-making Process

"My Lords, is the practical reality not that this Question comes a little late in the day—in fact, 40 years too late—and that if we had had a better understanding of all these issues at the start we would not be in the pickle we are in now?..."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: EU: Law-making Process
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 29 Apr 2019
Brexit: Gibraltar

"My Lords, recognising that three borders are under negotiation, what can the Minister suggest? There is Gibraltar, Northern Ireland and Anguilla, whose issues are rarely brought to the attention of the Government...."
Viscount Waverley - View Speech

View all Viscount Waverley (XB - Excepted Hereditary) contributions to the debate on: Brexit: Gibraltar
Written Question
European Parliament Members
Thursday 25th April 2019

Asked by: Viscount Waverley (Crossbench - Excepted Hereditary)

Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the need to ensure that British members of the European Parliament (1) do not disrupt the work of that parliament, and (2) are able to represent British interests appropriately in discharging their duties; and what steps they are taking as a result of any such assessment.

Answered by Lord Callanan - Shadow Minister (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The European Council Decision, taken in agreement with the UK on 11 April, includes a duty of sincere cooperation in relation to the extension of Article 50. This includes reference to “the commitment by the United Kingdom to act in a constructive and responsible manner throughout the extension”. The full Decision can be found here: https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2019/04/10/20190410-european-council-decision-on-extension/.

If the Withdrawal Agreement has not been ratified by 22 May, we have a legal obligation to hold European Parliament elections as a Member State, as set out under EU treaties, and we will uphold these obligations. We have therefore already started making the necessary domestic preparations in order to prepare for this potential outcome. However, as the Prime Minister has said, we will make every effort to ensure the Withdrawal Agreement is ratified by 22 May so that we do not need to hold these elections.