"My Lords, Amendment 37 in my name seeks to consider the consequences of the two major changes proposed in the Bill on the size of constituency and council ward electorates, which could be significant. Improvements to voter registration are designed to make the electoral roll more complete. In some areas …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"The whole purpose is so that we have a democracy that is based, first, on one person, one vote, but then on having boundaries for our electors that are more or less equal in size. Whenever there is a constituency boundary review, there are always parts of the country—in areas …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"I am sorry to interrupt, but unfortunately, it is not the role of the Local Government Boundary Commission to make those decisions. That is the point I hope to make. The determination is made by the council. If there is no guidance to councils—as there is not—on seeking to create …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"My Lords, at least three-quarters of a million funds have been unclaimed so far, and they are attracting “kindly tracer agents”—though scammers might be a more apposite description. What do the Government intend to do to enable those 750,000 young people to get access to those funds?..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"My Lords, it is a pleasure to follow the noble Baroness. As I was re-elected as a councillor in May, I have a direct interest in the formation of electoral law. As such, it will perhaps be no surprise that I will focus my remarks on some really practical issues.
"My Lords, the terrible Grenfell tragedy exposed serious, deliberate and dangerous building practices that put, and still put, lives at risk. The estimate from the Commons’ Public Accounts Committee is that 3 million people may be affected. There are between 5,900 and 7,400 buildings over 11 metres with unsafe cladding, …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank everybody who has spoken in this debate and for the wide—in fact, unanimous—support, certainly in principle if not in practice, from all those who have contributed. In what I have said and in the Bill I have deliberately not pointed the finger of responsibility or blame …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"My Lords, when the Minister responded to the noble Lord, Lord Fuller, she referred to local leaders. Can she confirm that the reference to “local leaders” is to city and county mayors? If so, where do local councils and local people fit into the decision-making on what could be very …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech
"My Lords, I too thank the Minister for repeating the Statement. Across England, there will be thousands of councillors and council officers who have worked for months, sometimes years, to deliver an effective solution to the Government’s top-down reorganisation diktat. They will have devoted scarce resources in both funding and …..." Baroness Pinnock - View Speech