Parliamentary Constituencies Bill

Debate between Baroness Pitkeathley and Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

Committee stage & Committee: 3rd sitting (Hansard) & Committee: 3rd sitting (Hansard): House of Lords
Tuesday 15th September 2020 Grand Committee

[The Deputy Chairman of Committees (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)]

My Lords, I have received no request to speak after the Minister, so I call the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter of Kentish Town.

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab) [V]]

On Thursday, on an earlier group of amendments, I thought that the Minister was correcting my quotation from the Constitution Committee. In fact, he rightly questioned my assertion that it had endorsed, rather than simply noted, suggestions from others as to how to ensure that the Boundary Commissions were independent. He was right; I was wrong. I think that is 1-0 to the Minister.

However, on this amendment, the Minister is on shakier ground, but I shall to try to avoid making what the noble Lord, Lord Forsyth, called a “holier-than-thou” speech, especially as I want first to turn to something more serious that the noble Lord said, when he claimed:

“Trying to link this matter to the issue of saving the union is very shoddy politics”.—[Official Report, 10/9/20; col. GC 320.]


I shall not try to pretend that I understand Scotland, but just at the moment in Wales, when the Government seem intent on weakening the devolution settlement via the internal market Bill and when again and again UK Ministers ignore the Welsh Government—indeed, even sharing the internal market Bill with Welsh Ministers two hours after it had been shared with the press—the noble Lord might note that a seismic reduction in Welsh voices in Westminster fuels separatist emotions and the feeling that Wales is a mere afterthought to this Government. I was particularly struck that the Government’s statement on the internal market Bill quoted the Scottish Secretary of State, a Scottish businessman and the Scottish Retail Consortium, with no equivalent endorsement from anyone in Wales, not even the Welsh Secretary.

I am not speaking for Scotland, but I hope that the Government do not think that chopping Welsh input into Parliament has no wider implications. As was said in an earlier debate, the Americans recognised early on that size alone did not matter, with each state being accorded proper recognition in the Senate. The UK Government should give serious thought to binding in each of the four nations if they really want to retain the United Kingdom. This does not go to the heart of these amendments, but it is a response to what the noble Lord, Lord Forsyth, said. Incidentally, he apologises because he has just left to chair his own Select Committee, but he has been with us thus far.

Charitable and Voluntary Sector

Debate between Baroness Pitkeathley and Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

Thursday 30th April 2020 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town (Lab)]

My Lords, this has been a wonderful—indeed, heartfelt—debate with two major themes: first, the vital role of charities during this global crisis, which could see 1.6 billion people lose their jobs worldwide; and, secondly, that more government support is needed to provide the sector with the resilience it needs to protect the lives of others, both now and in the future. If charities founder, it is the beneficiaries who suffer.

It was Warren Buffett, I believe, who said:

“Only when the tide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.”


Indeed. Covid-19 has exposed how very vulnerable many here and across the world are, but in fact many of the needs described today existed before the virus. Perhaps society’s recognition of them has only really happened as the tide has gone out, as I think the noble Lord, Lord Astor, suggested. Those running charities knew, but at the exact time when the demands on those charities have mushroomed, their resources have been seriously compromised. Of course, the price to be paid if charities are unable to respond will be felt by exactly those groups described today: victims of domestic abuse, the homeless, vulnerable children, hospices, advice services and small arts groups—we have heard about all of them—as well as the international ones, mentioned by the noble Baronesses, Lady Anelay and Lady Cox, and my noble friend Lord Liddle.

It is not just beneficiaries who depend on charities; so too do the Government. They depend on them to provide a wide range of services from which the state, over decades, has withdrawn as the supplier. The Government therefore have a duty to step in now to ensure the continuity of these essential bodies, and that means funding.

As we have heard, charities are experiencing acute loss of income, including from voluntary fundraising, such as by my colleague Dan Stevens and his ex-soldier brother Gary, who were due to cycle 88 miles along the Normandy coast on the D-day anniversary to raise money for Combat Stress. Such fundraising is vital for awareness-raising, as well as for the hard cash.

As we have heard, equally dire is the loss of retail income, such as for the British Heart Foundation’s fundraising. The BHF probably cannot access the retail, hospitality and leisure grant, as state aid rules currently cap the amount at €800,000, which would cover only 30 of its 750 shops. Can the Minister explore whether this should not count as state aid, so that charity retailers can claim their full allowances?

Looking across the whole sector, the loss is some £4 billion, against which the Government have allocated only £750 million. Furthermore, that is for additional services needed for Covid-19. It does not begin to address the other continuing issues, particularly the ongoing costs, such as leases, rents, insurance, payroll and DBS checks, which all charities have to carry out, as well as the increased costs of existing work—for example, PPE and IT—which cannot now be met due to loss of income. Indeed, Age UK has warned of closures as charities stand on the brink, while disability charities similarly face enormous battles to meet increased needs. The MS Society sees a 30% drop in income as fundraising events are cancelled, leading it to fear that its ability to continue to support sufferers and fund research hangs in the balance.

Furthermore, as we have heard, some specific areas are not covered, such as medical research. The Brain Tumour Charity, for example, has seen a 70% loss of income, and Diabetes UK and Cancer Research UK have been similarly affected. However, as explained by the noble Baroness, Lady Morgan, and the noble Lord, Lord Sharkey, research charities are unable to access the government scheme because they do not provide front-line services. Therefore can the Minister undertake to work with the Association of Medical Research Charities so that, with a future pandemic, illness or needs charities do not pay the penalty of today’s crisis?

Small charities, often community based, are also feeling the hit, with the small charities scheme managed via the National Lottery Community Fund criticised for being slow and ponderous. Importantly, local charities that get the 80% rate relief are therefore not eligible for the £10,000 small business grants. Could the Minister undertake to see whether that could be changed? We know that the Government are trying to help, and I hope that they will look at the experience in Wales, outlined by my noble friend Lady Wilcox, where the Government are working across the piece with charities to help them survive this crisis.

When the tide next goes out, we do not want to see that our wonderful, unique network of brilliant charities —which engage the volunteering and philanthropy of our citizens—are no longer there when the needs continue, as the noble Lord, Lord Addington, said in opening. It is therefore essential that work now starts on a recovery and rebuilding phase, where voluntary organisations will still be needed to play a major role, as there will be continuing demands on their services even as people emerge from the lockdown. We must ensure their resilience now so that they are there when society—and government—needs their strength, continuity and experience. That means infrastructure bodies able to speak for the whole sector being created where they are currently missing, to co-ordinate and help to establish local networks.

Major funding challenges confronting this sector will remain, and it will require financial support from the state. Government must acknowledge the value of the sector and help to build new capacity, with a long-term underpinning of security so that it can emerge as a sector with a renewed and strengthened voice of advocacy and service for its beneficiaries.

Today we pay tribute to charities, their funders, their volunteers and their staff, for how they have risen to the unprecedented challenge posed by Covid-19. But our appreciation and thanks are worthless if we as a society do not provide the financial support to ensure their own resilience and long-term future. We will need the third sector in the future. How we react now—how the Government act—will determine whether we can again see its strength should the tide once more go out.

[The Deputy Speaker (Baroness Pitkeathley) (Lab)]

My Lords, I call the noble Baroness, Lady Barker. Is she with us?