Procedural Flexibility: Scrutiny of AI and Emerging Technology

Lord Grocott Excerpts

Thursday 22nd October 2026 Lords Chamber

[The Senior Deputy Speaker]

That is an easy proposition to agree with. The noble Lord, Lord Nagaraju, brings his own expertise, which he demonstrated through this Question. In a sense, this House justifies itself by its expertise; I am sure that all the political parties and the Cross Benches are very conscious of that and want to maintain high standards within this House.

[Lord Grocott (Lab)]

Does the Senior Deputy Speaker agree that we could have far better consideration of a number of issues, including AI, if the House started sitting at a more sensible time? Has he seen the views—I am sorry to see them, because they are the views of very senior Members—of the Procedure and Privileges Committee? It simply suggested two options: do nothing or do as little as possible. Does the Senior Deputy Speaker agree that we would be far better off if we started most days—not Monday, but the rest of the week—at 11 am?

[The Senior Deputy Speaker]

As the noble Lord may know, a debate on that very subject will be held at 12 pm in the Moses Room. The proposition before the House is that we should start at 1 pm on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. To date, there have been 360 responses to that proposition, which is a great improvement on the last time this matter was considered, about four years ago. I encourage all noble Lords to respond. The consultation closes at 5 pm on 13 November. If there is to be change, it will be for the House to decide whether that change is enacted.