Implications of Devolution for England

Lord Richard Excerpts

Tuesday 16th December 2014 Lords Chamber

[Lord Elis-Thomas (PC)]

My Lords—

[Lord Richard (Lab)]

My Lords—

[Lord Wallace of Saltaire (LD)]

My Lords, it might be appropriate to hear from a Welsh Peer and then we will come back to England.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Stowell of Beeston]

The noble Countess is absolutely right. I was not trying to suggest that there are no such Peers here in this House. The point I was making was that Peers do not represent a particular part of the country. We are all Peers representing the public and the national interest at large.

[Lord Richard]

My Lords, with great respect to the noble Baroness the Leader of the House, what she is saying is that English laws should be made by English votes only in the House of Commons, and that once they come up to this House, which is also a legislative Chamber, anybody—whether they are Scots, Welsh, English or Northern Irish—is entitled to express a view and vote on issues that may not affect them. What is the logic in that?

[Baroness Stowell of Beeston]

My Lords, we in this House are contributing to legislation now on an equal footing regardless of where we are from. We do not represent a particular part of the country. I come from Beeston and am very proud of that, but I do not represent Beeston. I am here as a United Kingdom Peer, as is the case for all of us.