First elected: 3rd May 1979
Left House: 30th March 2015 (Retired)
Speeches made during Parliamentary debates are recorded in Hansard. For ease of browsing we have grouped debates into individual, departmental and legislative categories.
e-Petitions are administered by Parliament and allow members of the public to express support for a particular issue.
If an e-petition reaches 10,000 signatures the Government will issue a written response.
If an e-petition reaches 100,000 signatures the petition becomes eligible for a Parliamentary debate (usually Monday 4.30pm in Westminster Hall).
These initiatives were driven by Richard Shepherd, and are more likely to reflect personal policy preferences.
MPs who are act as Ministers or Shadow Ministers are generally restricted from performing Commons initiatives other than Urgent Questions.
Richard Shepherd has not been granted any Urgent Questions
Richard Shepherd has not been granted any Adjournment Debates
Richard Shepherd has not introduced any legislation before Parliament
Richard Shepherd has not co-sponsored any Bills in the current parliamentary sitting
There is no plan to review the use of powers that allow subordinate legislation to amend primary legislation. Parliamentary Counsel and Departments work to ensure that new delegated powers are proportionate. Each Government Bill is accompanied by a memorandum explaining the delegated powers included in the Bill and explaining why they are necessary.
All Government Bills are subject to collective agreement and as part of this process the Law Officers’ offices are consulted. All Bills are published along with a statement of compatibility with the European Convention on Human Rights and most Bills are accompanied by a memorandum setting out the interaction with Convention rights.
The drafting of secondary legislation is the responsibility of lawyers in Government Departments. The Government Legal Service runs a structured training programme, and produces comprehensive guidance on drafting statutory instruments. The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel also makes its drafting guidance available to Departmental lawyers.
The United Kingdom has an extensive statute book, which extends back hundreds of years, so Government Bills often need make provision against the background of this complex legislative landscape. Powers to make supplementary and incidental provision by secondary legislation are often needed to ensure that an Act produces the result intended by Parliament.
The Office of the Parliamentary Counsel continue to draft all Government Bills. The teams within the office are allocated to departments. This helps to build strong working relationships with departmental officials and legal advisors. Within the office there are arrangements in place to share expertise and identify key lessons from each Bill.
The Government launched its consultation on a General Anti-Abuse Rule (GAAR) on 12 June 2012. A significant number of responses were received from a wide range of respondents. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) published a summary of responses on 11 December 2012 noting that the majority of respondents were broadly in favour of an anti-abuse rule, though there were concerns that the draft legislation had the potential to apply more widely than the stated target.
The role and composition of the GAAR Advisory Panel was an important element of the consultation. The response document notes that, “most respondents welcomed the introduction of the Advisory Panel as a taxpayer safeguard. There was support for the view that it should be a non-judicial body that would consider a case before it progresses to a court or tribunal.”
In addition to the thorough consultation and following the publication of the provisions on GAAR in December 2012, the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee considered the Government’s proposals for an anti-abuse rule, as part of their enquiry into selected provisions of the draft Finance Bill. The Committee considered representations from a range of sources. The majority of those who made comments or gave evidence were also broadly in support of the new rule. The Committee’s report is available here: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201213/ldselect/ldeconaf/139/13906.htm
The consultation and the summary of responses is available at:
The Department receives monthly updates from the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) on the time taken by police forces, including West Midlands police, to complete local police checks as part of the disclosure application process.
The DBS hold quarterly meetings with NHS Professionals, a DBS Registered Body which supports applicants from the hospital and care home sectors in making disclosure applications. No complaints have been raised by this Registered Body with
regard to delays with applications.
The agreed standard for police disclosure performance is set out in a Service Level Agreement between each force and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). The standards include a requirement for forces to complete 100% of
local checks within 60 days. Where performance falls below this standard, action will be taken. The DBS will work with the force to develop and agree a recovery plan. Performance will be monitored against the plan and further
action agreed as appropriate.