Brexit: Human Rights

Viscount Younger of Leckie Excerpts

Tuesday 12th December 2017 Lords Chamber

[Viscount Younger of Leckie (Con)]

My Lords, your Lordships may be aware that the time limit for Back-Bench speeches has been relaxed from two minutes to four minutes, but I must ask that remarks are concluded at the point the clock reaches four minutes to allow the Minister his maximum allocated speaking time.

--- Later in debate ---

[Baroness Kennedy of The Shaws]

My Lords—

[Viscount Younger of Leckie]

Order!

[Lord Keen of Elie]

I was very happy to allow the noble Baroness to speak in the gap and to take her earlier intervention, but there is a question of time and I am not going to take a further intervention. I have to come back to the noble Baroness, Lady Chakrabarti, and say that I am pleased that the Labour Party has decided to put human rights at the centre of its policies—I thought they were always there. I certainly hope so. Human rights have always been at the centre of our policies. It is important that we recognise that and that we reject those intrusions on human rights that can come from any number of directions, be it on the grounds of disability, nationality or religion, including anti-Semitism.

I thank noble Lords for contributing to this debate and the noble Lord, Lord Cashman, for raising this issue in the House.