Before I move onto this week’s report, I should take this opportunity to congratulate the new intake of Liberal Democrat peers, Shaffaq Mohammed and our former editorial team colleague here at Liberal Democrat Voice, Mark Pack. Mark will be introduced to the Lords on 13 February, although the Parliamentary calendar doesn’t indicate a date for Shaffaq yet. Oh, and, Mark, do you fancy taking on this column?
I should also say a few words about Jenny Randerson, who is sadly missed. I had the pleasure of working alongside her in the Party’s international work, and she was an astute observer of the politics of the ALDE Party but, most of all, such good company. In the Lords, her grasp of the transport brief, one of the less glamorous but busy frontbench responsibilities, was a firm one. I’ll personally miss her, and I know that I’m not alone in that regard.
And with that, on with the show.
There are two Government Bills this week to occupy Peers this week:
- the Mental Health Bill – day 2 of the Committee Stage is on Monday, with day 3 to follow on Wednesday
- the Data (Use and Access) Bill – day 1 of the Report Stage is on Tuesday
- the Great British Energy Bill – day 5 of the Committee Stage is on Wednesday, in Grand Committee
There are, somewhat unusually, no Oral Questions on the Order Paper from Liberal Democrats, and no Debates, short or long, to be moved from our benches. I promise that there will be some next week! There is, however, on Monday the Committee Stage of Tim Clement-Jones’s Private Members Bill, the Public Authority Algorithmic and Automated Decision-Making Systems Bill, which is intended to:
regulate the use of automated and algorithmic tools in decision-making processes in the public sector; to require public authorities to complete an impact assessment of automated and algorithmic decision-making systems; to ensure the adoption of transparency standards for such systems; and for connected purposes.
Behind the scenes, this is the time of year when Select Committees undergo the usual member rotation. By convention, Peers serve on any one Committee for three years, and so the Whips Office will be deciding who is to fill which vacancies. There are also the four special enquiry committees, usually intended to last for a year, and recommended by the Liaison Committee – Liberal Democrat members are Sue Garden and Jeremy Purvis – from a list of submissions made by Peers.
This year’s recommended enquiries are into:
- the Autism Act 2009
- Home-based Working
- Social Mobility Policy
- UK Engagement with Space
and the House is expected to accept the recommendations either this week or next.
Finally, on the Committee corridor, the European Affairs Committee has launched an inquiry into “the UK-EU reset”, and will be taking oral evidence on Tuesday from three leading commentators on the relationship, Armida Van Rij from Chatham House, Mujtaba Rahman from the Eurasia Group and Wolfgang Münchau from Eurointelligence. Wednesday sees a meeting of the Joint Human Rights Committee, which is looking into the question of forced labour in UK supply chains. And yes, that t-shirt might be very cheap, but not necessarily for the person sewing it together. Navnit Dholakia and Tom Gordon from the Commons will doubtless have some challenging questions as the inquiry progresses.
And so, that’s it for another week, and I hope to be next Monday with another week in the Lords…
* Mark Valladares is the Lords Correspondent for Liberal Democrat Voice.
2 Comments
I have turned a Nelsonian blind eye to your question, Mark.
> Oh, and, Mark, do you fancy taking on this column?
Surely, having an insider’s and outsider’s view might be interesting, particularly given all the talk about reform (of the HoL)..