Lord True
That Standing Order 38(4) (so far as it relates to Thursdays) and (5) (Arrangement of the Order Paper) be suspended until the end of the session so far as is necessary to enable notices and orders relating to Public Bills, Measures, Affirmative Instruments and reports from Select Committees of the House to have precedence over other notices and orders on Thursdays.
The Lord Privy Seal (Lord True) (Con)
My Lords, I beg to move the Motion standing in my name on the Order Paper.
Lord Taylor of Holbeach (Con)
Would the Leader of the House be willing to discuss with his colleagues in the usual channels a debate on the ongoing review into the Code of Conduct? As noble Lords will know, the Conduct Committee is conducting a wide-ranging review of the code, and the outcome of its deliberations will affect all Members of this House. It is therefore very important that the committee can hear views from Members from across the House before it concludes its inquiries and reports.
Lord Grocott (Lab)
My Lords, I want to raise an issue about the progress, or lack of it, of Private Members’ Bills—a subject on which I have had some interest from time to time—and, in particular, the disparity between the time given to these Bills in the Commons and the time we give to Commons Bills here in the Lords. The Chief Whip has just read out seven First Readings of Private Members’ Bills. Last Friday, we had four Second Readings of Private Members’ Bills allocated time in this House. Seven Private Members’ Bills that started in the Commons have already had Second Readings this year. Of the Bills that we have sent to the Commons for their First Reading, of which there have been four, none of them has had any progress in the Commons whatsoever. If we look over a broader spread, it is almost ridiculous: I think it is almost entirely accurate that some 300 Private Members’ Bills have started in this House in the last seven years; only three of them actually reached the statute book. It becomes a pretty spectacular waste of time to try to add something to the statute book if you start it in this House.
I simply say to the Leader, while he is here: surely if a Bill gets through all its stages in this House, we should expect the Commons to give it a chance of something above zero, which is what it has at present, particularly in view of the fact that we are pretty generous in the time that we allocate. These are all desirable Bills; I am not criticising any of the Bills: the ones that got a Second Reading on Friday were excellent, as are many Private Members’ Bill, but our generosity towards Commons starters ought to be more closely matched by the time the Commons gives to Private Members’ Bills that are Lords starters.
Lord True (Con)
My Lords, many noble Lords might have some sympathy with some of the things the noble Lord, Lord Grocott, said, but I must remind him—we all are conscious of this—that the procedures of the House of Commons are exclusively a matter for that House itself. I am sure that Members of the House of Commons read our Hansard assiduously and will take note of what the noble Lord said.
So far as this House is concerned, we sit on Fridays from time to time, obviously, to take Private Members’ Bills. We will continue this convention until the summer. I can tell the House that we will sit on Friday 14 June, and on 5 and 12 July to take Private Members’ Bills. So far as my noble friend the Captain of the Gentlemen-at-Arms is concerned, we will seek to make progress. I am sure she will be happy to discuss any individual request, but obviously the House of Commons is the guardian of its own procedures.
On the point my noble friend Lord Taylor of Holbeach raised, I am grateful to him for giving me notice that he intended to do so. Other noble Lords have also made views known to me on this subject. The Chief Whip and I have taken the liberty of discussing this with some colleagues in the usual channels and, of course, with my noble friend Lady Manningham-Buller, the chair of the Conduct Committee, in whose work I think I fairly say the House has the fullest confidence and trust.
I am pleased to say that we can enable a debate of the kind that my noble friend asks for on the Code of Conduct review in time for the conclusion of the evidence-taking part of the review, and this will be scheduled for 10 June in Grand Committee. The Motion will be neutrally worded to enable all Members to express their—no doubt varying—views before the evidence-taking period concludes. The purpose must not be to rake over the coals of specific cases but to assist the review and assist Members by enabling discussion of the principles and actualities underlying the Code of Conduct.