Queen’s Speech

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Tuesday 22nd October 2019 Lords Chamber

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, given that the Queen’s Speech was little more than a poorly disguised election gimmick, it is surprising that there were no new proposals for legislation or policy on education, never mind higher education. To recap: the Government have failed to respond to the Augar review, published in May 2019, or to bring forward their own proposals for a sustainable model for HE funding. The Conservative-led coalition Government trebled tuition fees, overseeing a system in which the average student now graduates £50,000-plus in debt, while students from the most disadvantaged backgrounds graduate with an average debt of some £57,000. The system urgently needs to be reformed. Labour has committed to scrapping university tuition fees so that education is genuinely free for all and students do not face the prospect of a lifetime of student debt simply for seeking a decent education.

On HE funding, this is all the Government have to say:

“We are committed to making sure that higher education funding reflects a sustainable model that supports high quality provision, maintaining our world-leading reputation for higher education and delivering value for money for both students and the taxpayer”.


In a nod to parental concerns about what good value looks like, they added:

“We want to ensure we deliver better value for students in post-18 education, have more options that offer the right education for each individual, and provide the best access for disadvantaged young people”.


As part of a search for the safety of the long grass, they added finally:

“We are undertaking a review of post-18 education to ensure we have a joined-up education system that is accessible to all”.


Who can argue with much of that? However, it is clear that the current funding system is not working for students, nor for those in FE and HE providers.

Meanwhile, universities are struggling to manage the impact of successive real-term cuts in their budgets. In the face of wage inflation and increasing pension contributions, not only does this have an impact on teaching, vital services and staffing, as costs outpace income, but it also makes forward investment planning more difficult, storing up problems for future generations and for students themselves. The system urgently needs to be reformed, yet the Queen’s Speech made no reference to the Augar review—no doubt in fear of raising expectations that cannot be met, as I said.

At the time, the previous Education Secretary promised that the Government would,

“come forward with the conclusion of the review at the end of the year, at the spending review. That has always been the plan”.—[Official Report, Commons, 4/6/19; col. 58.]

In the absence of the Government’s response to the Augar review, will the Minister set out a timetable for bringing forward proposals? Surely we have waited long enough. Universities need us to end the uncertainty, not least because our universities have to compete for students in a global market to ensure funding.

On widening participation, the Government say that they want to,

“provide the best access for disadvantaged young people”.

However, their decision to abolish grants worth £3,500 and replace them with additional loans that will have to be repaid was a mistake—a mistake that has left some of the poorest students saddled with a lifetime of debt. The Queen’s Speech was an ideal opportunity for the Government to announce the reinstatement of grants and a policy that would have been warmly welcomed across the House. It is therefore disappointing to see such a glaring omission at a time when income disparities are rising and are at their widest ever. In visiting universities over the past few months, I have been impressed by the steps that many of them are taking to change their demographic and widen participation. Birmingham is a particularly good example, with its dedicated support to students from hard-to-reach communities. Why are the Government not making this happen as standard?

Immigration policy is also an area of concern for the higher education sector, given that universities are dependent on overseas students for financial support and because of the tie-ups on international research projects. The Government’s Queen’s Speech pledged to introduce,

“a more accessible visa system to attract global scientific and research talent”.

This rings a bit hollow. It is worth reminding ourselves that 12% of the world’s international students attend UK universities and, as other Peers have noted, four of the top 10 global universities are here in the UK. We welcome the Government’s policy on work-study visas offering international students a two-year visa after graduation, up from the absurd situation they inherited under Theresa May. Can the Minister advise us of when the new system will come into play? Will it apply to entrants starting in 2020 or for students who are currently here, and how has this change been promoted? Given that the restrictions on post-study work visas was blamed for a drop in international student enrolments, communicating the U-turn will be key to reversing this trend by ensuring that prospective overseas students see the UK as a possibility.

On research and development, the Government said that they would be setting out plans in the autumn to significantly raise and boost public R&D funding. The statement has attracted support, but the other statement on introducing a US-style advanced research projects agency has alarmed the research community as it seems to miss the key point about research in UK universities. We need stability and certainty, something which at present is sadly missing. According to the Royal Society, since 2015 funding for Horizon 2020 has fallen by 28%, or €0.5 billion, and UK applications have dropped by a third. It is understandable that leading researchers do not want to gamble with their careers when they have no sense of whether the UK will be willing and able to maintain its global scientific leadership.

Through the Queen’s Speech, the Government announced plans to create a UK equivalent of the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and to cut down on research funding bureaucracy. Over the past two years, UK scientists have already witnessed a huge reshaping of the funding landscape with the formation of UKRI. With this in mind, how will such a new body complement the work of UKRI? Moreover, does the Minister share our concerns and those raised by academics that the research and innovation communities—

[Baroness Berridge (Con)]

My Lords, the noble Lord has spoken for more than six minutes.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

I am conscious of that and I am coming to a close. Does the Minister share our concerns and those raised by academics about the creation of a new and different process running alongside the current one?

Finally, we have uncertainties about the future of research funding in the universities that help to drive the innovation that is vital to our economy. This fictional Queen’s Speech is a missed opportunity to answer hard questions—questions that will not go away.

Brexit: Food Standards Regulations

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Tuesday 4th September 2018 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government whether they will commit to putting before both Houses any proposals to amend the United Kingdom’s food standards regulations in the event of a “no deal” scenario when the United Kingdom leaves the European Union.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Lord O’Shaughnessy) (Con)]

My Lords, before leaving the European Union the Government will, under the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, bring before Parliament regulations that will make technical amendments to EU-derived and retained food safety and standards law to ensure that the regime operates effectively after Brexit. In making any such amendments, the Government will ensure that the UK’s food standards and safety regime maintains the same high standards of protection.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, I ought to be reassured by the Minister’s reply but I am not. In light of his refusal to rule out suspending the UK’s food standards regulations if there is no deal, is this measure being considered seriously? Will the Government publish an impact analysis of such a measure and further commit to working with organisations such as the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health to ensure that all necessary food safety steps are taken before proceeding? Finally, do the Government plan to issue a ministerial direction to the Food Standards Agency regarding its statutory duty to put consumers first in relation to safe food?

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I can tell the noble Lord that we will be maintaining the same standards of safety and protection. We will be seeking not just continuity but equivalence. We may want to go further in other areas. Of course, this will be for discussion with the House. The ongoing role of the Food Standards Agency will be as it is now, to make sure that public health and consumers’ interests continue in relation to food. There is no need to issue a ministerial direction or anything else to ensure this because it is its legally given role and one it will continue to fulfil.

NHS: Brexit-related Risks

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Thursday 5th July 2018 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of (1) the risks to the National Health Service, and (2) the implications for access to medical supplies, of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union without a withdrawal agreement.

[Noble Lords]

Hear, hear.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health and Social Care (Lord O'Shaughnessy) (Con)]

Nearly there.

My Lords, patient safety is our priority in the exit negotiations, and maintaining continuity of supply of medical products is a key part of ensuring that patients continue to receive safe, high-quality care from day one after we leave the European Union. Extensive work has been undertaken to understand the implications of our EU exit on the NHS, considering a range of negotiation outcomes, including exit without a withdrawal agreement. This has included a focus on continued access to medical supplies.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, I congratulate the noble Lord on his stamina this morning—more Fleetwood Mac than Iron Maiden. Given that the Government seem a long way off getting any sort of Brexit deal on goods and services, will the Minister tell the House whether there is a plan B to ensure that the NHS has continuity of medical supplies, and will he explain how he expects the interface of the medicines approval regime and the international regulation of medicines to work post Brexit? Will he also guarantee comparable levels of patient safety after we leave the EU?

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I am glad that the noble Lord’s train got him here in time for him to ask his Question. First, I do not share his pessimism about the outcome. We will publish the White Paper on our proposals next week and we expect it to get a warm welcome—and not just in this House. Nevertheless, it would be wrong if we were not working on contingency options. I think that the public would be surprised if we were not planning for every scenario. That is precisely what we are doing at the moment, and of course, as we do that, patient safety is our number one priority. We need to make sure that the supply of medicines and medical devices can come in to the country and be used by NHS patients, come what may.

Nurses: Training

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Wednesday 7th March 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I congratulate the noble Lord on his committee’s work in this area and on making a proposal, which we have followed in putting forward a 10-year draft plan. I hope that he will have had the chance to see that—it will of course firm into a concrete plan. It is fair to say that it is honest about both the successes and the challenges that we face in needing to train more nurses. We are trying to find new ways of doing that, not just through the university route but through apprenticeships.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, yesterday evening I went home and turned on my local news to find that the Royal Sussex County Hospital was calling on people who might otherwise use its services to keep away. The hospital has some 900 vacancies. How can the noble Lord come to the Dispatch Box and tell us about the wonderful figures that suggest that all is well and good in the health service regarding nursing vacancies, when the reality on the ground is somewhat different? My local hospital is facing a crisis.

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

I do not pretend that all is well and good; I merely state what has happened. We know that there are challenges from increasing demand in the health service. We need more staff, which is why we are committed to training more staff. Unfortunately, I am not in a position to comment on the challenges of the noble Lord’s trust but I will be delighted to look at them with him. However, as we know, there is more demand and we have an ageing population. We need more staff and we are trying to train those staff.

NHS: Waiting Lists

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Monday 26th February 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

The length of time to wait should always be a clinical decision; I completely endorse that. CCGs have responsibility to manage demand according to local needs, but in the end, it must be a clinical decision.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, in a written reply to me, HL 5459, the Minister said that vacancy data was not available for doctors, nurses and consultants in hospital trusts in Sussex, Surrey and Kent, whereas local recruitment advisers suggest that there is a real crisis. Why cannot the human resources element of the National Health Service provide that basic data? As the noble Lord seemed to acknowledge earlier, our chances of our reducing waiting lists are much lessened if we cannot understand where the vacancies are and put people in those jobs.

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

Vacancy data is available. If it was not available on the particular footprint that the noble Lord asked for, I would point him in the direction of data published last week by NHS England on vacancies, which is always a topic of much interest in this House. Over the past three quarters, that shows a slightly improving picture, but clearly there is a lot more to do.

NHS: Winter Crisis

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Wednesday 7th February 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord O’Shaughnessy]

My noble friend is absolutely right to highlight integration. I point to two things, one that is happening now and one for the long term. In the short term, the better care fund is a pot to which local authorities and the NHS contribute and it has more money than ever before, precisely to make sure that that interface between NHS care and social care is as good as possible and people can be discharged safely home as soon as possible, which is of course what they want. We also know that we are going to have a social care Green Paper this summer. It is a really important moment; we know how many missed opportunities there have been in the past to reform care in this area and I know that noble Lords are really keen to contribute to this. I urge them to do so and in that way we can build a consensus for change.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, the Minister says there are billions extra for the health service, but the East Sussex Healthcare Trust has just announced a £21 million increase in its deficit, making it £57 million for the rest of this financial year. This is now 14% of its total budget. The finance director says that it is necessary to achieve clinical stability for this ambitious deficit reduction. Is this not just a euphemism for cuts to services? What advice can the Minister give to patients using hospitals in Hastings and Eastbourne who are waiting for treatment?

[Lord O’Shaughnessy]

I am not familiar with the specific circumstances around the hospitals that the noble Lord has pointed to, but of course we know that there is huge pressure on services. If you look at the performance data, the NHS is seeing more people in A&E, more people being diagnosed, more people being referred to treatment, and that is why additional funding went into the budget, not just for this winter but for the next two years as well.

Health: Neurofibromatosis Type 1

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Tuesday 13th January 2015 Grand Committee

[Lord Bassam of Brighton (Lab)]

My Lords, I promised recently when I spoke in a debate on House procedures that I would not, as Labour Chief Whip, make a habit of speaking, so I owe noble Lords an apology for this reappearance so soon. I am looking over there at “The Judgment of Daniel” with a finger pointing in my direction and I am becoming worried.

However, I make no apology for speaking out on this issue and I am sad, if unsurprised, that the debate has attracted so few here today, although this rather makes a point. Few people know of the neurofibromatosis type 1 condition and, I suspect, even fewer know of its debilitating effect on individuals with the condition and on their families. I confess that I was largely unaware of the condition and its impact until early last year when I, by chance, read an article reviewing the film “Under the Skin”, starring Scarlett Johansson and a young NF1 sufferer, Adam Pearson, who plays a major role in that film. Shortly after watching it, I met Nicole Martin, who has NF1, and her mother Vanessa. Talking to them, I learnt more about the condition and the issues it gives rise to. I decided that Nicole and Vanessa were heroes for the way in which they had tried to raise awareness of NF1. It was then that my noble friend Lord Hunt, to whom I am extraordinarily grateful for calling this debate, and I decided to try to help in their work.

NF1 is the least known but most common genetic condition. It is estimated that across Britain there are some 25,000 sufferers who can be identified at birth, but for whom there is no cure. One NF1 child is born every day, and one in 2,500 children is born with the condition. Each has a 50% chance of passing it on to each of their own children.

The problem with the lack of awareness is that it leads to a lack of understanding from health, education and public service professionals—the very people who need to know how to respond to those needing help and support. Vanessa Martin explained to me that, while the signs were present from birth, diagnosis was not made until Nicole was three years old. In another case, a Reading parent, Nicky Clifford, told me that her son was not diagnosed until he was eight. By that age, most of the disadvantages that my noble friend referred to and NF1 sufferers confront have already become entrenched. However, many more people are not diagnosed until they are in their 30s or become parents themselves, having unwittingly passed the condition on. At that point, parent and child are often diagnosed at the same time.

NF1 manifests itself in different ways. Basically, tumours grow on the nerves inside the body and on the skin. This leads to severe disability, constant pain, itching, cancers, epilepsy, high blood pressure, bone abnormalities, speech and language problems, dyspraxia, learning and behavioural difficulties, and mental health issues. The condition is also unpredictable—it mutates and changes all the time. Just this morning, I heard that over the past weekend a number of new and painful tumours had grown quickly on Nicky Clifford’s son’s head. His mother of course is now desperate to get an emergency appointment with a paediatrician and an MRI referral.

In the case of Nicole Martin, now 17, she has done remarkable things with her life. Until quite recently, Nicole had hoped to represent the UK in judo at the Special Olympics and, despite lengthy periods of hospitalisation, is doing astoundingly well at her sixth-form college and plans to go on to higher education.

But why is she doing so well? It is largely because both she and her mother are very determined people. Nicole was referred to a specialist NF1 centre in Manchester, to which my noble friend referred. This led to a further referral to Oxford and the removal of tumours. She has now moved from facing the prospect of a life in a wheelchair and living with adaptations to walking unaided and with lower levels of pain relief and management. Now she is looking forward to obtaining a degree and seeking employment—something everybody aspires to for their children.

Nicole’s story is indeed inspiring. However, it has been a constant struggle, and the lessons of that struggle seem clear to me. We need to raise awareness in the medical profession to ensure early diagnosis. The café-au-lait, or CAL, examination at birth should be standard and a record made of that test. A follow-up procedure should be put in place and referrals made when and where appropriate. Further CAL checks need to be made throughout a child’s early years. As I understand it, there is currently no such imperative for any recording. The training of medical staff obviously needs to be part of the approach, so that following early diagnosis, support and referrals can be put in place.

I hope that the Minister can this evening confirm that a national strategy is being developed to assist NF1 sufferers. Other specialist conditions such as cystic fibrosis, with approximately 10,000 sufferers in the UK, and motor neurone disease, with around 5,000 people affected at any one time, seem to attract more interest in terms of research, support, specialist advice and training development. I do not think it right to argue one condition against the needs of another, but what the National Health Service might need to do is ensure that conditions that are not widely understood are part of a broader strategy so that sufferers and their families do not feel ignored or left out of care planning.

As very determined parents of NF1 sufferers, Nicky Clifford and Vanessa Martin have usefully found advocates in Vicky Groulef, in Reading, and Sarah Owen, in Hastings and Rye. In itself that is good, but this condition and others should not have to rely on the caring interest of aspiring parliamentarians, which is what they are.

Finally, I make a plea to the Minister. He will be pleased that I am asking not for the release of new or additional resources but for a review of how support is given by the NHS to the organisations that help parents and sufferers of this common but little-recognised condition. This will enable us to be assured that the vital networks that are there to help are properly and effectively nurtured and that the treatment, care and compassion that the NHS is renowned for are unlocked.

Health and Social Care Bill

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Wednesday 21st December 2011 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Anelay of St Johns]

My Lords, it is my honour and pleasure to put the Motion that the House do now adjourn. It is an everyday matter when the House is in Session in this Chamber but, once a year, it takes on a very special significance. In moving the Motion, I join with the generously expressed remarks of the noble Lord, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath. I would like to pay tribute to the stamina of my noble friend Lord Howe, to all of those on the opposition Front Benches and to all of those around the House who have taken part in the Committee stage of the Health and Social Care Bill. I wish my noble friend the Minister and all others a wholly restful Christmas Recess, despite those letters that the noble Lord, Lord Hunt, pointed out will be written. Of course, I have already offered an early Christmas present in the forthcoming business: the fact that the Report stage of the Bill will not start in at least the first two weeks when we return.

It is customary at this moment for the usual channels, in their broadest sense, to pay tribute on behalf of the whole House to our staff, who have facilitated all the work of this House during the course of the year. It is my privilege to be the first of the four of us who will pay such compliments. The difficulties of the spring of this year are now far behind us. Those difficulties put a burden on our staff, which we all, I know, acknowledge. They managed, as always, with professionalism and patience. This is not always an easy place in which to work: our hours can be long and unpredictable and even with goodwill that can happen. I thank all the staff for their continued flexibility and commitment, which I know is recognised and appreciated by all of us.

I know that my opposite numbers in the other groups will pay tribute to some individual members of staff who have completed or who are shortly about to complete their long service to this House. I would particularly like to pay tribute to Major Mike Charlesworth, who retired in July after 16 years as our staff superintendent. Major Charlesworth joined the House after a long career in the Army, where he served in the Falklands and Bosnia. He was responsible for the day-to-day management of the attendants and housekeepers, both key services, which I know Members of the House greatly appreciate.

One of Major Charlesworth’s first jobs on arriving in the House was to arrange for all Members to be decanted—we are now used to being decanted, are we not?—from the Principal Floor, West Front, in order to install computer cabling, in which we led the way in Parliament, in the disused chimney ducts. Yes, that is where they are hiding. The problem was that that was swiftly followed by a huge rain of soot along the corridor and so his next job was to arrange the clean-up. Major Charlesworth was a key figure in the arrangements for State Opening and state visits. He assisted with the lying in state of the late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, in 2002, when about 200,000 members of the public came to pay their respects around the clock.

In his spare time, Major Charlesworth was a keen singer in the London Welsh Male Voice Choir, with whom he appeared on “Blue Peter”, earning a much-coveted Blue Peter badge. We hope that he will have time to pursue his interest in retirement. I am sure that all Members of the House will wish to join me in wishing him a long and happy retirement.

Briefly, I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Sir Stephen Laws, who retires next month as first parliamentary counsel. Although not personally known to many Members of this House, his and his colleagues’ work is very familiar to us all. In our scrutiny we often criticise legislation as being badly drafted, when, as ever, what we really mean is that it is badly formulated by the politicians. The error is rarely, if ever, that of the draftsman. Sir Stephen has provided a first-class service to a number of Governments over the years and we wish him the very best in his retirement—the Leader and I in particular because he is our Permanent Secretary.

All that remains is for me to invite my opposite numbers around the House to make their contributions, after which I will formally adjourn the House.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

My Lords, it is always difficult following the Government's Chief Whip, but I thank her for her courtesy and generosity of spirit on the closing day of our proceedings this year. I have a number of people to thank. I will start with the staff of the House of Lords in general, who all work incredibly hard to support us and make sure that our deliberations, however long or short, are painless in terms of what goes on behind the scenes. I also pay tribute to my opposite number, the noble Baroness, Lady Anelay, for the way in which she and her office have worked tirelessly over the past year to ensure that our business is conducted in an orderly fashion and manner. Though we might not always agree, I am sure that we agree on one thing: namely, that this House is extraordinarily important, and that the way in which it works is extraordinarily important, too. The usual channels are working well and to an improved standard. That is cause for great congratulation.

I also thank Hansard staff who have tirelessly noted and commented on all our observations on government legislation and beyond. They are here at all hours and are sometimes much overlooked when we conduct our deliberations. The clerks, as ever, are tireless and are there to give us advice and good and wise counsel. They do their job splendidly. I also join the noble Baroness in thanking Sir Stephen Laws. When we were in government we were endlessly reliant on Sir Stephen for good advice and wise drafting. As the noble Baroness observed, it is not often that draftsmen are at fault; it is more often politicians. We would all agree on that.

There is one matter that I should clear up before I pay my tributes: namely, my footwear. There has been a lot of comment on it today. I got up under the mistaken impression that it was national festive footwear day. I apologise, but it is true that I am red from head to toe—and it is in celebration of the fact that we are in the festive season.

I am here as the representative of the Official Opposition to give thanks not just to all the staff of the House—the caterers, the cleaners, the housekeepers and everybody else—but in particular to some of those who are retiring. I pay particular tribute this afternoon to Senior Attendant Bob Jones. We made some inquiries about Mr Jones and found them rather difficult. I was often told that the things which people might like to say about Mr Jones were not repeatable in your Lordships’ Chamber. However, there are one or two salient facts. Bob joined the House in October 1994 after a full career in the Royal Navy. What is not known is whether he served under Admiral West; I am still inviting comment on that.

What is absolutely clear from my observations is that, wherever he has been, Bob Jones has come back with a story to tell—something like the Uncle Albert character in “Only Fools and Horses”. A number of years ago, Black Rod's department decided to have an awayday. I cannot understand why anybody would want a day away from this place, but they did. They chose HMS “Belfast”, apparently because of its age. It was taken out of service a very long time ago, but Bob Jones took great delight in pointing out things on the ship because it was the first ship on which he had served. Of course, now it is Bob who is being taken out of active service.

I am told by other attendants that they have one fear for Bob: namely, that his wife Carol, who is a paragon and incredibly supportive, will become a fishing widow. I am sure that the House would like to record its concern on this matter, and if it were available to me, I would be putting a Motion down because I think that is quite wrong. However, I think everybody will join me in wishing Bob well in his retirement. I certainly enjoyed my discussions with Mr Jones on the odd occasion on my way into the Chamber. He is a very entertaining fellow, and I recommend him to anybody who needs an after-dinner speaker.

[Noble Lords]

Hear, hear.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

Then I turn to Mr Wiggins. Mr Wiggins has been in the building 21 years. He served as a Grenadier Guard. I think he initially worked in the House post office team. If you chance upon Mr Wiggins, there is certainly a bit of the postie about him. I am not quite sure how you determine these things, but he is very good at delivering things. Before that job, he worked as an attendant in the House of Commons and he was a House of Commons doorkeeper, so he has what I am told is described as “end-to-end experience”. I am not quite sure what that means.

My last tribute of thanks goes to Terry Little. Terry Little joined the Pass Office in 1997 after a career in the Metropolitan Police. He worked in the Pass Office until 2001 and for the past 10 years has been a doorkeeper. He and all the other doorkeepers are there to protect us, to ensure that we do not fall over when we might, to ensure that the House is kept in good order and to ensure that when the day is done, we can safely depart the building.

Going back to Mr Wiggins, I am told that he is joining the Commons annunciator team. I had some difficulty with this because the word “annunciator” in my brief is spelt “annunicator”. We do occasionally have problems with the annunciator. I am sure that those problems will be easily abated, but let us make sure that our briefs are word perfect.

I wish everybody in the House a very merry Christmas and a very fulfilling new year. I look forward to our happy return.

[Lord Alderdice]

My Lords, Christmas time, like some of the other festivals in the year, is of great importance for many reasons, not least the opportunity for us to spend a little bit more time with our families and friends than is usual during the normal period of our work. They also provide markers during the year which remind us and enable us to say a word of thanks to those who work with us and serve us so extraordinarily well in your Lordships' House. We are enormously fortunate in that regard, as we all know.

There are some people who come to us at an early point in their career for a relatively short time—interns and young people who come to work here for a little while who then go off with their knowledge and experience and do other valuable and worthwhile things. Indeed, my noble friend Lady Williams and I were just talking about how pleasant it is to see some of these young people continuing on to do absolutely marvellous things for their community and their country. We have been fortunate that they have started with us. Others, as has already been noted by the noble Lord, Lord Bassam of Brighton, come at a later point in their career, perhaps having served Queen and country in various parts of the world. They come here as doorkeepers, attendants and in other jobs to provide us with order and security, comfort and great courtesy.

However, there are others who come to us through other organisations, and I particularly want to mention those from the Metropolitan Police. It is sadly the case, but it is the case, that we owe our security to them, and it is important for us to acknowledge that that continues and sadly in the upcoming year will undoubtedly continue to be a requirement for us, and we are grateful to them.

There are others who come to us at an early point in their career and spend much of their life working here with us. Some of them are in hospitality, some are in the clerking community and some are in the clerical and administrative community. They provide extraordinary stability for your Lordships' House, and an institutional memory which is itself of enormous importance, although I know that a number of noble Lords also provide some of that. Some stay with us for a very long time, and it is important that we acknowledge them. One in particular, Christine Bolton, has just completed 40 years of service to your Lordships' House. I think that merits particular mention. She is universally and very affectionately known as Chris. She joined your Lordships’ House as a clerical officer on 1 November 1971. For many years, she was on the staff of the Journal Office and was an early user of what in those days was known as new technology—first, using a database on a mainframe computer and then using word-processing software on eight-inch floppy disks. I think that a few of your Lordships still remember those kinds of things.

Chris is now in the Legislation Office where she has become the cornerstone of our procedures for handling private legislation. For myself and our office, when recently one of our colleagues was ill and special arrangements had to be made for a replacement, we should like to acknowledge how helpful, courteous and gracious she was. It was not just a matter of Chris doing the job and doing it properly but she did it with grace and courtesy, which is one of the reasons why she has become so affectionately known throughout your Lordships’ House. She is not alone and many others serve your Lordships’ House in this way but today is an opportunity to pay particular tribute to her.

We will now, I trust, take a break even from some of those letters to which the noble Lord, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, referred. I trust that all noble Lords will travel safely home to the various parts of our United Kingdom, or to other places if they are fortunate enough to go away, and will have a good rest, relaxation, time with friends and families, and thorough recuperation because I fear that not only the duties within your Lordships’ House but the challenges that come from outside in 2012 may be substantial and significant. We would do well to be ready for them.

Health and Social Care Bill

Lord Bassam of Brighton Excerpts

Tuesday 25th October 2011 Lords Chamber

[Baroness Northover]

My Lords, given that there is no dinner hour business tonight, we have agreed that instead of breaking now, we will sit without a break until 9 pm and therefore have a slightly earlier night.

[Lord Bassam of Brighton]

Does that mean that we will finish at nine o’clock or when the debate on an amendment finishes? There is a practice whereby we can carry the debate over; we do not have to complete it by that time. Will the noble Baroness clarify that point?