"The Minister says that these things take time and have to be done carefully, but it is some four years since the Government produced their draft Bill. What have they been doing?..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"Does the Minister recollect that the Political and Constitutional Reform Committee advised the Government to drop the Bill?..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"When the Minister replies, will he explain to the Committee why the Government have not, apparently, involved the Electoral Commission in this process? It is so obviously the organisation equipped and tasked to deal with matters of this sort and it is a mystery why it is not more fully …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"That is just what I said. It has been only informally consulted. I do not understand why it has not been given a formal role in this process...." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"My Lords, this legislation is intended to help promote and restore confidence in the political system. Yet the absence of transparency, clarity and regularity in campaign financing in the politics of this country is one of the principal causes of cynicism and disaffection from politics. It therefore seems contradictory and …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"I am inspired with confidence when I listen to my noble friend expounding the Bill. Perhaps she can correct me if I am wrong, but am I right in thinking that in effect there can be any number of these non-accredited groups operating in parallel, but there is provision that …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"The noble Lord emphasised that the Government are anxious to limit the influence of big money and outside money, and he quite rightly made the point that neither big money nor outside money can trigger the recall process. However, he gave no explanation as to how the provisions of the …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"But there are no limits to the number of organisations that are able to mount such campaigns. The Minister is rejecting the amendment that my noble friend has proposed, but he does not seem to have any other safeguards...." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"My Lords, Amendments 41 and 51, as proposed by the noble Lord, Lord Hamilton of Epsom, both seem good amendments and I hope that the House will accept them. Amendment 41 deals with moving the petitioners’ threshold of more than 10% being in favour of a by-election up to 20% …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech
"The noble Lord is invariably fair-minded. Is he really relaxed about and content with arrangements whereby someone could be subject to a petition by 10% of their electors precipitating this trial by ordeal, which would then take the process beyond the eight week period through to a by-election, while it …..." Lord Howarth of Newport - View Speech