To match an exact phrase, use quotation marks around the search term. eg. "Parliamentary Estate". Use "OR" or "AND" as link words to form more complex queries.

Keep yourself up-to-date with the latest developments by exploring our subscription options to receive notifications direct to your inbox

Speech in Lords Chamber - Fri 02 Dec 2022
Protection for Whistleblowing Bill [HL]

"My Lords, I congratulate my noble friend on securing this debate and welcome her Bill. I declare an interest as a vice-chair of the APPG for Whistleblowing.

The Bill addresses important defects in our current whistleblowing system, without being overly prescriptive. These defects are a cause of real damage and …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Protection for Whistleblowing Bill [HL]
Speech in Lords Chamber - Fri 25 Jun 2021
Office of the Whistleblower Bill [HL]

"It is a pleasure to follow the noble Earl, and I congratulate my noble friend on securing this debate and on the compelling way she has presented her Bill. As she has demonstrated, there is a clear need to reform the way we deal with whistleblowing and I strongly support …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Office of the Whistleblower Bill [HL]
Written Question
Safety: Standards
Wednesday 24th October 2018

Asked by: Lord Sharkey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether it is in the public interest that EU-mandated safety standards held by the British Standards Institution may not be accessed without payment; and what consideration is being given to making those standards freely available.

Answered by Lord Henley

Businesses are required to comply with the relevant legislation rather than standards. Standards support safety regulation through providing one means of demonstrating conformity to the essential safety requirements set out in legislation.

The use of standards is voluntary and they are developed outside the regulatory system according to a system of stakeholder involvement. The British Standards Institution, as the UK’s National Standards Body, has responsibility for developing and maintaining standards, and supports its work through selling standards. This ensures that those who use standards pay for them. There are no plans to change this.

In some instances, national regulators pay for their enforcement authorities to have access to standards. For example, the Office for Product Safety and Standards pays BSI to give access for local trading standards departments to relevant safety standards.

Written Question
Bankruptcy
Tuesday 19th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Sharkey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the position of pensions in creditor and debtor petitioned bankruptcies following the introduction of pension freedoms.

Answered by Lord Henley

Under section 11(1) of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999, where a bankruptcy order is made on a petition presented on or after 29 May 2000, all rights and benefits under approved pension arrangements will be excluded from the bankrupt’s estate.

The recent Court of Appeal decision in the case of Horton vs Henry confirmed this position and determined that the Trustee in bankruptcy cannot require the bankrupt to access their undrawn pension entitlement as this was contrary to section 11 of the Welfare Reform and Pensions Act 1999.

Written Question
Bankruptcy
Tuesday 19th December 2017

Asked by: Lord Sharkey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)

Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for excluding an individual's pension fund when determining whether an individual is insolvent when presenting their debtor petition for bankruptcy.

Answered by Lord Henley

When determining if an individual is insolvent when presenting a petition for bankruptcy, the Adjudicator at the Insolvency Service needs to consider the circumstances of each individual case on its merits. The Adjudicator will have regard to all the available assets including any pension fund when determining an individual’s insolvency. If the Adjudicator refuses an application, that decision can be subject to a review or an appeal to the court.

Speech in Lords Chamber - Wed 15 Mar 2017
Higher Education and Research Bill

"My Lords, I declare an interest as chair of the Association of Medical Research Charities. Government Amendments 159 and 164 mirror amendments that we put down in Committee. As the Minister said, they rectify the omission of the desirability of experience of the charitable sector in those appointed to UKRI. …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Higher Education and Research Bill
Speech in Lords Chamber - Wed 15 Mar 2017
Higher Education and Research Bill

"My Lords, I will speak to Amendments 177A and 178A. Amendment 177A in my name and that of my noble friend Lord Willis of Knaresborough returns to the subject of the ability of research councils to enter into funding partnerships. We discussed this extensively in Committee. We had two key …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Higher Education and Research Bill
Speech in Lords Chamber - Tue 28 Feb 2017
Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit

"My Lords, in the second quarter of 2016, 51 million pieces of film and TV content were accessed illegally according to the IPO. The Government have said that they believe that this illegal activity is covered by existing laws. If that is the case, why are there so few successful …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Police Intellectual Property Crime Unit
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 30 Jan 2017
Higher Education and Research Bill

"..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Higher Education and Research Bill
Speech in Lords Chamber - Mon 30 Jan 2017
Higher Education and Research Bill

"My Lords, this amendment proposes a change to the wording of paragraph 2 of Schedule 9. Sub-paragraph (5) of paragraph 2 concerns itself with the experience of those appointed as members of UKRI. The intent of the sub-paragraph is clear: the Government want to make sure that the members of …..."
Lord Sharkey - View Speech

View all Lord Sharkey (LD - Life peer) contributions to the debate on: Higher Education and Research Bill