"I will be here, and I will be more than happy to take part in that debate. I wish my hon. Friend a good deal of luck with it...." Dan Byles - View Speech
"I am not sure whether to thank my hon. Friend for that last bit, but I am not a parliamentary draftsman and that wording was put into the Bill on the advice of the Clerks. His point is interesting, and I am not qualified to comment on it, but that …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"I could turn that around and say that if my hon. Friend thinks the Bill will make no difference, he has no reason to oppose it. The Lords have asked for these provisions, and I understand that at least five or six noble Lords desperately want to leave. We have …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"Absolutely, and as I said, I understand that a number of noble Lords are in exactly that position. I repeat that the Lords have previously passed these measures and sent them to the House of Commons, but the system for private Members’ Bills from the Lords has meant that this …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"That is a good question. Lord Steel has made five attempts to bring in some degree of reform. His first four Bills were all called the House of Lords Bill. There is also a House of Lords Reform Bill before the other place in the name of Baroness Hayman. We …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"I am not sure I do, because some Liberal Democrats wish to see wholehearted reform and are concerned that a small amount of reform now might delay wider reform later. That is one reason why I was at pains earlier to make the point that the Bill will not prevent …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"My hon. Friend is absolutely right. We must not underestimate the power of the writ of summons. For somebody who has devoted a substantial portion of their life to the service of their country and to Parliament, receiving the writ of summons from the monarch is difficult to ignore, even …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"If it was felt that something of that sort was necessary, it could be considered in Committee. Originally, the Bill simply referred to “retirement” and I changed it to “retirement or resignation” because I felt that the word “retirement” on its own had a number of implications to do with …..." Dan Byles - View Speech
"I draw my hon. Friend’s attention to clause 2(4), which states that
“a reference to attendance is a reference to attending the proceedings of the House (including the proceedings of a Committee of the House).”..." Dan Byles - View Speech