Speech in Grand Committee - Wed 16 Sep 2026 Railways Bill
"My Lords, I am delighted to support some of the amendments in this group. I am sure that we have all experienced the nightmare of leaves on the track, but by putting in place a number of the different targets, we also have to have a focus on maintenance.
"The noble Baroness, Lady Taylor of Bolton, apologies.
Participation is more important than age. There is certainly no age limit on becoming a Member of Parliament, and there are plenty who intend to continue to be an MP after the age of 80, but of course, that is the decision …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank the noble Lords who served on the committee, ably chaired by the noble Baroness, Lady—sorry, it has gone completely out of my head...." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank Peers for the Planet, which alerted me to the fact that I had an amendment today, because I got missed off the distribution list from the Government Whips’ Office. I am afraid that I have not had the opportunity to explore other people’s amendments in this …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, I start by thanking the committee for the important work that it has done in going through the fine details of this in the inquiry that it held. I also want to commend the Government for actually getting on with ratification. I am very conscious that a lot …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, I start by saying that this is not intended to be a dig at the First Secretary of State, who I thought was poorly treated by the previous Prime Minister. However, the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) Act, which we passed only last year, was billed as …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"To ask His Majesty’s Government why they have transferred the Public Sector Fraud Authority from the Cabinet Office to the Department for Work and Pensions, given the function and powers of the Minister of the Cabinet Office set out in Part 1 of the Public Authorities (Fraud, Error and Recovery) …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, one of the challenges of speaking so late in the debate is that many brilliant points that you thought you might cover have already been made, and the noble Lord, Lord Best, just made one of them. It is one of my biggest concerns about the increasing costs …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech
"My Lords, there is a street in Liverpool called Hope Street. It is very special. At each end there is a cathedral and in between are cultural wonders: not only the grade 1 listed toilets in the Philharmonic drinking house—the pub—but the Philharmonic Hall, the Everyman Theatre and, indeed, places …..." Baroness Coffey - View Speech