Coroners and Justice Bill

My Lords, my brief intervention from these Benches will be on the same lines as those of my noble friend Lord Stewartby and, indeed, the noble Lord, Lord Low. I ought to confess that, like them, I did not hear every word of the opening remarks of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd of Berwick, but I have listened to the rest of the debate and think that the weight of support for the amendment is really very impressive and almost convincing in itself. The only other point that I want to make is that no doubt those who do not favour this amendment will argue, as I think the noble Lord, Lord Pannick, did, that this is somehow going soft on something. I merely observe that as everyone knows that a mandatory life sentence does not mean what it says, some cynicism is generated by the defence of a proposition that does not mean what it says. Taking a more realistic approach to the law and the situation is both sensible and right.