Defamation Bill

My Lords, I ask those who are leaving the Chamber to, as a courtesy to the noble Lord, do so quie...

My Lords, four months have passed since Second Reading; two days earlier, on October 7, the Prime...

Moved by

Baroness O'Neill of Bengarve

1A: After Clause 1, line 9, leave out “in accor...

My Lords, I have put my name to this amendment to Amendment 1, moved by the noble Lord, Lord Putt...

My Lords—

My Lords—

Boothroyd!

I am so sorry.

Not at all. The noble Lord has the Floor.

One can see why the other place was so well regulated.

It is essential for the three main p...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords, I was going to say “Mr Speaker”, but I will not. I do not intend to follow entirely all...

My Lords, I spoke in the debate on the Leveson report, so I shall certainly not weary the House t...

My Lords, for those of us who were involved in the Committee stage of the Defamation Bill, this i...

My Lords, as an expert by experience of press abuse, I consulted Hacked Off, the charity that has...

My Lords, I have only one point to make. The noble Lord, Lord Lester, said that these amendments ...

At Second Reading, I devoted most of what I said to the issue of access to justice. I take my hat...

My Lords, first, I apologise that I was not in Grand Committee when the Bill was going through. T...

My Lords, I, too, support these amendments. I always listen with care when I hear the noble Lord,...

I am grateful for that but I think the noble Baroness does not understand what I was saying, whic...

My Lords, I should declare an interest as chairman of the Press Standards Board of Finance and ex...

Oh!

It is going to happen, and my lawnmower is out in force already. Media lawyers from across the in...

My Lords, I am delighted to follow the noble Lord, Lord Black, who did not take part in our debat...

My Lords, how fascinated I have been by this debate. As one of the proposers of the amendment, it...

My Lords, I will interject on behalf of communities that, for lack of resources, have not been ab...

My Lords, I did not want to pre-empt any other Back-Bench contributions. I declare my interest as...

I would make one point to the noble Lord, because I think that he is picking unnecessarily at wha...

I just point out that when I applied for this post, I asked a noble and learned judge what indepe...

My Lords, I hesitate to get into the detail of this and do not wish to weary the House, but surel...

The noble Baroness is quite right. I have spoken many times to Professor Horgan and to the Irish ...

My Lords, I am sorry to interrupt my noble friend, but—

My Lords, this is Report, and the noble Lord has had his say.

Is my noble friend Lord Hunt is saying that he would oppose any form of statutory underpinning, e...

Not at all, and I am very grateful to the noble Lord for enabling me to clarify the position. The...

My Lords, before we come to the Front Bench speeches, may I ask for some help for lay Members of ...

My Lords, today’s excellent debate has strong echoes of the occasion on which we first received t...

My Lords, I always think it is extremely helpful for the courtesy of the House if the Opposition ...

Oh!

Have I said something that I should not have said?

I should like to update noble Lords on s...

My Lords, it has been a very instructive debate. I think that it has become clear to many of us h...

My Lords, I do not intend to delay the House any longer than necessary but I would like to make o...

Moved by

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

2: After Clause 1, insert the following new ...

My Lords, after that excitement I rise to move Amendment 2 on behalf of my noble friend Lord Brow...

My Lords, I have added my name in support of the amendment, which would reinstate a provision fro...

My Lords, I, too, support the amendment, but I do so on the basis that the general restriction on...

My Lords, I, too, want to add a sentence of support to what the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter, and ...

My Lords, of course, there is in the Bill a significant hurdle for any claimant, whether a non-na...

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have taken part in this short debate. As has been pointed o...

My Lords, I thank noble Lords who have spoken, particularly those who have spoken in support—the ...

Moved by

Baroness Hayter of Kentish Town

3: After Clause 1, insert the following new ...

My Lords, perhaps I can be very naughty and thank the House for its support on that Division.

My Lords, I cannot support the amendment. One of the difficult things about a Bill like this is t...

My Lords, I agree with my noble friend Lord Lester. It is possible that the House may remember th...

My Lords, I support what the noble Lords, Lord Lester and Lord Faulks, have said. I have to admit...

My Lords, while the noble Baroness, Lady Hayter, is right to say that costs and early resolution ...

My Lords, I am unused to getting such unanimous support from all sides of the House. I am gratefu...

I thank all noble Lords who contributed to this debate. I reassure the Minister that it was not j...

Moved by

Lord Lester of Herne Hill

4: Clause 3, page 2, line 7, leave out “basis” and...

My Lords, I move Amendment 4 essentially on behalf of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Lloyd of B...

I rise to speak in support of this amendment and do so by adopting the argument put forward by th...

My Lords, I indeed hope that this will be resolved once and for all. If my noble friend is going ...

I am grateful to the Minister for his reply. The further the Bill proceeds through this House, th...

Moved by

Lord Taverne

6: Clause 4, page 2, line 37, leave out “reasonably” and insert...

My Lords, I shall speak also to Amendment 7. I have taken no part in Committee. I should explain ...

My Lords, in speaking to Amendments 6, 7 and 9, I declare an interest. I am a member of PEN, the ...

My Lords, the Government are to be commended for having dropped the checklist in Clause 4 and for...

My Lords, I support Amendment 7. I welcome the Government’s amendment to Clause 4. However, if th...

I wish to make a short point. I wholly agree with what my noble friend Lord Lester said about the...

My Lords, I have no amendment in this group but I wish to speak partly in support of Amendments 6...

My Lords, I am grateful to the contributors to the debate. The noble Lord, Lord Taverne, expresse...

Perhaps the Minister could be referred by his officials to what the noble and learned Lord, Lord ...

I shall certainly draw that intervention to the attention of my officials. My briefing poses the ...

My Lords, I appreciate my noble friend’s determination to give effect to the Flood judgment. I am...

Moved by

Lord McNally

8: Clause 4, page 2, line 38, at end insert—

“(1A) Subjec...

Moved by

Lord Phillips of Sudbury

10: Clause 5, page 3, line 9, leave out subsections...

My Lords, there has been an understandable preoccupation thus far with the traditional media, but...

My Lords, the law has been struggling for a little while now, both here and across the world, in ...

My Lords, I have the misfortune to be opposed to the amendment, and I shall try very briefly to e...

My Lords, I have not taken part in debates on the Bill so far, so I shall be brief. However, I wa...

My Lords, as a website operator, I urge my noble friend the Minister to take no rubbish from webs...

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have taken part in this debate. I particularly thank my nob...

I am grateful to those who took part in this debate. I heard what the Minister said but I fear th...