European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill

This is a very important point, and I am glad that the noble Lord is addressing it in such detail...

As I have said, this is the Prime Minister’s undertaking, but since the noble Lord has asked me—I...

I am grateful to the noble Lord for giving way. He says that it is “exceptionally unlikely” that ...

The noble Lord will form his own judgment; I am putting to the House that this amendment implemen...

My Lords, does the noble Lord also agree that there is nothing in this proposed new clause that p...

I am grateful to the noble Viscount. As I have already said, this amendment is different from the...

My Lords, the noble Lord is an exceedingly distinguished lawyer, as we all know. I recognise that...

I repeat to the noble Lord: I have put in the amendment precisely the undertaking that the Prime ...

Can the noble Lord explain? He has repeatedly said that what he has put in his amendment and want...

What happens? Nobody knows what will happen: that is the whole point of the difficulty that we fa...

I know that some people in the House do not want to see the flaws in this, but the answer to my q...

If by referring to a hidden agenda, the noble Lord is suggesting that I have some motivation, I a...

I am grateful to the noble Lord for giving way and wish him a happy birthday. Would I be right in...

I am very grateful to the noble Lord. I was worried for a moment that he was going to sing at me,...

My Lords, many of your Lordships have made the point that we are not here to refight the referend...

My Lords, I support the amendment moved by the noble Lord, Lord Pannick. I will not take up too m...

My Lords, on the noble Lord’s latter point, it is perhaps worth recalling to the House what the M...

My Lords—

Order.

I will give way in a second.

Order!

I shall give way to the noble Lord if he sits down and lets me finish my sentence.

It is a ...

I am most grateful to the noble Lord for giving way, but having read out three times what the Min...

I know that the noble Lord is very experienced. If he does not know the difference between a reso...

My Lords—

I am not going to give way; I am going to make some progress.

Order!

How can it be a veto since we cannot in fact impose our will on the House of Commons?

The noble and learned Baroness is very experienced, and she should know that this House is able t...

The Prime Minister’s!

It is not the Prime Minister’s proposal. It is a ridiculous proposal to say that the Prime Minist...

Would my noble friend give way?

No, I am not going to give way to my noble friend.

Oh!

I promise to give way to him once I have actually made my points about the amendment.

It is...

I wonder whether the noble Lord realises that the Ministers or European officials with whom this ...

I do realise that. I have the utmost respect for my noble friend, who helped to get me elected in...

Oh!

Subsection (2) of the proposed new clause states that:

“Such approval shall be required bef...

I beg the noble Lord’s pardon and am grateful to him for giving way. The phrase,

“this will...

If the noble and learned Lord accepts my point then the more important it is not to seek to put i...

My Lords, I would love to continue this discussion until we reach an end of it, but all I am doin...

The noble and learned Lord is normally very careful and precise. At the beginning of my speech I ...

Does the noble Lord agree that the vote in the European Parliament will be about whether the deal...

My noble friend is absolutely right on that point. Subsection (3) of the proposed new clause stat...

I am sorry; I did not say that. I made it very clear to the House that proposed subsections (1) t...

I have to say to the noble Lord that we know what he is up to, and we know what is going on.

Oh!

I appreciate that I am in a minority in this House, and not just because I am a Scottish Tory. I ...

My Lords—

Order.

I have already given way to the noble Lord. He can make his own speech.

My Lords—

I am not giving way to the noble Lord.

Order!

Well, all right. I will give way to the noble Lord.

I am most grateful to the noble Lord. I am sorry that I am causing him such frustration this afte...

The House, not him.

Normally in this House we do not speak from a sedentary position.

My sedentary comment was that the noble Lord is annoying the House, not just an individual Member...

I am most grateful to the noble Lord for having arrogated to himself the decision as to what the ...

The noble Lord makes my point for me. If, after two years, we have no agreement, then we will hav...

Hear, hear!

This place is beginning to be like the House of Commons.

What is going on here is like Gull...

My Lords, one of the main reasons why we are where we are now is that the Prime Minister and the ...

I wonder whether in 1975 the noble Lord knew about the Maastricht treaty?

My Lords, in 1975 I was barely a teenager.

I conclude by saying that the main reason why we...

The noble Lord, Lord Hannay, seemed to suggest that we should support this amendment because Arti...

Whether it is irrevocable has not been tested legally. The expert on this is the noble Lord, Lord...

My Lords, I speak briefly to Amendment 4, which stands in my name and that of the noble Lord, Lor...

Will my noble friend give way?

I am just about to finish.

The House of Lords should be able to say, “We do not think you’v...

My Lords, I hope you will permit me to think aloud; these are not yet crystallised thoughts. I he...

My Lords, like the noble Lord, Lord Faulks, I arrived this morning for the debate on Amendment 1 ...

I wonder whether the noble Lord has picked up his notes for the wrong speech. He seems to be talk...

I am going to come very shortly and briefly to why I think these arguments mean that we should ha...

I am sorry; I know that the noble Lord wanted to speak to Amendment 1 and perhaps it is a bit fru...

The very argument as to why we should not commit to a future referendum, the uncertainty of the s...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords—

My noble friend Lord Hailsham is a signatory to this amendment and it is right that the House hea...

My Lords, those who have put their names to the proposed new clause are not seeking to stand in t...

One of my noble friend’s most endearing characteristics is that he cannot walk past a wasps’ nest...

My Lords, my noble friend has made a very serious point, which enables me to cut directly to the ...

In answer to that very question, I ask the noble Viscount to cast his mind back to 1991, when he ...

My Lords, I entirely agree with what the noble Lord has said. Of course, it is also consistent wi...

My Lords, I think it is the occasion for the Labour Benches. I remind the House that the Supreme ...

Perhaps I can remind the noble Baroness of the limits of what the Supreme Court decided. In parag...

In reaching that decision, the Supreme Court laid out the principle that the reason why it was en...

The noble Baroness said at the beginning of her remarks that this is a notification Bill, not an ...

At the end of the process, there is going to be a need to come back before Parliament. That has b...

My Lords, as my noble friend Lord Hailsham—

Did the noble Baroness finish? I wanted to intervene on her.

I think the noble Lord, Lord Finkelstein, wants to come in on the points that I was making. I had...

Was the court’s judgment not based on the idea that this was authorisation? The court would have ...

It is notification of withdrawal; it is not a withdrawal Bill.

My Lords, as I was saying, as my noble friend Lord Hailsham, whose father I greatly respected as ...

My Lords—

I should like to develop my argument. The real mischief in this proposed new clause lies in subse...

I am grateful. Does the noble Lord accept that at this stage the key question before the House is...

If the noble Lord allows me to develop my argument he will see exactly what the problem with what...

My Lords—

My Lords—

Lisvane!

My Lords, I am extremely grateful to my noble friend; no doubt she will have her opportunity in a...

My Lords, I am genuinely torn on how to vote on this amendment and turn to my noble and very able...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords, I think we will hear from the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, then from the noble Baroness,...

My Lords, I wish to say a few, brief words about sovereignty and the likely outcome if Parliament...

Can the noble Baroness give us chapter and verse on who said that?

My Lords, I read it in the papers every day.

Perhaps the noble Baroness would quote to the noble Lord, Lord Lea, exactly what President Hollan...

Thank you.

Much of our argument turns on whether Article 50 is revocable or not. The Suprem...

My Lords, I do not know what people will feel like in two years’ time. We know that the demograph...

Does the noble Baroness accept that the reason the court made that judgment was that both parties...

The point that the Supreme Court made was that it had not tested the point about revocability. I ...

My Lords, I will first take up the point that the noble Baroness has just mentioned about the jud...

As I understand the noble and learned Lord’s speech, he is saying that, provided the primacy of t...

I am saying that I think it would then simply incorporate the Prime Minister’s and the Minister’s...

But not proposed new subsection (4).

Of course, the bit at the end is a separate matter, and on the whole I do not feel very inclined ...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords—

I think my noble friend will find that my noble and learned friend has sat down. There will be an...

I am grateful to the noble Lord. The first of my two quick points is to clarify the issue of irre...

My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Kerr, quite rightly—and entertainingly as always—referred to the c...

I was following the noble Lord’s argument, and I agree with it in terms of the imprecision and la...

Yes. I can understand that point. I want to emphasise the central problem, which the noble and le...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords, it is a great pleasure to follow the noble Lord, Lord Grocott, and I agree with much of...

Order!

I apologise. A lot of noble Lords want to speak. I have tried to construct a speaking order. I su...

Baroness Altmann!

Yes, indeed. I will let my noble friend Lord Higgins speak next and include my noble friend Lady ...

I am grateful to my noble friend. I long ago came to the painful recognition that many Members of...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords, I am sorry, but I did indicate that I was going to call the noble Baroness, Lady Jones....

My Lords, it is an honour to follow the noble Lord, Lord Howard, with whom I shared a platform du...

My Lords, I sought to intervene earlier far more aggressively than I would ever normally do, simp...

My Lords, I preface my remarks by expressing my belief that speaking in favour of any amendment t...

Will my noble friend explain how what she is saying now squares with what she said at the start o...

I am not challenging the result of the referendum. We are here to debate and discuss how best to ...

My Lords, I have listened to this debate with a question that was unanswered at the beginning and...

My Lords, whether Article 50 notification is revocable or irrevocable is a matter of policy or la...

My Lords, not for the first time I wholly agree with the analysis of my noble friend Lord Heselti...

My Lords, I remind noble Lords that it is Report and we do not want Second Reading speeches. It i...

Front Bench!

No, I am afraid there are still some more people who have indicated that they want to speak.

My Lords, I will make just a couple of simple points because I can see that the House is ready to...

Does the noble Baroness agree with me that we should not ditch the principles of this House in or...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords, we will hear from the noble Lord, Lord Naseby, and then from the noble Lord, Lord Tugen...

My Lords, I shall be brief. I concur with what my noble friend has just said. We forget the effec...

My Lords, as the House knows, I speak as one who very much regrets the result of the referendum b...

My Lords—

My Lords—

My Lords—

Front Bench.

I think I made it clear, and the House has certainly made it clear, that is it time for the Front...

My Lords, we have gone via all kinds of highways, by-ways, Aunt Sallies and red herrings—mixing m...

My Lords, this afternoon we have heard a really compelling case for quite a simple demand: the ri...

Bearing in mind the emphasis the noble Baroness has quite rightly put on the two Houses coming to...

The Commons should certainly accept this amendment, albeit I am happy with the tweak to make cert...

My Lords, this debate has shown this House at its very best, and I thank all noble Lords who have...

My Lords—

Let me continue please. Denying the Prime Minister the ability to walk away from the negotiating ...

My Lords—

Forgive me. The amendment is clear on one thing, and one thing only: namely, that if Parliament a...

My Lords, I am grateful to all noble Lords who have contributed to this very full debate. I am pa...

My Lords—

6.15 pm

No, we have had a full debate. The Minister says that an undertaking has been given on proposed s...

Moved by

Lord Hain

5: After Clause 1, insert the following new Clause—

“Mainten...

My Lords, Amendment 5 is in my name and that of my noble friend Lord Murphy of Torfaen, who was m...

My Lords, I am very pleased to follow my noble colleague and fellow former Secretary of State for...

My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Hain, for tabling this amendment although I ...

My Lords, it is an opportunity, because of the speech of the noble Lord, Lord Hain, to once again...

The whole House always listens to the noble and right reverend Lord with the greatest respect on ...

My Lords, I feel that the question that the noble Lord has raised takes us far beyond the points ...

My Lords, it is a real delight to follow the noble and right reverend Lord, Lord Eames. When he w...

My Lords, I pay tribute to the wonderful, heartfelt speech from the noble and right reverend Lord...

My Lords, how pleasant to have a meaningful and good, short debate. I so agree with what has been...

I put it on record that my noble friend Lord Hain, who is perfectly capable of speaking for himse...

I am fully aware of that and of what other noble Lords, Ministers and Secretaries of State have d...

My Lords, I believe that citizenship is not threatened by the decision of the United Kingdom to l...

My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Hain, for raising one of the issues that has...

My Lords, I thank my noble friends Lord Hain and Lord Murphy of Torfaen for tabling the amendment...

I thank all noble Lords who have taken part in the debate on this amendment, relating to the righ...

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister and will respond briefly to him in a moment. However, the...

I am obliged to the noble Lord. Would he not confirm that, even going back to 1998, one of the pr...

I am aware of it. It is more complicated than the view that the noble Lord attributed to the Army...

What the noble Lord, Lord Empey, said was true—but, at a certain point, the chiefs of staff actua...

I am grateful to my noble friend. I will not prolong this discussion too much except to say that,...

I am grateful to my noble friend. Thanks to the initiative of the noble Viscount, Lord Slim, we a...

We are opening up a whole new debate. I am not sure I fully agree with my noble friend. I will en...