My Lords, this is perhaps the shortest group that we have had on the Bill so far. Not only will Members of the Committee be relieved about that, but I think it reflects a high level of consensus among the parties that it would be beneficial to restore one of the elements of the Bill that was stripped out when this Bill was brought to us in this new Session. It was very interesting to listen closely to the Minister’s response on the previous group, where he highlighted some of the changes that the Government volunteered on the previous Bill to assuage concerns that had been raised over scrutiny. Well, I hope that he will not be offended when I say that this is one that should go back in. If he is on a roll—or perhaps the Minister of State will be responding to this group—I hope he will be equally open to some of the changes.
4 pm
I am grateful for the support of the noble Lord, Lord Bassam, and my noble friend Lady Kramer in moving Amendment 28. In so doing, I want to recall what the Trade Minister, George Hollingbery, said in moving Amendments 44 to 47 in the Commons, reducing from five years to three years the length of the period for which the implementing power can be used for these agreements. It was part of a suite of amendments that we seek to restore in the Bill. In moving his amendments, the Minister told Jonathan Djangoly MP:
“I hope that my hon. Friend … agrees that these amendments address the spirit of the issues he was seeking clarity on and provide enhanced parliamentary scrutiny.”—[Official Report, Commons, 17/7/18; col. 266.]
By definition, therefore, as this was part of a package which has been significantly watered down, the reductions now reduce parliamentary scrutiny. These cross-party amendments seek to restore that enhanced level of scrutiny to which the then Minister referred.
Any reader of these proceedings may be scratching their head about why it is necessary for opposition Members to restore government amendments to the previous Bill to enhance parliamentary scrutiny, because the Government have removed them. It is therefore justifiable to question why they have done it and what their motives are. Did they feel that enhanced parliamentary scrutiny was necessary when they had a small majority in the House of Commons but now, with a large majority, such a concept of parliamentary scrutiny is no longer necessary? I can only suspect that this is the case, as the substance of the issue and the concerns about the longevity of this major order-making power have not changed from the previous Bill to this—so why have the Government changed their position?
I very much hope that the Minister’s speaking notes do not include the fact that the lion’s share of these agreements have already been made, so there is no necessity to bring back the earlier sunset clause. That is hardly a convincing argument, as the number of continuity agreements made between the end of the previous Bill and the introduction of this one is marginally different. While agreement today with Ukraine is welcome, in fact some, such as with Kenya and East Africa, have fallen away. As I said on Tuesday, of the 38 agreements the Government were seeking—I remind the Committee that the Government sought to get them all signed in March 2019—20 have been agreed and 18 are yet to be agreed.
There is also the fact that they are not all the same. It would be easy to think that all the continuity agreements are of the same category and age. Well, they are not. Some are first generation, before 2006; some are second generation, which widened the scope to intellectual property, competition and customs co-operation; some are deep and comprehensive free trade areas and others are economic partnership agreements. So some of them are already in effect out of date from the time that we will start to operate with them. It is inevitable that there will be a need to update some of them, and the EU will do the same.
In fact, the process is under way for the EU to update and renew those third-party agreements. What response will we have to a third country when its agreement with the EU, that we have rolled over, is being updated by the EU? Do we keep pace with standards and commitments updated by the EU, or seek to be aligned with the US, as the Minister alluded to on ISDS on Tuesday? Five years is too long before Parliament can take a view on whether it is right to update, amend or adjust some of those agreements, or whether it is appropriate to commence discussions on a successor agreement.
I hope that the Minister will take stock of this short debate and reflect on the fact that a three-year period, which could be extended, is more appropriate than five years. I will close on a reflection on the five-year period. It would mean that no Parliament which ratifies an agreement would then be able to take a view on that
agreement within that same Parliament. I do not think that is appropriate. I think that towards the end of a Parliament it is a right judgment for that Parliament to consider. The reality of the five-year power is that no one Parliament would be able to discuss the agreement that it has ratified, how it is operating and whether it needs to be updated. A three-year power would be appropriate. I think that is one reason why the previous Minister agreed to make the changes. I hope that the Government will reflect on that and restore the three-year period, and I beg to move.