House of Lords Podcast

Hear from Lord Forsyth as he warns of a 'presidential' style of government that he believes has weakened Parliament’s role in scrutinising and improving laws.

'The House of Commons is failing in its function. It’s just abandoned its function of considering legislation properly.'

In this new episode of Lord Speaker's Corner, Lord Forsyth tells Lord McFall of Alcluith that he wants to see 'root and branch' reform to cut the use of time-limits on debates and prevent overuse of secondary legislation. He explains that the task of scrutiny now falls largely to the House of Lords, where members can examine proposed bills with greater rigour because there is no guillotine on debate and every proposed change is debated.

Michael Forysth, now Lord Forsyth of Drumlean, was first elected as an MP in 1983. He went on to serve as a minister under both Margaret Thatcher and John Major, becoming Secretary of State for Scotland in 1995. He was the local MP at the time of the Dunblane Primary School shooting. Speaking about the tragedy, he explains 'It’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to me. It was a huge shock. I still get flashbacks of that scene in the gym.'

In the House of Lords, Lord Forsyth has chaired the Economic Affairs Committee and served on committees investigating the Barnett Formula, House of Lords reform, soft power and the National Security Strategy. He shares why he thinks Lords committee reports are so important and the dangers of government not giving their recommendations due attention.

• Find out more about the Lord Speaker's Corner series and see other episodes

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From making movies for Stephen Spielberg to ground-breaking protections for young people online, Beeban Kidron - Baroness Kidron - talks to Lord McFall of Alcluith about her wide-ranging work as a filmmaker and campaigner.

In this new interview, Baroness Kidron reveals what inspired her to become a filmmaker and her experiences making television and films including Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit and To Wong Foo, Thanks For Everything! Julie Newmar.

'When the data bill came into the Lords, I put forward an amendment that created a data protection regime for children... And when it came into force, we saw the biggest changes in social media that we've seen in two decades, since it's been a thing in our lives... We are currently working in seven different countries and I believe that by the end of the legislative season, there will be five more states who have passed age-appropriate design codes in their own system. And that is one code introduced in the UK, in the House of Lords.’

Baroness Kidron also discusses the Online Safety Bill and what she thinks should come next for protecting young people.

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We are discussing the environment and climate change this month on the House of Lords Podcast.

We spoke to two leading environmental campaigners in the House about their perceptions of the recent COP26 conference in Glasgow. We also discuss work in the Lords on the environment, and the balance between personal, government and international responsibilities in combatting climate change.

First up Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle, one of two Green Party members in the Lords, gives us her impressions of the conference, working as one of the smaller parties in the House, plus how it felt to win the first vote on a Green Party amendment in the Lords.

‘There were some important steps, the fact that fossil fuels and coal are actually mentioned in the COP declaration for the first time is important. But we really didn't make the progress that we needed to make in terms of climate finance.’ Baroness Bennett

We also discuss where the conversation on climate change should go next and the role of the Lords.

‘There's a lack of what I would call systems thinking... even if every individual in the world tried to become an environmental saint. The way our systems work, the way things are arranged in our society, the way our economy is arranged, we still wouldn't meet anywhere near the carbon cuts we need.’ Baroness Bennett

We also hear from Baroness Parminter, Chair of the Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee. Baroness Parminter gives her perspective on COP26 and discussing with representatives from parliaments around the world on how to hold their governments to account.

‘We'll be making sure that the pledges that the government have now committed to are actually delivered on the ground. So there's that vital role of scrutiny. But also here in Parliament, we are the democratic body that makes sure that people's voices are heard. And that we are making sure that the questions that the people on the streets want to know are getting answered.’ Baroness Parminter

Baroness Parminter also tells us about upcoming work of the committee and how it felt to lead the charge on the plastic bag levy.

‘When I came in 10 years ago, I was determined to try and make a small contribution to helping make our planet a better place. And when we were in the coalition in 2010 to 2015, I introduced the Lib Dem's policy to support a levy on the plastic bags. And we managed to persuade our Conservative partners in the coalition to deliver that...

‘Over 60% of the action that needs to be taken is around behaviour change. What we eat, how we heat our homes, how we travel, what we buy and what we throw away. And so we need to be looking at how we mobilize people to change their behaviours.’ Baroness Parminter

· Find out more about Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle and follow on Twitter

· Find out more about Baroness Parminter and follow on Twitter

· Find out more about the Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee

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For the first of our two October episodes, and in celebration of Black History Month, discover the story of Lord Pitt of Hampstead in partnership with the Parliamentary Archives.

The second Black peer in the House of Lords, for many years Dr David Pitt was one of the most recognisable civil rights campaigners in Britain.

From Grenada to Camden via Scotland and the House of Lords, learn more about this leading figure who contributed significantly to the passing of race relations legislation.

This piece was originally written by Richard Ward and is narrated by Nimmy March.

Read this article on the Parliamentary Archives website

Discover more Black History Month content from the House of Lords

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Sovereignty, tackling terrorism and even Macbeth are on the agenda in the latest Lord Speaker’s Corner as David Anderson, Lord Anderson of Ipswich KC, speaks to Lord McFall of Alcluith.

‘You were inventing effectively a new system... that had to be common to all the difference countries of Europe... It seemed to me much better to do it that way than to be fighting each other as we had been for hundreds of years.’

King’s Counsel Lord Anderson is a leader in European and public law. He has been involved in multiple ground-breaking legal judgments and argued more than 180 cases at the European Court of Justice and European Court of Human Rights. In this episode, he talks to Lord McFall about Factortame, the landmark case on parliamentary sovereignty versus European law that saw English courts disapply an Act of Parliament. He also discusses the impact of this and other cases, reflecting ‘I did wonder in retrospect whether it might've been one of the reasons for Brexit.’

Lord Anderson also explains his thinking on sovereignty and where power lies today:

‘I think in having a political constitution where Parliament is in charge, we've done the right thing. Where I think the difficulty lies is in the relationship between the executive and Parliament... I think it was Gladstone who once said that our constitution more than any others presumes the good sense and the good faith of those who work it.’

He also shares his perspective that we don’t need a written constitution but argues ‘if we had a constitutional code or a code of constitutional principles for use in legislation, then that would help actors in the constitutional drama. And I think it would also help inform the public.’

Lord Anderson was previously the Independent Reviewer of Terrorism Legislation. His work, including the influential report A Question of Trust, paved the way for greater transparency of the government’s powers and their use:

‘It was dangerous because there was not sufficient trust of the people that are supposed to keep us safe. So what we ended up with was a bill which became an Act of Parliament, which greatly increased the transparency. That doesn't mean telling the bad guys everything you're doing. But it does mean being clear with Parliament and the public what the powers are and how in principle they could be used.’

He also advised the government on the need for change following the Westminster and Manchester terror attacks, and argued for more cooperation including beyond the state. He explains ‘if you are going to be effective, for example in stopping people from buying bomb-making ingredients online, you're going to need collaboration from big private companies as well, online marketplaces or online sellers and so on.’ Lord Anderson also cautions about reacting to events, warning ‘if you are foolish enough to overreact to what they are doing or to what they are threatening to do, then you are giving them exactly what they want. Because you are marginalising whatever suspect community they are trying to draw their support from... it's hard to do it sometimes, but you've got to retain the rule of law.’

See more from the series https://www.parliament.uk/business/lords/house-of-lords-podcast/

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