Welcome to our little corner of the Internet. Kick your feet up and stay a while.
My Lords, I, too, thank the most reverend Primate for securing this timely debate. There was much need for reconciliation after the First World War and Second World War. My Jamaican father fought for Britain in the Eighth Army, against the Germans, yet when he came to England in September 1945 he was saddened to see signs warning, “No blacks. No Irish. No dogs”—I guess …
My Lords, the famous British group, The Beatles, had worldwide success with the song “Don’t Let Me Down”. I am confident that the Government will not let Britain down as we leave the European Union. “We Can Work It Out” was another huge hit for The Beatles; I believe that working it out is what will happen. Although that song …
Today’s seed brings tomorrow’s harvest and so in principle I welcome this Bill as an extension to the Race Relations Act 1976. I support the intention to make the police and other public authorities liable under the Act. But there is a problem. The Bill gives effect to only part of the recommendations of the Macpherson report on the Stephen Lawrence …
It was Indira Gandhi who said: “You cannot shake hands with a clenched fist.” So in achieving a successful multi-cultural Britain, we must build bridges between our various communities and not walls. For me, the essential message of campaigners such as Wilberforce, Clarkson and former slaves such as Equiano was a simple truth: that there is only one race, the …
The recent riots that we witnessed in Bradford, Oldham and other towns can only damage race relations. Riots grab headlines, but when the TV cameras move on, it is the local community that is left to sweep up the debris. The riots caused millions of pounds’ worth of damage. People who fight fire with fire usually end up with ashes. But …
My Lords, I, too, thank the most reverend Primate for this timely debate. It was Aristotle who said: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all”. Education should be about understanding, not just memory. The whole-person view of education is clear from the Bible. Christ is spoken of as a teacher many times in the Gospels, …
My Lords, some years ago, in 1990, as the Conservative parliamentary candidate in Cheltenham, I had a rather interesting experience. On my first day as a candidate, an elderly lady approached me and demanded to know what exotic part of the world I was from. I replied that I was from the sunny paradise of Birmingham, just off the M6 …
My Lords, on this very day, 31 January, in 1606, Guy Fawkes was executed following the failed Gunpowder Plot—but it is vital that this Bill does not also expire. The European Union Bill must be passed into law to allow Her Majesty’s Government to implement the will of the people in the referendum result and to respect the judgment of the …
When I was chancellor of Bournemouth University, I had the pleasure of conferring on the noble Lord, Lord Ashdown, an honorary doctorate, and I still remember the inspiring way he spoke that day. I declare my interests, in that I am married to an American, and my children are British and American. I am also an honorary colonel in the …
Noble Lords will be aware of the horrific rape and murder of 15-year-old Naomi Smith and the part that DNA played in securing the recent conviction of her killer, Edwin Hopkins. This Bill has the potential to make a significant impact on the fight against crime. Its central purpose is to add the DNA profiles of some 7,750 serious violent …