Speeches by Davies-Jones.

“I am grateful once again to have the opportunity to speak on the Victims and Courts Bill. As I have said previously in this House, this is fundamentally a Bill for victims. Throughout the Bill’s passage, we have heard the experiences and views of victims and bereaved families and we have listened. I know for that fact …”

“Lords amendment 4C would make any regulations to set the rates at which private prosecutors can recover costs from central funds subject to the affirmative, rather than negative, procedure. I fully recognise the desire for parliamentary scrutiny, and the Government are committed to ensuring that any use of this power i…”

“I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s intervention. He will know that my family have also faced tragedy and bereavement at the hands of the IRA. My cousin was killed on Horse Guards Parade serving this country by a serving member of the IRA, and that issue has plagued my family for decades and still hurts to this very day. I …”

“I thank my hon. Friend for his intervention. This Bill goes beyond party politics; this is a Bill, as I have said, for victims. It has been a sincere pleasure to work across political divides to get this right for victims, who are rightly at the heart of the Bill. I have always stated that I will work with anyone from …”

“That will ensure that Parliament is not constrained in granting an enabling power that can be exercised in a proportionate, practical and effective way. For those reasons, I urge Members to support the motions and the Government amendments. I commend the Bill to the House.”

“I beg to move, That this House disagrees with Lords amendments 4B and 4C.”

“I appreciate that clarification. The hon. Gentleman is correct, but Lords amendment 5C does much more than that, through listening to victims campaigners such as Tracey Hanson and Katie Brett directly. The measure is a direct tribute to them, because for them the status quo was neither fair nor acceptable. I would also…”

“With the leave of the House, I will close this really important and special debate. It moves us another step closer to this Bill becoming a much-needed law for all victims, and I sincerely thank all hon. Members who have spoken, particularly my hon. Friends the Members for Blackpool North and Fleetwood (Lorraine Beaver…”

“I will be attending.”

“Katie, I hope you will not mind me saying that I believe both your sister and your mother would be immensely proud of the determination and compassion that you have shown. You have had a big influence in ensuring that these measures exist, and I know that you will ensure that we deliver on them. I extend my thanks to m…”

“Our amendment in lieu will first place in primary legislation a statutory duty on the Lord Chancellor to consult before laying any secondary legislation to set rates. There will be full and thorough public consultation, and the Government will publish a full response as part of the process of setting any rates. The mea…”

“The negative procedure strikes the right balance. It ensures that regulations are laid before Parliament; that they are subject to scrutiny, including from the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee; and that they may be challenged, debated and annulled where concerns arise. It gives Parliament a clear mechanism to i…”

“I welcome the hon. Gentleman’s comments. I was not inadvertently misleading the House; if he looks at the details of Lords amendment 5C, he will see that that is not what it does. The amendment does not simply extend the time limit—it does much more—and it does not extend the time limit for everyone. As I will explain …”

“At this stage, Parliament is conferring an enabling power. We do not yet know how complex or detailed the eventual structure of the rates will be. In these circumstances, it would be disproportionate to mandate a process that risks lengthy debate, using up valuable parliamentary time over technical or numerical detail,…”

“Lords amendment 4B would require the Ministry of Justice to publish an impact assessment before making any regulations. The Government fully recognise the importance of transparency. However, we do not consider that this amendment is appropriately framed in its drafting for the established process. Nevertheless, we rec…”

“I thank all right hon. and hon. Members who have contributed to the debate today. I will answer the questions of the hon. Member for Maidenhead (Mr Reynolds) first, as he spoke last, and they are fresh in my mind. I will endeavour to get him the information that he asks for. He may not have seen or be aware of the new …”

“Patronising, but truthful, given that what I am saying is that the Government are determined to go further in the right way. We agree with the sentiment of the Lords amendments, but they are not workable and will not work in this legislation. Where practically possible, we will be bringing forward legislative changes a…”

“My hon. Friend is right. This is called the Victims and Courts Bill because it is a Bill for victims, built by victims and, sadly, by their experiences of how the criminal justice system has not supported them and has failed them. It is important for us to build on the Bill and ensure that we get it right and that it i…”

“I beg to move, That this House disagrees with Lords amendment 1.”

“I am afraid that the hon. Member must not have heard what I said before I came to non-legislative changes. The Government are committed to bringing forward legislative changes on that time limit and to consider out-of-time applications by families. We have listened directly to the families about what they want. We coul…”