Vol. 809 Wednesday No. 167 6 January 2021 PARLIAMENTARYDEBATES (HANSARD) HOUSE OF LORDS OFFICIAL REPORT ORDEROFBUSINESS Questions Divorce ...........................................................................................................................131 Green Homes Grant Scheme..........................................................................................134 Religious Groups: Financial Support.............................................................................137 Law Enforcement: Brexit Impacts ..................................................................................141 Schools: Exams Private Notice Question ..................................................................................................144 Medicines and Medical Devices Bill Order of Consideration Motion .......................................................................................149 Covert Human Intelligence Sources (Criminal Conduct) Bill Order of Consideration Motion .......................................................................................150 Provisional Local Government Finance Settlement Statement........................................................................................................................150 Trade Bill Report (3rd Day)............................................................................................................162 Grand Committee Antique Firearms Regulations 2020 Considered in Grand Committee...................................................................................GC 1 Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 (Regulated Activities) (Amendment) Order 2020 Considered in Grand Committee ................................................................................GC 13 Lords wishing to be supplied with these Daily Reports should give notice to this effect to the Printed Paper Office. No proofs of Daily Reports are provided. Corrections for the bound volume which Lords wish to suggest to the report of their speeches should be clearly indicated in a copy of the Daily Report, which, with the column numbers concerned shown on the front cover, should be sent to the Editor of Debates, House of Lords, within 14 days of the date of the Daily Report. This issue of the Official Report is also available on the Internet at https://hansard.parliament.uk/lords/2021-01-06 In Hybrid sittings, [V] after a Member’s name indicates that they contributed by video call. The following abbreviations are used to show a Member’s party affiliation: Abbreviation Party/Group CB Cross Bench Con Conservative DUP Democratic Unionist Party GP Green Party Ind Lab Independent Labour Ind LD Independent Liberal Democrat Ind SD Independent Social Democrat Ind UU Independent Ulster Unionist Lab Labour Lab Co-op Labour and Co-operative Party LD Liberal Democrat LD Ind Liberal Democrat Independent Non-afl Non-affiliated PC Plaid Cymru UKIP UK Independence Party UUP Ulster Unionist Party No party affiliation is given for Members serving the House in a formal capacity, the Lords spiritual, Members on leave of absence or Members who are otherwise disqualified from sitting in the House. © Parliamentary Copyright House of Lords 2021, this publication may be reproduced under the terms of the Open Parliament licence, which is published at www.parliament.uk/site-information/copyright/. 131 Arrangement of Business [6 JANUARY 2021] Divorce 132 House of Lords Lord Farmer (Con): My Lords, Resolution urges early support for separating couples to mitigate the pain of Wednesday 6 January 2021 divorce and consequential mental ill health they and their children very frequently experience. The Lord The House met in a hybrid proceeding. Chancellor committed to join up government family support to mitigate the pain of no-fault divorce. Family Noon hubs,as recommended by Justice Cobb’sFamily Solutions Group, are firmly on the Department for Education’s Prayers—read by the Lord Bishop of Rochester. agenda, but how will the Ministry of Justice ensure support for separating families? Arrangement of Business Lord Stewart of Dirleton (Con) [V]: My Lords, the Announcement noble Lord is correct to identify the family hubs as a principal part of the Government’s intention to join 12.06 pm up government family support as part of the backdrop to implementing no-fault divorce. Ministers and officials The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler): My Lords, Oral from the Ministry of Justice are working closely with Questions will now commence. Please can those asking their counterparts in the Department for Education supplementary questions keep them short and confined and a number of other government departments to to two points? I obviously ask that Ministers’ answers share a cross-government agenda for strengthening are also brief. I call the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, families. Family hubs are a vital element of this agenda, to ask the first Oral Question. and work is continuing to further develop the family hub model to ensure that they improve outcomes for Divorce children and families with children. This will include those at risk of separating or who have separated, Question equipping them with the skills to manage issues and decisions independently and effectively so that they do 12.06 pm not need to rely on family courts. In addition, and as Asked by Baroness Deech previously stated in this House, the Government will use the opportunity of revising the online divorce To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to application process to improve the signposting of relevant the research on the impact of divorce published by support services. Resolution on 30 November, what steps they are taking (1) to improve the capacity of family courts, Baroness Butler-Sloss (CB) [V]: My Lords, will the and (2) to support divorce litigants. Minister ensure that the Government give sufficient support, especially to children suffering from the The Advocate-General for Scotland (Lord Stewart of separation of their parents, including better funding Dirleton) (Con) [V]: [Inaudible]—enormous pressure. for CAMHS? Despite this unprecedented challenge, I can reassure the House that the whole system has worked together Lord Stewart of Dirleton (Con) [V]: I am very sorry; to prioritise support for the most vulnerable. Of course, may I ask the noble and learned Baroness to repeat the we acknowledge that there is always more to do, which question? I am trying to communicate by telephone, is why the department continues to work with the advice and it is not particularly easy. sector to provide vital support services for litigants. The Earl of Courtown (Con): My Lords, I think we Baroness Deech (CB) [V]: The Resolution report should move on to the next question. If my noble showed that we are heading for disaster in the family friend the Minister could write to the noble and learned courts, and that 41% of those recently divorced suffered Baroness with his answer, we can move on to the next mental health episodes or even had suicidal thoughts. supplementary. The Nuffield report on remote hearings showed that while the professionals are happy with remote court working, litigants are not. There are technical issues Lord Stewart of Dirleton (Con) [V]: I am obliged to and a lack of privacy. What will the Government do to my noble friend Lord Courtown. help those in divorce proceedings? Disputes over financial provision are a major irritant. If mediation is a solution, The Lord Speaker (Lord Fowler): Moving on to the the law in that area has to be simplified. Will the next supplementary,I call the noble Lord, Lord Faulkner. Minister update the House on progress with a promised review of financial provision law aimed at making it Lord Faulkner of Worcester (Lab): My Lords, I less contentious? think we are all aware that this post-Christmas period is a particularly difficult time for relationships, and the Lord Stewart of Dirleton (Con) [V]: My Lords, I do feelings of depression and anxiety among divorcees, not accept the noble Baroness’s characterisation of which the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, referred to, the situation as one in which we are heading for are made worse when they are worried about whether disaster. The situation is no doubt complex, and we are they can afford professional or legal advice. So many aware of the data to which she refers. decide to represent themselves in the divorce court 133 Divorce [LORDS] Green Homes Grant Scheme 134 [LORD FAULKNER OF WORCESTER] staff across jurisdictions and around 700 further rather than to have professional advice, sometimes appointments are currently sought. Your Lordships with disastrous results. How do the Government intend will be aware that Her Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals to ensure that poorer people have access to justice, and Service has established 17 Nightingale courts across what are they doing to relieve the huge burden of England and Wales. These give 32 additional courtrooms overwork for court staff which leads to phones not to alleviate the pressure on courts and tribunals. These being answered and cases postponed? courts are hearing, as well as family cases, civil, tribunal and non-custodial criminal work. I can advise that Lord Stewart of Dirleton (Con) [V]: My Lords, with judicial sitting days in the family court have been regard to the noble Lord’s first question, legal aid is increased. Current projections are that a level of nearly available for private families where an applicant is a 96,000 sitting days for 2020-21 may be accomplished— victim of, or at risk of being a victim of,