Progress made towards meeting the 78 recommendations made in 2002 by the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child regarding children’s rights in the United Kingdom; the proposed withdrawal of the Watford Junction to Gatwick Airport rail service; progress made in preventing the transport of live horses for slaughter across national boundaries; and the Bluetongue disease - were the subject of questions.

The Two major debates were on the Government’s consultation paper on War Powers and Treaties (Cm 7239); and on the case for the setting up of a Women’s Justice Board. Some delegated legislation was approved. The House rose at 5.39pm.

The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill was given its second day of consideration in Grand Committee.

Questions included plans for electricity generation; limits on expenditure by political parties during general elections and on publicity and advertising between general elections; levels of malnutrition amongst NHS patients; and the Ministry of Justice’s Review of Voting Systems (Cm 7304).

A third Reading was given to the Local Transport Bill. The Payments into the Olympic Lottery Distribution Fund etc. Order 2007 was approved and the Climate Change Bill was furthered considered in committee. The House adjourned at 11.01pm.

Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill was furthered considered in Grand Committee.

Questions covered the costs to the Exchequer arising from Metronet going into administration; Election Observers for UK Elections; Unexploded landmines in the Falklands; and take up of bursaries at British Universities. The Electricity and Gas (Carbon Emissions Reduction) Order 2008 was approved, after a short exchange between Lord Jenkin of Roding and the DEFRA Minister Lord Rooker. The Report Stage of the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill was taken, and the day concluded with the approval of the Greater London Authority Elections (Election Addresses)(Amendment) Order 2008. The House rose at 7.29pm.

The Child Maintenance and Other Payments Bill had the first day of its Grand Committee in the Moses Room from 3.30pm - 7.29pm.

The Government was asked what advice they have given to companies in the private sector on pay increases; proposed cuts in primary healthcare in rural Northumberland; mixed sex wards in hospitals; and why Virgin trains were denied the authority to add two coaches to its trains on the West Coast main line.

Baroness Royall, the new Government Chief Whip, was appointed a member of the panel of Deputy Chairmen of Committees and of the Administration and Works; Privileges; Procedure; and Selection committees, in place of Lord Grocott. Her appointment as Chief Whip was welcomed around the House, and tributes were paid to Lord Grocott who announced his retirement as Chief Whip last week.

Three pieces of secondary legislation were approved without debate. The Human Fertilisation & Embryology Bill was further considered on Report. The house adjourned at 10.07pm.

The Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill was further considered in Grand Committee.

Scottish sovereignty; Boatmasters' licences; the Common Fisheries Policy; and progress with the signing of the contract for the two new aircraft carriers - were the subject of questions. The Sale of Student Loans Bill was brought from the Commons and given its 1st Reading. Debates were held on Iraq; and the role of non-governmental organisations delivering services on behalf of the Government. A Question for Short Debate was taken on the review of Part IX of the Drug Tariff.
The House adjourned at 6.02pm.

There were a series of QSDs in Grand Committee which covered Capacity on the railways; Coroners; the Central American Integration System; and People Trafficking.

Questions dealt with the release into the wild of grey squirrels; whether broadcasters should be required to broadcast details of parliamentary business; child poverty; and elections in Pakistan. The Climate Change Bill was again considered in committee. In the dinner break the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 (Codes of Practice) Order 2008 was approved. The House sitting was suspended from 8.13 to 8.45. The House adjourned at 10.18pm.

The Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill was considered in Grand Committee.

Lord Roberts asked Her Majesty’s Government: Whether they propose to change the relationship between the Bank of England and HM Treasury? The answer was no, but propted a timely discussion on such matters. Lord Steelasked about providing a statutory basis for the House of Lords Appointment Commission - one of the measures in his bill that hit such choppy waters last Thursday. Other questions dealt with increasing the duty free allowance; and the teaching of geography in schools. A private members bill to establish an Office for Retail Planning given its first reading.

The main business of the day was the second reading of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill. There was a Question for Short Debate on the Middle East. The House adjourned at 9.51pm.

A number of pieces of delegated legislation were considered in Grand Committee.

Questions dealt with assisting refugees from Iraq; Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease; Loans to refugees and the allocation of funding for the Armed Forces and counterterrorism. Lord Avebury introduced a private members bill - the House of Lords (Amendment) Bill. Apart from a statement on Northen Rock , the rest of the day was taken up with the Report Stage (day 2) of the Human Fertilisation & Embryology Bill.

There were three divisions, all of which were unsuccessful attempts to amend the Bill

3.37pm - Amendment 30 - Content 121 Not-Content 162
4.36pm - Amendment 33A - Content 138 Not-Content 167
8.10pm - Amendment 108A - Content 93 Not-Content 165

The House adjourned at 10.19pm.

The first day of the Committee stage of the Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill was taken in the Moses Room between 3.30pm and 7.33pm.

Today was spend considering two bills related to medical issues. The first was the Alcohol Labelling Bill - to require a warning to be placed on bottles and containers containing alcohol for consumption - “GOVERNMENT WARNING: avoid alcohol if pregnant or trying to conceive.” The second bill was the Kidney Transplant Bill, which would authorise doctors to remove from dead patients over the age of 18 one kidney for transplant purposes. This could only be done if the kidney was suitable for transplantation and there was no evidence either from a central registry or from the patient's relatives that the deceased had opted out of donation.

The day had begun with the 1st Reading of the Channel Tunnel Rail Link (Supplementary Provisions) Bill, which had been brought up from the Commons. The first bill's 2nd Reading lasted from 10.06am to 11.14am, and the second's from11.14am to the adjournment of the House at 1.23pm

A busy day in the House! Questions dealt with boxing in schools; work experience; the Galileo project; and powers to be given to immigration and customs officers at borders. A motion to appoint members of the Select committee to consider the Crossrail Bill was agreed to, as were four motions to approve secondary legislation.

The first balloted debate concerned the legacy of the Olympic Games to be held in London in 2012. This ran from 11.37am to 2.06pm. Baroness Royall of Blaisdon then repeated a Statement made in the Commons by the Foreign Secretary on the Russian Government's actions against the British Council in Russia. The second debate of the day, on Musculoskeletal Disorders, began at 2.48. It concluded at 4.20pm.

David Steel's private members bill, the House of Lords Bill, began its committee stage at 4.20pm. A sketch of that debate can be found at http://washminster.blogspot.com [18th January 2008]. Progress on the 196 amendments was slow with only the first three groupings considered ( Amendments 1 and 3 withdrawn; Amendment 2 negatived). The House adjourned at 7.00pm.

The fourth day of the Grand Committee on the Children and Young Persons Bill was taken in the Moses Room from 2.00pm until 5.04pm

Japanese whaling; the introduction of a Civil Service Bill; Autism; and Medical Education were the subject of questions. The Report Stage of the Local Government Bill was taken. The Report Stage was suspended for the Dinner Break, during which the home Information Pack (Amendment) Regulations 2007 were discussed, under a motion to pray for annulment. The House adjourned at 10.21pm.

In Grand Committee the Third Day of consideration was given to the Children and Young Persons Bill.

Questions dealt with encouraging people to participate in sport and physical activities (and Lord Dubs encouraged Peers to set an example by using the Westminster Gym); Conservation of public buildings; the Law Commission's report on murder; and Mental Health Community Orders.

The main business in the Chamber was the first day of the Report Stage of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill. Two divisions were held (5.53pm - Government won 268-96 and 9.59pm - Government won 180-62). A question for short debate on the EU Committee's report on "European Wine: A Better Deal for All" http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld200607/ldselect/ldeucom/184/184.pdf was taken during the dinner break. The House adjourned at 10.08pm

In the Moses Room, the Fourth Day of the Grand Committee on the Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill was taken. The committee sat from 3.30pm to 7.12pm (with a ten minute break for the first division in the main chamber.

Preparations to handle an outbreak of pandemic flu; Apprenticeships; the mis-selling of inappropriate home loans; and the resources committed to the rehabilitation of life prisoners who have served more than their tariff - were the subject of questions.

The fifth day of the committee stage of the Climate Change Bill was the main business of the day. That began at 3.08 and finished at 10.40 when the House adjourned, with a Question for Short Debate on reforming the Social Fund being taken during the dinner break (7.29 to 8.21 - and a suspension of the sitting until 8.30). The House divided for the first time since 25th October.

The second day of the Grand Committee of the Children and Young Persons Bill was taken in the Moses Room between 3.30pm and 8.01pm.

Questions concerned the disclosure of voting records by institutional investors in pension schemes and the publication of their social and environmental policies in making those investments; Allotments; Improving road safety [which prompted attacks on the misbehaviour of cyclists - a topic that can be counted on to rask the hackles of members of the Upper House]; the luggage policy at different airports.

There were two main debates - the first was on the United Kingdom’s commitment to participate in the United States missile defence system, and to the implications of recent negotiations between the United States and other states for the deployment of that system. Some comments from that debate are reported on the Washminster blog at http://washminster.blogspot.com/

The second debate concerned Community Empowerement. It was taken after Lord Jones of Birmingham had repeated the statement on Nuclear Policy. The final item of business was a Question for Short Debate on Human Rights and China. The House adjourned at 6.25pm.

Questions concerned errors made in the payment of service personnels' salaries; the different availability of medicines on prescription in England and Scotland; flood defences; and the provision of live music subsequent to the Licensing Act 2003.

The Climate Change Bill was further considered in committee. The major debate concerned the non-inclusion of emissions from international shipping and aviation. At 6.25pm the House turned to the second reading of the Crossrail Bill. The Criminal Justice and Immigration Bill was brought from the Commons and read a first time, and the House adjourned at 9.16pm.

Questions dealt with the remit to the Bank of England with regard to the funding of commercial banks and building societies; the UK-US extradition treaty; compliance with the harmony guidelines (the amount of time service personnel spend away from their families); and the death of Dr David Kelly.

The House resolved itself again into Committee to consider the Climate Change Bill. During the dinner break the House dealt witgh a Question for Short Debate on the National Audiology Action Plan.

The House adjourned at 10.00pm. The Children and Young Persons Bill was considered in Grand Committee from 3.30pm to 7.42pm

The House met for the first time in 2008 at 2.30pm. After prayers led by the Lord Bishop of Ely Questions were taken on the Annapolis Conference (Israel & Palestine); the treatment of severe trauma patients in hospital accident and emergency units; Zimbabwe; and the funding of the British Transport Police's contribution to Olympic security in 2012.

The Employment Bill was given its second reading. After the frontbench speeches the reading was interrupted for a statement on Pakistan and Kenya was repeated. After the 2nd Reading was successfully concluded the House debated the report of the House's Economic Affairs Committee on "Apprenticeship: A Key Route to Skill". The House adjourned at 9.37pm.