:00:11. > :00:16.I beg leave to ask the question standing in my name on the order
:00:17. > :00:21.paper. My Lords, according to the latest data from the office for
:00:22. > :00:27.national statistics, income inequality in the UK is at its
:00:28. > :00:32.lowest level since 1986. The key to economic success and to reducing
:00:33. > :00:36.inequality is to improve activity which determines living standards in
:00:37. > :00:39.the long run, that's why the Government has established a
:00:40. > :00:44.national productivity investment fund and published a Green Paper on
:00:45. > :00:48.industrial strategy highlighting the role of improved skills, of
:00:49. > :00:54.infrastructure, investment and of R and D. My Lords, the resolution
:00:55. > :01:01.foundation argues to prevent the biggest increase in inequality since
:01:02. > :01:05.the 1980s, requires a shift in social policy choices, notably the
:01:06. > :01:11.freeze in most working age benefits in the face of rising inflation.
:01:12. > :01:16.Will the Government now follow the advice of Iain Duncan Smith and
:01:17. > :01:22.reconsider the freeze because he warned that it was never intended,
:01:23. > :01:28.it should have such a dramatic impact - effect on incomes, his
:01:29. > :01:31.words. Wouldn't it be the right thing to do to protect low income
:01:32. > :01:37.families in and out of work in this way for a Government that claims to
:01:38. > :01:42.be working for everyone? My Lords, I think we have to have a
:01:43. > :01:49.little bit of context, savings are necessary to reduce borrowing and to
:01:50. > :01:56.put the public finances back on a sustainable footing after the
:01:57. > :02:04.financial crisis and between 1980 and 2014 spending on welfare
:02:05. > :02:08.actually trebled in real terms to ?96 billion whilst GDP increased by
:02:09. > :02:16.much less. Our approach is a different one. We are committed to
:02:17. > :02:22.supporting working families with a whole load of measures, getting
:02:23. > :02:26.people back into work... Thank you. Innovating, growing and putting the
:02:27. > :02:30.country on it a good footing. It's only a forecast from the resolution
:02:31. > :02:32.foundation, forecasts aren't always right and we're determined to make
:02:33. > :02:40.the changes we need for this country.
:02:41. > :02:47.Going back to the exchange about inequality... My Lords, the Minister
:02:48. > :02:54.said whether any assessment has been made of the effect of the national
:02:55. > :03:00.living wage on which inequality and whether there is anything more that
:03:01. > :03:06.can be done in this respect? I thank my Nobel friend, because I
:03:07. > :03:13.believe that the national living wage, brought in in April last year,
:03:14. > :03:18.is a fantastic example of policies that the Government has introduced
:03:19. > :03:24.to make work pay. In terms of looking forward, it will rise again
:03:25. > :03:28.to ?7. 50 next month and it has already given the working, many
:03:29. > :03:34.working people in Britain the fastest pay rise in 20 years.
:03:35. > :03:39.Observers will have noticed that there's a startling contradiction
:03:40. > :03:44.between the presumption in the question that income inequality has
:03:45. > :03:49.been growing very sharply and the resumption in the reply that it's
:03:50. > :03:53.doing the opposite. There are different measures but most of them
:03:54. > :04:00.do think that inequality is growing. Wouldn't it be useful if the ONS did
:04:01. > :04:06.convene a panel of people to get a little more clarity as to why these
:04:07. > :04:10.figures can be banded around with such different descriptions of what
:04:11. > :04:16.is happening. I think the ONS keep is honest, they look at these
:04:17. > :04:19.figures over time and they helpfully update and the OBR forecasts are
:04:20. > :04:23.updated all the time so that we can see what's happening. I would like
:04:24. > :04:28.to come back to the point which is that the resolution foundation is
:04:29. > :04:32.looking at a forecast but if you look at what has happened, five
:04:33. > :04:38.years ago it was predicted, I think by the IFS, that there would be a
:04:39. > :04:44.rise in inequality. In fact, it hasn't happened. Things continued to
:04:45. > :04:48.progress and we have seen a recoveriy and that's what we need to
:04:49. > :04:52.continue by having the right policies which this Government is
:04:53. > :04:58.pursuing under our new Prime Minister. My Lords, I am shocked
:04:59. > :05:01.that the Minister doesn't recognise that young working families are
:05:02. > :05:04.facing serious financial pressure and struggling and that it looks as
:05:05. > :05:09.though it's going to be worse with inflation. But would she agree that
:05:10. > :05:14.part of the reason are the very high rents that most of these families
:05:15. > :05:19.face, and would she be willing in the budget tomorrow to permit local
:05:20. > :05:23.councils to go out and borrow the necessary amounts of money to drive
:05:24. > :05:26.forward development of affordable rental housing. She has often
:05:27. > :05:30.acknowledged that the housing market is broken, but all the Government
:05:31. > :05:36.solutions are on the demand side, supply doesn't increase, especially
:05:37. > :05:42.not in the affordable area. I wouldn't want to steal the
:05:43. > :05:44.Chancellor's thunder today. I think that there is certainly some
:05:45. > :05:48.provision for Prudential borrowing but I would like to come back to the
:05:49. > :05:53.support that we give to working families. The national living wage,
:05:54. > :06:00.already mentioned by my noble friend, that's given the fastest pay
:06:01. > :06:04.rise in 20 years. We have raised the personal allowance to ?12500 by the
:06:05. > :06:09.end of parliament. We are introducing universal credit which
:06:10. > :06:16.has the benefit of making work pay so that you go out and work, you
:06:17. > :06:20.aren't held back by benefit dilemmas. We are committed to make
:06:21. > :06:25.work pay and we believe that is the very best way forward for the people
:06:26. > :06:29.of this country, for hard working families which I agree are our
:06:30. > :06:33.priority. My Lords, the Minister cannot
:06:34. > :06:40.discount the resolution foundation in such a cavalier manner, it
:06:41. > :06:47.produced very - it's got a strong reputation and it produced very real
:06:48. > :06:53.and well-backed analysis. It said that higher incomes will rise but
:06:54. > :06:57.slowly, middle incomes are going to stag and low incomes are going to
:06:58. > :07:01.stall. -- stagnate and low incomes are going to fall. We know how
:07:02. > :07:07.little is the base for low incomes for them to be able to afford to
:07:08. > :07:12.fall without poverty increasing substantially. They say, the
:07:13. > :07:18.foundation says it will be the biggest rise in inequality since the
:07:19. > :07:24.late 1980s. I do not need to remind the House which party was in power
:07:25. > :07:30.during that period and which Prime Minister, many of whose Cabinet
:07:31. > :07:35.members of course are still with us. LAUGHTER
:07:36. > :07:39.I would add that the resolution foundation report also says, which
:07:40. > :07:43.is a point I have been emphasising, that economic forecasts can change
:07:44. > :07:49.dramatically and there is no way of knowing just how the future will
:07:50. > :07:57.play out. I believe that the approach we now have, including
:07:58. > :08:01.industrial strategy, investment in infrastructure, housing, digital,
:08:02. > :08:11.transport, all of this is making a big difference. We have protected
:08:12. > :08:15.the most vulnerable through benefits system which is highly distributive
:08:16. > :08:18.so households get four times in support as spending while they pay
:08:19. > :08:24.in tax whilst the highest pay five times as much in tax as they receive
:08:25. > :08:27.in pay. We want a fairer society and getting workless households into
:08:28. > :08:31.work and improving productivity and skills is to my mind the best way
:08:32. > :08:34.forward. My Lords, I beg leave to ask the
:08:35. > :08:39.question standing in my name on the order paper.
:08:40. > :08:44.My Lords, the Government's White Paper on exiting the EU was
:08:45. > :08:47.published on 2nd February. It sets out the Government's priorities and
:08:48. > :08:51.the broad strategy for exiting the EU and made clear that we will take
:08:52. > :08:56.back control of our own laws. There are a number of options as to how EU
:08:57. > :09:00.immigration might work once we have exited the EU, we are considering
:09:01. > :09:03.those options and will consult businesses and communities.
:09:04. > :09:09.Parliament will also have a critical role to play. Of course the main
:09:10. > :09:16.pressure so-called is really from non-EU migrants. Why didn't the
:09:17. > :09:21.Government years ago use clause 45 of the TFEU and particularly section
:09:22. > :09:25.three and three A, C and D, to improcess the necessary civilised
:09:26. > :09:30.restraints on migrants coming in with authorisation so that none of
:09:31. > :09:33.the horrendous hostility to immigrants from all over would have
:09:34. > :09:40.been so evident in the referendum on 23rd June?
:09:41. > :09:45.My Lords, I think the noble Lord, I can't be accountable for what
:09:46. > :09:49.happened in the past, I think we have been a very generous country in
:09:50. > :09:54.terms of letting people come here for the purposes of work. What I can
:09:55. > :09:57.say is that there was very clear message last year which is about
:09:58. > :10:02.controlling the numbers of people who come into this country, both
:10:03. > :10:08.from the EU and from non-EU countries and that is what we intend
:10:09. > :10:14.to do and to keep parliament fully involved in the process. On 12th
:10:15. > :10:19.January the Government stated in response to an oral question that,
:10:20. > :10:23.quote, the drekive sets out in order for an EU citizen to reside in
:10:24. > :10:29.another member state beyond the three months they must be exercising
:10:30. > :10:32.a treaty right. That is working self-employed, self-sufficient or a
:10:33. > :10:35.student. After being asked three times why it did not implement this
:10:36. > :10:39.three month rule for EU citizens still here without a job but not a
:10:40. > :10:43.student the Government said ap I quote, it's not a failure to
:10:44. > :10:47.implement, this country is more than generous in its implementation of
:10:48. > :10:51.that directive. Close quotes. Firstly, why does the Government
:10:52. > :10:56.maintain that only by leaving the EU can we reduce EU mu gracious, when
:10:57. > :10:59.the Government accepts it has not applied the EU directive three month
:11:00. > :11:04.rule as firmly as it could have done but instead considers that it has
:11:05. > :11:09.been quote, more than generous in its implementation of that drekive,
:11:10. > :11:14.close quote, how much lower would the figure have been in each of the
:11:15. > :11:18.last five years if the Government had applied the EU three month rule
:11:19. > :11:25.directive as firmly as it believes it was entitled to do so?
:11:26. > :11:29.My Lords, as the noble Lord said, we have been a very generous country
:11:30. > :11:34.and certainly whern Labour were in power they decided not to exercise
:11:35. > :11:41.the opt-out as the noble Lord was asking. In terms of what would the
:11:42. > :11:45.figures have been. Had we adopted a different process, my Lords, we are
:11:46. > :11:52.where we are. The country has given us a very, very clear message in the
:11:53. > :11:55.referendum and we intend to follow that through in terms of making sure
:11:56. > :12:00.that net migration to this country is in the tens of thousands. My
:12:01. > :12:04.Lords,ish endeavour to be helpful to the noble lady, the Minister. The
:12:05. > :12:09.previous questions have been about the past. Could I ask about the
:12:10. > :12:13.future. Article 45 of the treaty on the functioning of the European
:12:14. > :12:18.Union relates to free movement of workers, not people generally. I
:12:19. > :12:22.wonder what thought the Government has given to the excellent report by
:12:23. > :12:30.the House of Commons Brexit committee which also talks about the
:12:31. > :12:34.rights of EU and UK national citizens with aspects of immigration
:12:35. > :12:39.policy, including students, family reunion and on EU spouses compared
:12:40. > :12:48.with non-EU spouses and I declare my interests as listed in the register.
:12:49. > :12:52.My Lords, it is absolutely right that we settle and I am glad she's
:12:53. > :12:57.talking about the future by the way, and not the past, probably neither
:12:58. > :13:01.of us, certainly I don't remember, but certainly in terms of the
:13:02. > :13:04.directive which is about the movement of workers and their
:13:05. > :13:09.families, I think the Prime Minister's made it absolutely clear
:13:10. > :13:13.about protecting the rights of EU nationals living in this country but
:13:14. > :13:19.we talked a lot the other day in committee about the fairness of the
:13:20. > :13:24.process and therefore protecting the rights of UK nationals in return.
:13:25. > :13:27.The Government does not want to do this on a unilateral basis and we
:13:28. > :13:34.need to think about all the people, UK nationals living in the EU, and
:13:35. > :13:39.EU nationals living here. My Lords, the Minister actually has
:13:40. > :13:45.been very patient with the House over recent questions and explaining
:13:46. > :13:51.to us the rights of residency after five years' work of European
:13:52. > :13:58.citizens. And also about the right of citizenship after six years. Can
:13:59. > :14:02.she tell the House whether as regards citizenship if a European
:14:03. > :14:07.citizen becomes a citizen of the UK, does that mean he or she has the
:14:08. > :14:11.right to remain in this country? The noble Lord, I am grateful to him, we
:14:12. > :14:19.talked about this at length the other day, and of course in terms of
:14:20. > :14:25.residency rights, the right of residency, a person and by the way,
:14:26. > :14:30.this is an EU law, and not a UK law, so all the talk we have about
:14:31. > :14:37.comprehensive sickness insurance, this is EU law which we implement,
:14:38. > :14:41.after five years of abiding by treaty obligations, the Noble Lord
:14:42. > :14:45.is right, a person living i an EU national living in this country has
:14:46. > :14:49.permanent residency, they do not have to prove that permanent
:14:50. > :14:56.residency. But then he goes on to make another point, which is very
:14:57. > :15:00.valid, which is to swish that from applying for British citizenship and
:15:01. > :15:09.in that application process, which is based in UK law, that person has
:15:10. > :15:13.to prove residency and not to be breaking any immigration rules after
:15:14. > :15:17.six years, they will then be granted UK citizenship and the noble Lord is
:15:18. > :15:22.right, they have the right to remain here.
:15:23. > :15:28.I beg you to ask the question in my name on the order paper. This
:15:29. > :15:38.government is committed to working for everyone in all parts of the
:15:39. > :15:44.country. I am grateful for the report on rural proofing. We will
:15:45. > :15:50.better understand the needs in those communities. The government is
:15:51. > :16:00.revising its commitment to rural proofing. I welcome the work the
:16:01. > :16:07.Ministry is doing, but why do so many government departments fail to
:16:08. > :16:18.realise the big barrier of transport costs on people with low incomes.
:16:19. > :16:24.They are so often cut off and excluded by the cost of transport.
:16:25. > :16:28.Surely we can't allow ourselves to stumble into a situation where you
:16:29. > :16:32.have to be well off to live in the countryside? I entirely agree with
:16:33. > :16:39.the noble lord. It is important we enhance accessibility. Sparsity and
:16:40. > :16:43.the typography of the countryside means there are challenges and that
:16:44. > :16:50.is why I am pleased that the community minibus fund which was
:16:51. > :16:53.launched will enable I think 300 local charities and community groups
:16:54. > :16:57.to receive a new minibus which I think is going to be very helpful,
:16:58. > :17:05.but clearly there is more that we want to do. I should say that the
:17:06. > :17:10.whole issue of transport and accessibility is important, that
:17:11. > :17:12.ball incidents, that under the Post Office transformation, all post
:17:13. > :17:21.offices will have banking facilities. There are ways in which
:17:22. > :17:25.we can assist rural communities. International apprenticeship week,
:17:26. > :17:29.what is the government doing to encourage apprenticeships in rural
:17:30. > :17:38.areas? The government is committed to reaching 3 million apprenticeship
:17:39. > :17:45.starts by 2020. This includes trebling the amount of
:17:46. > :17:49.apprenticeships in food and farming from 6000 to 18,000. National parks
:17:50. > :17:52.are looking to double the number of apprenticeships and it is important
:17:53. > :17:57.that we encouraged not only this week, but we work with employers of
:17:58. > :18:01.all sizes. There is a new apprenticeship levy coming into
:18:02. > :18:05.force in April this year for the larger businesses. This is an
:18:06. > :18:08.enormous opportunity and raising the skills of young people in the
:18:09. > :18:15.countryside and across the nation is a force for good. The commission for
:18:16. > :18:17.oral communities was established in 2005 by the last Labour
:18:18. > :18:23.Administration to promote awareness of rural needs amongst the
:18:24. > :18:29.decision-makers across government. It produced the report on rural
:18:30. > :18:35.lives, highlighting those living in poverty in rural areas can be harder
:18:36. > :18:41.to identify and help. But the coalition government scrapped the
:18:42. > :18:47.CRC in 2013. With issues of agriculture, trade and food policy
:18:48. > :18:51.on Brexit, what structures are in force to ensure the interests of all
:18:52. > :19:00.communities are heard and acted upon during these negotiations? I will
:19:01. > :19:07.make sure the noble lord a copy of the revived rural proofing guidance.
:19:08. > :19:11.I have been working on this and it is important that all departments
:19:12. > :19:17.understand the issues of rural communities and that is why, and
:19:18. > :19:23.also as the Minister for oral affairs, I am on a number of task
:19:24. > :19:29.forces, connectivity and housing to mention two, precisely to ensure the
:19:30. > :19:34.rural voice is heard. Given what the Minister has just said, I wonder if
:19:35. > :19:39.he is concerned by the fact that in many rural and underprivileged
:19:40. > :19:43.areas, libraries and leisure centres are under threat. These are the very
:19:44. > :19:49.places that offer a glimmer of light to people who lead rather dark lives
:19:50. > :19:55.in terms of entertainment and education. This rather takes me back
:19:56. > :20:01.to my DC MS days and one of the things that strikes me is very much
:20:02. > :20:08.how vibrant so many rural communities are, certainly in my
:20:09. > :20:13.part of Suffolk. The amount of cultural activities, dance, 30,
:20:14. > :20:16.music, it is incredible. We all want to improve, we all want to have
:20:17. > :20:20.greater access ability to those things, but the noble Lord may be
:20:21. > :20:28.painting a rather too pessimistic picture. Making work pay is a very
:20:29. > :20:33.seductive slogan, but is a minister not aware that many of the families
:20:34. > :20:41.who are worst of in our country have someone working in the economy. What
:20:42. > :20:46.steps can the government take to ensure people are paid properly and
:20:47. > :20:50.indeed earn at least a living wage? My Lords, it is a national living
:20:51. > :20:57.wage and it is an obligation and I am very pleased that it is going to
:20:58. > :21:03.rise to ?7.05 in April. That is why we want to ensure people on low
:21:04. > :21:07.incomes, the increasing tax allowance and further coming through
:21:08. > :21:16.is precisely to ensure that we are helping those at the lower end of
:21:17. > :21:22.the income range. Rural proofing doesn't seem to have reached local
:21:23. > :21:26.government where many local services have been withdrawn from villages
:21:27. > :21:32.into urban centres as a consequence of a very deep cut to local
:21:33. > :21:39.government funding. I do wonder what advice the noble Lord the Minister
:21:40. > :21:49.will provide to his fellow Secretary of State, or noble Lord Lord born
:21:50. > :21:57.about funding for district councils and county councils to enable rural
:21:58. > :22:04.proofing? As I say, the rural proofing guidance is to go across
:22:05. > :22:09.Whitehall. DC old she is a very important government department in
:22:10. > :22:19.that respect. The are considerable amounts of money going to these
:22:20. > :22:24.organisations. We have to have a growing economy to afford all the
:22:25. > :22:28.things we want to do. That is why this country is the fastest-growing
:22:29. > :22:32.economy in the G7. That's important because it's only when we grow our
:22:33. > :22:36.economy that we are going to have the resources to do many of the
:22:37. > :22:43.things I'm sure your Lordships would wish to have done. With the Minister
:22:44. > :22:50.care to correct his assertion about the national living wage and the
:22:51. > :22:54.national minimum wage? Secondly, can the noble Lord the minister assure
:22:55. > :23:02.me that when the government are putting in new free schools in areas
:23:03. > :23:15.where there is no need in terms of numbers, they will have the needs of
:23:16. > :23:28.the rural community in mind. I used to be the heads of the schools
:23:29. > :23:34.committee in Lancashire. Come we be assured that the government enter
:23:35. > :23:39.coming from Whitehall with little knowledge and step over the needs of
:23:40. > :23:45.the local community. Some of those schools need money and investment.
:23:46. > :23:50.My Lords, it is precisely why I suspect we are going to hear about
:23:51. > :23:54.more investment because we want to enhance the opportunity of children
:23:55. > :23:58.across the country and it is precisely why we have some schools
:23:59. > :24:02.that are simply not up to the standard we want them to be and that
:24:03. > :24:06.is why we will need to invest more and it is why I am a champion for
:24:07. > :24:12.oral schools precisely because we want to ensure that there are
:24:13. > :24:15.opportunities in rural areas in the same way they have them across the
:24:16. > :24:21.rest of the country. As for the living wage, I will check Hansard,
:24:22. > :24:30.but it will raise to ?7 50 per hour. I will ensure to see whether I've
:24:31. > :24:37.made a mistake. My Lords, I take you to answer the question standing in
:24:38. > :24:42.my name on the order paper. The police are operationally independent
:24:43. > :24:45.of government. The investigation of allegations of sexual abuse and how
:24:46. > :24:49.the police conduct these investigations including whether to
:24:50. > :24:56.commission any form of internal enquiry are operational matters for
:24:57. > :24:58.the relevant chief officer. It is for the Police and Crime
:24:59. > :25:08.Commissioner to hold the force to accounts. My Lords, having served in
:25:09. > :25:12.the Home Office for many years I understand about the operational
:25:13. > :25:19.independence of the police, but, my Lords, it's gone beyond operational
:25:20. > :25:23.affairs, it's become a matter of confidence in the police and the
:25:24. > :25:29.police service. The Chief Constable of Wiltshire has gone beyond the
:25:30. > :25:33.police duties of investigating allegations and following up
:25:34. > :25:39.evidence and has pronounced a verdict of guilty on the late Sir
:25:40. > :25:42.Edward Heath in respect of allegations of child abuse and has
:25:43. > :25:51.done that even before he's enquiry is complete. The officer in charge
:25:52. > :25:55.of the enquiry, having made a stupid mistake at the beginning, has now
:25:56. > :26:01.been obliged to be withdrawn because of ill health. He is having, I
:26:02. > :26:09.think, a nervous breakdown. Is it not high time the enquiry is being
:26:10. > :26:13.pursued in a way which looks to many people more like a fishing
:26:14. > :26:18.expedition than a serious pursuit of allegations and evidence. Is it not
:26:19. > :26:27.time that this operation was reviewed independently? Either by a
:26:28. > :26:36.retired judge, as in the case of operation Midland, or a retired
:26:37. > :26:42.Chief Constable or recognised -- with efficiency and integrity.
:26:43. > :26:52.Without talking about any single investigation, may I express my
:26:53. > :26:57.concern of the people who have been wrongly named in the press and
:26:58. > :27:04.certainly after they have died have had defamatory statements made about
:27:05. > :27:14.them. In any investigation it is a matter for the police. If the... In
:27:15. > :27:24.terms of complaints against the Chief officer, I took the bill
:27:25. > :27:32.through myself and the act strengthens the independence of the
:27:33. > :27:34.police complaints system. Any allegations of misconduct against
:27:35. > :27:42.the Chief officer should be investigated by the IPC said. The
:27:43. > :27:58.newspaper quotes last month came from an anonymous source claiming to
:27:59. > :28:01.know... -- IPC C. I would like to ask my noble friend the Minister to
:28:02. > :28:08.whom is this Chief Constable accountable? If not the Police and
:28:09. > :28:17.Crime Commissioner for Bush and Swindon, surely not secret and
:28:18. > :28:21.unnamed groups of people that he has decided to appoint. There are
:28:22. > :28:26.increasing concerns about the conduct of this enquiry and we
:28:27. > :28:31.really need to know who is this Chief Constable accountable to? I
:28:32. > :28:34.thank my noble friend for that question and he will know that it is
:28:35. > :28:39.not appropriate for me to comment on individual operational matters,
:28:40. > :28:45.these being out of the relevant chief officer, but chief officers
:28:46. > :29:00.are, as I have said held to account in respect of operational matters by
:29:01. > :29:01.the Police and Crime Commissioner. An independent
:29:02. > :29:11.review was commissioned recently. It talked about the secret and unnamed
:29:12. > :29:17.group. My Lords, it is recognised as best practice that, and Bush police
:29:18. > :29:21.have done that, but they have engaged a panel of independent
:29:22. > :29:27.experts outside of policing who are providing ongoing scrutiny of the
:29:28. > :29:33.investigation to make sure it's proportionality is right.
:29:34. > :29:39.The newspaper quotes came from an anonymous source claiming to know
:29:40. > :29:42.the views of the Chief Constable for Wiltshire thchlt raised issue of the
:29:43. > :29:45.relationship between the police and the national press and makes the
:29:46. > :29:48.case for Leveson part two even stronger.
:29:49. > :29:52.Can we come to the role of of the police and crime commissioner to
:29:53. > :29:57.which the Minister has referred. Because a second issue relates to
:29:58. > :30:00.the call for a Government instituted judicial inquiry into the
:30:01. > :30:04.investigation which Wiltshire Police. Could the Government confirm
:30:05. > :30:10.in fact the Wiltshire Police and crime commissioner has the power to
:30:11. > :30:16.commission such a judicial inquiry into an operation by his own force.
:30:17. > :30:20.The third issue is that if any hard evidence actually emerged that the
:30:21. > :30:23.Chief Constable had made the comments claimed by the anonymous
:30:24. > :30:27.newspaper source, could the Government confirm that the
:30:28. > :30:31.Wiltshire Police and crime commissioner could, under his
:30:32. > :30:37.powers, suspend or dismiss the Chief Constable? In other words, isn't the
:30:38. > :30:41.ball very much in the elected Wiltshire Police and crime
:30:42. > :30:46.commissioner's court? Well, I think the noble Lord raises a very good
:30:47. > :30:53.point in terms of what is the role of the police and crime commissioner
:30:54. > :30:58.in this situation. Without talking about the specific case that the
:30:59. > :31:01.noble Lord has asked about, it is for the police and crime
:31:02. > :31:07.commissioner to make the decision to appoint, to suspend or to remove a
:31:08. > :31:13.Chief Constable. In making the decision to compel a Chief Constable
:31:14. > :31:16.to resign or to retire, a PCC is bound by certain requirements,
:31:17. > :31:21.including acting reasonably and fairly and consulting the Chief
:31:22. > :31:28.Constable and the local police and crime panel and a PCC may compel a
:31:29. > :31:34.Chief Constable to resign or retire under section 38-3 of the police
:31:35. > :31:43.reform and social responsibility ability of 2011. My Lords, before we
:31:44. > :31:49.resume consideration of the bills report stage t may be for the
:31:50. > :31:53.convenience of the House if I say a brief word about the arrangements
:31:54. > :31:58.for its third reading, which we expect to take place this evening.
:31:59. > :32:04.At the conclusion of report stage we will move to the question for short
:32:05. > :32:10.debate in the name of the noble Lord. The legislation office will at
:32:11. > :32:15.that point be working on making the bill available for noble Lords who
:32:16. > :32:20.may wish to table amendments at third reading. The time scale for
:32:21. > :32:30.this will depend on whether or not the bill needs to be reprinted. When
:32:31. > :32:31.the bill is ready for amendments to be tabled, a notice will be put