Voting on the Police, Crime and Sentencing and Courts Bill in the House of Lords against the government on banning protests and allowing ‘stop and search’ without suspicion. This is a list of Bills put forward and how I voted.
Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill – Report (6th Day) – Amendment 114A
Voted (aye) to “ask the Government to set up a review of drinks spiking and needle spiking in pubs and clubs.” (Division #1; result was 237 aye, 190 no)
Voted (aye) to place a statutory duty of candour on members of the police workforce. (Division #2; result was 252aye, 179 no)
Voted (aye) to add a new Clause titled “Offences motivated by hostility towards the sex or gender of the victim” .(Division #3; result was 242 aye, 185 no)
Voted (aye) to remove Clause 57 concerning Imposing conditions on public assemblies. (Division #5; result was 238aye, 171 no.)
Voted (aye) to add “unless permission for such obstruction has been given by the relevant person” to Clause 59 concerning obstruction of vehicular access to Parliament. (Division #6; result was 236aye, 158 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause creating a new offence of “locking on”, such as involving the attachment of an individual to another individual, to an object or to land, or an object to another object or to land. It is a requirement of the offence that the act causes or is capable of causing serious disruption to two or more individuals or an organisation and that the accused intends that to occur or is reckless as to whether it will occur. (Division #7; result was 163 aye, 216 no)
Amendment 150A (to Amendment 150)
Voted (aye) to amend Amendment 150 (increasing the penalty for wilfully obstructing a highway) so that it refers only to the Strategic Road Network. (Division #8; result was 216 aye, 160 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause containing a new offence of obstructing the construction or maintenance of major transport works. (Division #9; result was 154 aye, 208 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause making it an offence for a person to do an act which interferes with the use or operation of key national infrastructure where the person intends the act to have that effect or is reckless as to whether it will do so, subject to a defence of reasonable excuse and a defence applying to industrial action. (Division #10; result was 153 aye, 198 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause amending section 1 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 to allow a constable to stop and search a person or vehicle if they have reasonable grounds for suspecting that they will find an article made, adapted or intended for use in the course of or in connection with an offence listed in the amendment. (Division #11; result was 141 aye, 205 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause making provision for a senior police officer to give an authorisation applying to a specified locality for a specified period and allowing a constable to stop and search a person or vehicle for an object made, adapted or intended for use in the course of or in connection with an offence listed in the amendment. While the authorisation is in force the constable may exercise the power whether or not they have any grounds for suspecting the person or vehicle is carrying such an object. (Division #12; result was 128 aye, 212 no)
Voted (no) against adding a new Clause containing provisions about serious disruption prevention orders. These are orders which can be imposed on a person who has committed two protest-related offences or who has, on at least two occasions, committed protest-related breaches of injunctions or caused or contributed to the commission of such offences or breaches or to activity related to a protest that resulted in serious disruption to two or more individuals or to an organisation. (Division #13; result was 124 aye, 199 no)
Voted (aye) to add a new Clause to repeal the Vagrancy Act 1824 and establish that begging or sleeping rough is not itself criminal; it would require police officers to balance protection of the community with sensitivity to the problems that cause people to engage in begging or sleeping rough and ensure that general public order enforcement powers should not in general be used in relation to people sleeping rough, and should be used in relation to people begging only where no other approach is reasonably available. (Division #14; result was 144 aye, 101 no)