Tag: Lord Laird

  • Lord Laird – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    Lord Laird – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Home Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2014-06-04.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the current membership and remit of the Migration Advisory Committee; on what criteria they appoint its members; and whether they have plans to review those criteria and its remit with a view to tasking the Committee with examining immigration and its impact in the round.

    Lord Taylor of Holbeach

    The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) is comprised of economists and migration experts who serve as a chair and committee members. They are appointed to support the remit of the Committee, which is to provide independent and evidence-based advice to the Government on migration issues. Professor Sir David Metcalf is the Chair and is supported by 4 members; Dr Martin Ruhs, Professor Jonathan Wadsworth, Dr Jennifer Smith and Professor Jackline Wahba.

    Lesley Giles of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills and John Thompson, the Director of Immigration Policy in the Home Office, also sit on the Committee as ex-officio members.

    The Chair and Committee members are public appointments made in line with guidance issued by the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The current criteria for membership are:

    Essential criteria

    * Expertise in economics, preferably labour markets.
    * Quantitative analytical skills.
    * Strong written skills – experience of producing evidence based reports.
    * Building effective working relationships with a wide range of groups.

    Desirable criteria

    * Ability to work as part of a team.
    * Knowledge of non-UK migration data and policies.

    There are no plans to change or review the remit or the criteria for
    appointment to the MAC.

  • Lord Laird – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    Lord Laird – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Northern Ireland Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Laird on 2014-06-17.

    To ask Her Majesty’s Government what searches have been undertaken to find the missing files on pre-1998 Northern Ireland royal prerogative of mercy cases; how many are absent; where the paperwork would normally be filed; and whether such paperwork is passed to the National Archives on a routine basis after 30 years.

    Baroness Randerson

    Before 1998, the use of the Royal Prerogative of Mercy (RPM) in Northern Ireland was relatively common since this pre-dated a number of statutory schemes which enabled sentences to be shortened for various reasons, for example where evidence had been given by prisoners to enable others to be convicted. The overwhelming majority of RPM cases during this period were not terrorist-related.

    The Northern Ireland Office continues to seek information on the use of the RPM between 1987 and 1997, including through contacts with other parts of Government which might hold relevant information.

    The NIO takes its records management responsibilities seriously and is compliant with all public records legislation and National Archives guidance. This includes routine reviews of records, compliance with records disposal schedules and transfers of records at 30 years to the National Archives.