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Viscount Bridgeman: In rising to support the amendment, noble Lords will recall that there was considerable disquiet in another place at the absence of a sunset clause in this Bill. For that reason, we were particularly pleased when on Second Reading the Minister announced his intention to introduce one. Originally we looked for a four-year period, but the five-year period will at least save the run-up to the World Cup from being involved in the passage of legislation through Parliament. That is welcome and we very much support the approach.
I should like to associate my remarks with those made by the noble Lord, Lord McNally, in particular as regards the upsurge of violence in the domestic game which we have seen since our debate on Second Reading. We are also particularly grateful for the Minister's assurance that regular reports will be produced to chart how the legislation is working and what progress is being made. We have had two excellent reports which provide excellent examples to follow. The amendments have the support of these Benches.
Lord Faulkner of Worcester: I am disappointed not to be following the noble Lord, Lord Phillips of Sudbury, who has managed to precede me with libertarian speeches attacking the legislation from the very first time the temporary measure was introduced two years ago.
Like other noble Lords I, too, welcome the Bill and the amendment which has been moved in such a spirit of amity and cross-party unity. I should like in particular to associate myself with the comments made by the noble Lord, Lord McNally. The events over recent days in football remind us of just how many undercurrents are at work in the game which could easily break out into something a great deal more serious. Legislation of this kind is necessary, as is a continuing review of the difficulties. It was interesting to note that Mark Steele, the spokesman for the National Criminal Intelligence Service, has gone on the record as saying that football violence is once again on the increase.
In the debate on Second Reading, a number of noble Lords, including myself, referred to the trial and subsequent partial acquittal of the Leeds players. I believe that the noble Lord, Lord Dholakia, received a considerable volume of correspondence for his
comments relating to the behaviour of those players. I received only one letter to which I was able to reply in a fairly measured way. I recall commenting in the debate that I hoped that the Football Association would feel that those players were not appropriate representatives of their country and that they would not be chosen to play for England. In that context, I very much welcome the robust attitude demonstrated by Adam Crozier, chief executive of the Football Association, not specifically on these casesI hope that he will come to that conclusion in due coursebut in considering the role of players as models and examples for young people. I applaud also his clear unwillingness to allow players who set a bad example to be given the great privilege of representing their country.Like the noble Lord, Lord McNally, I welcome the appointment of Professor Fraser. I think that the body has been set up around 15 months late. The report of the Football Task Force, which noble Lords with longer memories than I will recall reported in December 1999 with the proposal to establish an independent football commission, had something rather more robust in mind than the body which has emerged from that process. However, I wish Professor Fraser well and I look forward to meeting him in a few weeks' time. I hope very much that the commission will be as forthright in its work as the noble Lord, Lord McNally, has indicated.
I hope that it will focus on one particular area; that is, implementation of one of the first of the recommendations made by the Football Task Force relating to racism. The situation has improved slightly but still has an awfully long way to go. I recall that during Question Time recently the noble Lord, Lord Ouseley, drew attention to the fact that little work seemed to have been done on implementing the recommendation. I hope that the new commission will take it as its main task and seek to stamp out the problem of racism, which lies at the heart of so much of the violence to be found in football. I endorse also the comment made by the noble Lord, Lord McNally, that the committee chaired by my noble friend Lord Bassam should continue with its work. I wish the Bill well and hope that it passes through all its stages.
Lord Desai: I did not speak at Second Reading but, before the orgy of all-party agreement on the Bill goes too far, I should say that I did not like the Bill when it was presented. In general, I do not like Bills which mark out certain sections of the population and laws which restrict their civil liberties. This is not too bad, but I would have welcomed the withdrawal and expiry of the Bill rather than its continuing existence.
The fact that there is violence in football is neither here nor there. We have laws on the statute book to deal with that. To single out football fans as we do is not justified. That remains my view, but I have no wish to oppose the amendment.
Lord Bassam of Brighton: It seems that we are almost universally agreed. Standing at the Dispatch Box today, I rather regret that the noble Lord, Lord Phillips, is not in his place because I believe, quite firmly, that the case he makes should be well put. He is, quite rightly, a clear advocate of maximising the protection of long fought for and hard won civil liberties, even when they may be the civil liberties of football hooligans who, some may think, should not enjoy such liberties. However, it is important that that argument is heard and is well put. To give the noble Lord, Lord Phillips his due, it is because he and others have put that case that we in government have thought long and hard and concluded that these measureswhich are, in their way, draconianshould be reviewed regularly. There should be regular reports to your Lordships' House and another place, and these should be placed in the public domain and become the subject of public debate. The issues deserve to be debated publicly.
The noble Lord, Lord McNally, made his usual valuable contribution. My only disagreement with the noble Lord is probably that which occurs regularly between Blackpool and Brighton. Blackpool scored a last-minute equaliser in the most recent game, which I greatly regret. The noble Lord did not raise that issue today and therefore I shall not go on at length about it.
As ever, the noble Lord, Lord McNally, made some important points. I am particularly drawn to the key question of leadership within the game. It is important that managers, players, commentators and supporters exert leadership and take responsibility. Without that, fans will react in the way they do. We must remind them that that is not only wrong, but that it is counter-productive to the game and destroys its image. It is a beautiful game, and what they do mars and denigrates it and draws it down. We do not want that. After all, the game is one of our most profitable exports and does a great deal for international relations when played in good spirit and good heart. For those reasons, if not many more, it is important that we assert the value and importance of leadership at every level of the gameparticularly at club level, where what people say and do obviously matters.
I am pleased that we have support for the Bill from all sides of the Committee. I am also pleased that I have been able to reiterate our commitment to bring forward regular reports. I do not know about the fate and continued existence of the so-called Bassam committee, but the working party is still there. More importantly, its recommendations are being carefully worked through. In saying that, I pay great tribute to David Bohannan, who heads the Home Office unit on football disorder, for the work he has done. I know that that work is being valuably taken forward. Work is being carried out with the clubs, the footballers, the PFA, the Football Association, the Premiership and the Nationwide League and is proceeding at a pace.
I hope that the report's findings will feed into the work of the Independent Football Commission. Although some noble Lords have drawn attention to the delay in appointing a chair for the commission, now that that appointment has been made I expect
careful thought to be given to the relationship between football hooliganism and raising standards in the game, and ensuring that we have good, fair, sound and effective regulation. Clearly that is what the game needs.I was also attracted to the proposition of the noble Lord, Lord McNally, that a Select Committee should be set up. That is an interesting contribution to the debate and powerfully makes the point that these matters need to be kept in the public gaze to ensure that the debate does not fade away. The game deserves more than that.
I am grateful for all contributions. We have agreement on the amendments and there will be a five-year sunset clause. This is a small but important Bill. Putting this kind of legislation on the statute book for another five years will do much to bring people to consider carefully which way we go in dealing with football hooligans. It is important that we should proceed with the legislation and ensure its continued effectiveness during an extremely busy periodnot only in the domestic game but in the international game through three very important international competitions, Euro 2004, the World Cup 2006 and Euro 2008.
I am grateful for all contributions and support. I hope that this legislation, after further consideration here, will speed its way back to another place and receive widespread support and acclaim.
On Question, amendment agreed to.
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