House of Commons
Parliament

Discussion turns to reform of the House of Lords as David Hanson refers to the election of a new Liberal Democrat hereditary peer.

Lib Dem leader Tim Farron agrees that the vote was "a comical and outrageous spectacle" but notes that Labour failed to back Lib Dem reform proposals in the last government.

Conservative Stewart Jackson chips in to tell MPs that he is "speeding on the road to Damascus" and that his worst vote in the last Parliament was to oppose Lords reform.

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Parliament

Labour MP David Hanson is particularly interested in the proposals for prison reform and has a number of questions.

He wants to know if prison governors will have autonomy over staff pay, procurement, education and employment practices.

He also wants to know how governors will be monitored and judged. 

The key thing, he suggests, is to deal with prisoners' drug problems and help them into employment when they leave prison.

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The Queen has set out the government's agenda for the year ahead at the State Opening of Parliament - Eleanor Garnier examines the key announcements.

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Parliament

Edward Garnier tells MPs that his life has enough excitement without getting apoplectic about the British Bill of Rights, but he does have concerns.

He likens the bill to a demented moth knocking around a lampshade and urges the government not to waste energy on reviving "this dead horse".

He acknowledges that the Strasbourg Court "can be rather annoying" but says the application of the law is to protect the interest of the people.

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Parliament

Labour MP Meg Hillier rises to say that she was not intending to speak about the EU but feels "goaded" by the comments of Mr Chope.

She says that studies have found that the net cost to the UK of EU membership "is the equivalent of 1.4% of total UK governmental department spending".

She says this is a "small price to pay for the benefits of being part of a wider community and the peace and security that brings".

Speaking about the Queen's Speech as a whole, she says "it is rather short on detail" and raises concerns about plans for devolved local mayors, building "the right kind" of houses, and on plans for prison reform.

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Parliament

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Baroness Stowell continues by telling peers that their scrutiny improves every bill.

However, she warns members to be mindful of their limits and says the elected house must have the final say.

She concludes her speech by identifying three aims of the government: To secure the economy, to strengthen national defences and increasing opportunity for the most disadvantaged.

And with that debate is adjourned until tomorrow when peers will focus on business, culture, education, health and welfare. 

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Parliament

Tory backbench regular and arch-eurosceptic Christopher Chope is now using his time in the debate to discuss the upcoming referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union.

Mr Chope welcomes the SNP's call for home rule and says that the logical extension of that argument is for them to vote in favour of leaving the EU in the referendum.

Speaking about the remain campaign's "propaganda" claims and "scare-mongering", he says that if the prime minister believed that such "doom and gloom" would ensue from leaving the EU then why did he ever countenance leaving it under any circumstances.

New powers for prison governors to control budgets, services and the prison's regime are welcomed.

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Parliament

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Leader of the House Baroness Stowell begins her speech by thanking the staff for making the state opening "a resounding success".

She suggests this would also be the verdict of last week's prorogation ceremony - "with its Norman French, about turns and synchronised doffing by a crack team of noble lords".

She says that doffing is not as easy as it looks and quotes the "glowing reviews" from TV commentators - "The best doffing we've seen in years, superb doffing and we've never seen doffing like this before."

However she is less keen on this comment from one description of prorogation: "All the camp of Eurovision with none of the songs."  

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Parliament

On defence, Mr Robertson says the UK has "suffered a squeeze" in many respects in conventional military capabilities in recent years.

He says that this includes the end of flying operations in two out of Scotland's three air bases.

"Crucial capability gaps have been exposed," he says, and goes on to say that the fact that there is now "not a single maritime patrol aircraft" operating in the UK "is ludicrous" for a maritime state. 

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Parliament

Lib Dem Leader in the House of Lords, Lord Wallace of Tankerness, welcomes the speech's mention of "the primacy of the Commons".

However he warns peers against confusing the issue of the primacy of the Commons with the issue of the legislature holding the executive to account.

This, he argues, is particularly important given the government was elected with less than 37% of the vote and a 50% turnout. 

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Parliament

Angus Robertson says that the SNP are the only opposition party that has "bothered to produce an alternative" to the government's Queen Speech.

"It is the role of oppositions to hold the government to account but also to offer alternatives," he says.

Speaking about the government's priorities being described by the prime minister as "one nation", Mr Robertson says "we know which one nation the prime minister means".

Mr Robertson reiterated SNP issues and policies including reform of the House of Lords, the government accepting no SNP amendments to the Scotland Bill, and on reforming the voting system from first-past-the-post to proportional representation.

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Parliament

On the government's promise to improve broadband speeds, Baroness Smith tells peers that "there is no point promising broadband for all homes if many people haven't got one".

Concerning the government plans to establish a spaceport in Cornwall she suggests that most people would prefer "more buses than a rocket".

Turning to the government's altered plans to force schools to convert to academies, the Baroness praises the U-turn as "a handbrake turn any boy racer would be proud of".

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The prime minister takes his seat after commending the Queen's speech to the House and the SNP Westminster leader Angus Robertson is called upon to speak.

With the two main frontbenchers finished, many MPs take this opportunity to leave the chamber - prompting SNP members to say "stay and you might learn something" and "pathetic".

SNP MP Pete Wishart is heard to call "bye Tories" several times at the departing MPs from the government benches.

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Parliament

One of the last issues addressed by David Cameron is that of Trident renewal to which he says that to disarm unilaterally would be "an act of supreme naivety" .

"It would be the ultimate false economy - an act of weakness not of wisdom," Mr Cameron says.

The prime minister promises a vote on the issue of Trident renewal in the House.

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Parliament

Shadow Leader of the House Baroness Smith of Basildon also dwells on the EU referendum.

In the event of a Brexit she asks "Is there a plan B or will the government carry on regardless?"

She notes that this Queen's Speech has been an attempt to implement the prime minister's "life chances strategy".

She tells peers that such aspirations need to be resourced  - "Just saying so doesn't make it happen".

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Parliament

Green MP Caroline Lucas intervenes during the prime minister's speech regarding prison reform to ask how the government can be in favour of prison reform when "prison budgets have been slashed by a third since 2010 at exactly the same time as prison populations have increased".

David Cameron replies "we need to get away from the idea that you can only measure progress in public services by the amount you spend".

"The whole aim here is to try and do more with less," he says.

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Parliament

Turning to referendums, Baroness Goldie tells peers that, in her experience, such votes have three certainties: "division, distraction and result".

She accuses the SNP of not respecting the result of the Scottish independence referendum. She says:"One thing after another can be a trigger for a second referendum - from a UK Brexit to having a bad hair day or the First Minister losing a stiletto heel."

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Mr Cameron speaks about the issues covered by the Queen's Speech, including on prison reforms, apprenticeships, school reforms, and the NHS.

"These are the choices of a progressive one nation Conservative government," he says.