Member

The third is Amendment 933A, in the name of the noble Baroness, Lady Coffey, which seeks to restrict a panel chair’s discretion to grant a person a full private hearing. The fourth is Amendment 480A, also in the name of the noble Baroness, which would remove the panel’s discretion over the technology that can be used to contribute to hearings. This could mean that the panel would be unable to make appropriate adjustments for all circumstances, such as a person in a rural area with low connectivity. Without such a discretion, issues about equality and discrimination might arise, leading to a risk under Article 8 when read with Article 14. On the equality implications of allowing video and audio evidence, which my noble friend Lady Keeley asked about, I refer her to the letter placed in the Library by the Health Minister, my noble friend Lady Merron, on matters covered by the equality impact assessment and the Government’s rationale for doing so.