Member

This debate has given us the opportunity to raise a number of wider issues. The noble Lord, Lord Kirkhope, rightly raised issues regarding UN standards and the role that that might play in solving some of these problems. The noble Lord, Lord Bew, raised the wider issue that if this matter is not sorted out then it is just another example of greater regulatory divergence that will ultimately—a point that I have been making—cause political instability in Northern Ireland. This is just part of a jigsaw of various issues that are causing friction and could lead to real problems for the stability of the political process. We do not want to see that happening, so we need to get these issues sorted out. We may differ to some extent on what our ultimate fundamental solutions are, and we will continue to argue about that, but solutions need to be found.