The first of the two debates that Lord Bilimoria participated in Parliament yesterday discussed the impact that leaving the European Union would have on the UK’s universities and scientific research. In his speech Lord Bilimoria noted the successes that collaborative European research has produced and detailed the effect that Brexit would have on EU funding of scientific research, both directly and indirectly, while calling on Britain to remain outward looking.
Speaking in a House of Lords debate on the implications of the EU Referendum result on NHS staff, Lord Bilimoria warned against implementing policies which would see trained medical professionals leaving the NHS at a time when the institution is facing a staffing shortage. He reiterated the words of Health Secretary, Jeremy Hunt MP, that EU nationals are vital to the success of the NHS, and called on the government to ensure that EU nationals working in the NHS are able to stay in the UK post Brexit.
In the first debate in the House of Lords since the outcome of the EU Referendum, Lord Bilimoria lamented the spirit in which the Referendum was held. He noted the inaccuracies in the statistics used during the campaign and suggested that the Electoral Commission should be granted new powers to police against misleading campaign material. Lord Bilimoria then outlined the implications of the Referendum, including on the economy and in the Higher Education sector, and stressed the need for caution on triggering Article 50 until the UK had entered into negotiations with the EU to determine what Brexit would entail.
Last week, Lord Bilimoria took part in a debate about the steps that the Government has taken to boost the UK’s economy. Shortly following the release of the 2016 Budget, the debate gave Peers a chance to scrutinise the Chancellor’s policies and contribute their thoughts about the action needed to improve the country’s economic growth. Lord Bilimoria praised the strides that the Government has made in boosting entrepreneurship, but highlighted topics that the Government needs to improve on, notably productivity and higher education, while stressing the impact that the EU referendum may have on the UK’s economy.