§ 3.23 p.m.
§ Lord DenhamMy Lords, at a convenient moment after 3.30 this afternoon my noble friend the Leader of the House will, with the leave of the House, repeat in the form of a Statement the Answer to a Private Notice Question in another place on the need for a review of the operation of the security services in the mid-1970s.
With the leave of the House, I should like to say a brief word about the length of speeches in this afternoon's debate standing in the name of the noble Lord, Lord McIntosh of Haringey, to which your Lordships have agreed to apply a five-hour time limit. On the principle that the mover is allowed approximately 20 minutes and the Minister should rise to reply not less than 25 minutes before the scheduled end of the debate, all other speeches should be limited to a strict upper limit of 12 minutes. If any noble Lord should speak at greater length he will be doing so at the expense of other speakers in the debate.