Lord McFall of Alcluith
The Rt Hon John McFall was a Labour Co-operative Member of Parliament for Dumbarton, later West Dunbartonshire, between 1987 and 2010. Known for his work for consumers, John chaired the Treasury Select Committee and has also worked as a Labour whip and held ministerial office in Northern Ireland.
Before entering the House of Commons in 1987, John was a schoolteacher. He was ennobled as Baron McFall of Alcluith in July 2010.
Listed among: Members of the House of Lords
- Treasury Select Committee: The future’s mutual (19 Feb 2009)Something we failed to pass on in recent weeks has been the Treasury Select Committee’s investigation of banking, building societies and the Government’s response. The media coverage was dominated by bankers’ apologies and Chairman John McFall MP’s tough style. But the meeting of 4 February heard evidence from the building societies. The transcript is here, [...]
- Queen's Speech — Debate (4th Day) (15 May 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, I am very pleased to participate in this debate. At the beginning of the day, the Minister said that the debate would be about the kind of society that we want. With that in mind, we should focus on things like character, competence, cuts and confidence, the first two relating to the personalities and actions of the Prime Minister and the Chancellor and the latter two relating to...
- Scotland Bill: Report (2nd Day) (Continued) (28 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: Under the proposed new clause as far as it goes, I was taken with the Minister's comment about taxation being an instrument of redistribution, as Calman noted. If that is the case, we need a deeper appreciation of the transfer of these powers. It is not just about money but how that money is spent. There is no association between tax levels and growth. As a Scottish citizen, I want to ensure...
- Scotland Bill: Report (2nd Day) (28 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, further to the point made by the noble Lord, Lord Maclennan, I would say that the debate in Scotland is currently at a high temperature and needs to be lowered so that people can digest the information. If one looks at the Calman report, as I have done, and at the reports of the Scottish Affairs Select Committee in the House of Commons-which has had a plethora of witnesses-one will...
- Universities: Fees — Question (28 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, is it not the case that the Scottish Government are forcing the Scottish Funding Council to cut funding by more than £100 million over the next four years, thereby jeopardising the student experience and the teaching quality of the universities? Surely the Scotland Office as well as BIS should engage with this so that we can play fair by students not just in Scotland but in the...
- Scotland Bill: Report (1st Day) (26 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, as a predecessor of the noble Lord, Lord Empey, as Minister for Education in Northern Ireland, I was very aware of the number of Northern Ireland students who went to Scotland for their education and, indeed, stayed in Scotland or in the UK generally as a result. I was left with the lasting impression that education is a UK-wide initiative. In a globalised world where the transfer...
- Economy: Budget Statement — Motion to Take Note (22 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, I am delighted to participate in this debate and particularly to follow the noble Lord, Lord Heseltine, whose civic award this week from Liverpool was richly deserved. The power and influence of the social media in the form of Twitter were in evidence immediately after the Budget. Within minutes of the Chancellor sitting down after a carefully crafted and supposedly voter-friendly...
- Banking: Accounting Standards — Question (19 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, has the fatal flaw not been the ability of banks and other financial institutions to book future projected income as profits-profits which did not materialise and on which bonuses were paid, thereby skewing the incentives of the whole financial sector industry? There is a time here for reassessment, and that is a black hole at the centre of these proposals.
- Finance: Credit Rating Agencies — Question (14 Mar 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, given that the credit rating agencies have demonstrated a consistent lack of accuracy, have failed in their governance, are flawed in that the person paying for the rating has to ask for it, and competition is non-existent, will the Minister encourage investors in the City to establish their own credit rating agencies on a not-for-profit basis? At a stroke, they would remove...
- Health: Mesothelioma — Question (29 Feb 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: My Lords, as one who represented many hundreds of mesothelioma sufferers from local shipyards in Scotland, I give the noble Lord some examples of what happened there. Given that court cases were taking two years and the average life of sufferers was 18 months, the Lord President was approached and he decided to designate a judge to look at those cases in particular, thereby cutting down the...
- Scotland Bill: Committee (3rd Day) (28 Feb 2012)Lord McFall of Alcluith: I refer to the contributions made already. Under the Bill, could the Scottish Parliament reduce corporation tax and increase taxes on oil and gas?
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Lord McFall launches new website (4 Apr 2012)
John McFall, the Lord McFall of Alcluith and the former Chairman of the House of Commons Treasury Committe, has launched this new website at www.johnmcfall.com. The website aims help people learn more about Lord McFall’s work both within and outside …► Read more
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John McFall: the public need more information on the debate on Scotland’s future (28 Mar 2012)
John McFall, Lord McFall of Alcluith, has said that the public is not currently receiving all the information it needs on the debate on Scotland’s future. Speaking in the House of Lords debate on the Scotland Bill, the former Chairman …► Read more
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Lord McFall: Scottish Government is “having its cake and eating it” on university funding (26 Mar 2012)
John McFall, Lord McFall of Alcluith, has said in the House of Lords that the Scottish Government is “having its cake and eating it” on university funding, and that education must be a “UK-wide initiative.” Speaking in the House of …► Read more
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Budget 2012: More ‘Robbing Who?’ than Robin Hood (23 Mar 2012)
Lord McFall’s article for the Labour Lords website. Click here to read this article on Labour Lords. The power and influence of Twitter was in evidence minutes after the Chancellor sat down yesterday when he presented his budget to parliament. …► Read more
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Lord McFall: it is not too late to consider a British investment bank (22 Mar 2012)
Lord McFall, former Chairman of the Treasury Committee in the House of Commons, has called on the Government to think again about the idea of a British investment bank, as UK banks continue to fail to lend to small and …► Read more
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Lord McFall’s speech on Budget 2012 (22 Mar 2012)
Lord McFall’s speech in the House of Lords debate on the Budget, 22nd March 2012. Read this speech in Hansard, the official publication of the UK Parliament. My Lords, I am delighted to participate in this debate and particularly to …► Read more
