Lord Speaker visit to Birmingham

First, at 10.30am, the Lord Speaker will visit the Cardinal Wiseman Catholic Technology College, as part of her Peers in Schools programme. She will speak to staff and students at the school about her role as Lord Speaker, and the work of the House of Lords, to encourage the students to take an interest in politics and the democratic process.

Following on, at 12.45pm, the Lord Speaker will speak to a number of women's groups as part of the Houses of Parliament's Women in Parliament outreach programme. Among those organisations Baroness D'Souza will be addressing are the Saheli Women's Group, Black Women in Politics, the Women's Networking Hub and Women of Wolverhampton.

Speaking ahead of her visit, the Lord Speaker said:

“One of the most enjoyable aspects of my job is leaving Westminster and travelling to different parts of the country to talk to people outside of London; not just about the House and its work, but about their experiences, their lives and the issues that matter to them.

“Women have only been in the Lords since 1958 and, since then, there have been some fantastic women in here who have had a real impact on pushing through positive changes to legislation that have helped to improve everyday lives. As well as encouraging young people to engage with the democratic process, it's vital to make people understand that that engagement is not something that should stop or diminish as they get older.

“Speaking to the women's groups and organisations about their concerns, the issues they want to discuss and how they can get their voices heard is an important aspect of my role as Lord Speaker, and I hope to use my visit to remind everyone of the importance of Parliament to the scrutiny of laws, which can have a direct relevance to people all over the country.”