Local Government Bill
8:55 am
Mr Nick Raynsford (Minister of State (Local and Regional Government), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Greenwich and Woolwich, Labour)
Further to that point of order, Mr. Conway. First, may I thank you for your kind good wishes on this auspicious day? Secondly, as the Committee will be aware, the timetable for the Committee proceedings was announced in the full
knowledge that the Government intended to move the repeal of parts of section 19 of the Fire Brigades Act and that was certainly taken into account in the timetabling. The judicial proceedings, which we believe are unjustified and without merit, do not hinge on whether the Committee has sufficient time to debate the issue. I honestly do not believe that hon. Members' request for additional time to debate this would have any bearing on the judicial proceedings if they were to be countenanced.