Clause 20 - Preparation and submission of evidence
Regional Assemblies (Preparations) Bill
5:45 pm
Mr Nick Raynsford (Minister of State (Local and Regional Government), Office of the Deputy Prime Minister; Greenwich and Woolwich, Labour)
The amendment would mean that the Electoral Commission could not be required under any circumstances to submit its advice given under a direction under clause 19 within less than a year of being given the direction. As I said in earlier debates, we will discuss with the Electoral Commission our proposal for the timetable for its preparation and submission of advice before finalising it. Twelve months is not an unreasonable period, but it would be rather arbitrary to say that it is the minimum requirement in all circumstances. If the Electoral Commission advised us that it could do the work satisfactorily within 10 months, it would be somewhat perverse, to say the least, to have to say, ''Sorry, you've got to twiddle your thumbs for two months before reporting because there is a minimum statutory requirement of 12 months.''
I understand the hon. Gentleman's concern that the Electoral Commission should not be rushed by an unreasonable timetable, but I hope that we have already given a pretty clear indication that we will consult it closely before determining a timetable. The earlier provisions in the Bill relating to the boundary committee's work on local government reorganisation indicate how we will go about that. In that connection, I said that a period of 12 months would be broadly correct as a timetable. We are now talking about different provisions on electoral arrangements, and I would not necessarily want our commitment on the local government review to be treated as a precedent in that respect. However, having given the undertaking that we will consult the Electoral Commission before finalising our direction, I hope that the hon. Gentleman recognises that that is a better and more expeditious arrangement and will withdraw the amendment.