New Clause 2 - Assistance for designated organisations
Regional Assemblies (Preparations) Bill
10:15 am
Mr Philip Hammond (Runnymede and Weybridge, Conservative)
I noted with interest the Minister's comments about the appropriate word with which to start a sentence and I can assure him that we have not finished with that matter. I noted carefully what he said as reported in Hansard. I have written to the Minister for School Standards and I will be interested to see whether it will be Government policy that the English language should be used flexibly in a document as important as a piece of legislation.
The Minister commented on the various positions taken by the Conservative party and the Liberal Democrats. We have our differences in the two Opposition parties, but the Napoleonic tendencies of the Minister and his Government are in danger of uniting against him the freedom lovers in the Opposition. Those tendencies are sometimes unworthy of him.
I should like to say a word about Surrey county council and its commendable parsimony in deciding to
retain its existing headquarters, even though it is now outside Surrey, rather than do what a northern Labour metropolitan authority would no doubt have done and build a grandiose new establishment in a new location. I commend Surrey county council's attitude to the Committee.
The Opposition are enormously grateful to you, Mr. Butterfill and to Mr. Benton for your wise chairmanship of the Committee. You have been firm but fair. We are grateful to the Clerks who have served the Committee for their guidance and advice, which is particularly valued by Opposition Members who sometimes struggle to get amendments tabled in time and in an orderly form without the life support systems that Ministers enjoy. I record our thanks to both Ministers for the way that they have handled the issues that have been raised in this Committee, scoring points, or attempting to score points, when they needed to, but dealing with our questions courteously and with good humour. That has been greatly appreciated because it makes the Committee a much more enjoyable experience for everyone.
I thank my hon. Friends for their support, particularly, my hon. Friend the Member for New Forest, West, without whose constant support beside me I would not have been able to move our many amendments. I also thank Government Back Benchers for their participation in our proceedings. One or two of them have been very helpful to the Opposition's arguments, sometimes intentionally and sometimes inadvertently. I have served on Standing Committees where the primary purpose of Government Back Benchers seems to have been the scoring of rather small debating points against the Opposition. By contrast, Opposition Members have engaged in a constructive way with the debate. That has made it a much more interesting Committee. Finally, I add my thanks to those of the Minister for Local Government and the Regions to the Hansard reporters, the police, the staff of the House and everyone else who has made the Committee function smoothly and effectively.