Clause 3 - Sections 1 and 2: supplemental
Horserace Betting and Olympic Lottery Bill
10:15 am
Mr Richard Page (South West Hertfordshire, Conservative)
I wish to intervene only briefly. I support my hon. Friend's argument. I appreciate that it is a technicality and that it represents a belt-and-braces approach, but the Minister said that he hoped that there would be only a short period between Government ownership and the handover to a racing trust.
I do not know what is a short period. For Stephen Hawking it is a few millennia; for the Government it could be three or four months. There could be a period of instability in which various moves are made and actions taken, and it is most important to the stability of, and confidence in, the measure that we ensure that the directors who know how to run the Tote operation are there to take over when the time comes.
We are being super-cautious, but I hope that the Minister appreciates the fact that the amendment has been tabled with the best of intentions for all concerned.