Mr Nick Hawkins (Surrey Heath, Conservative)

Subsection (3) states that

''the National Debt Commissioners shall comply with any direction of the Treasury.''

That seems to reinforce the huge power that the Treasury has over investment. I am sure that the Minister will say that the commissioners, whatever

they are doing, have to follow every direction of the Treasury, and every Bill relating to the matter has to specify that.

Having not come across the commissioners before, I am slightly curious to know who they are. I do not know whether the Minister has that information now, or whether he would prefer to write to me. It struck me that it was important to point out once again that the Treasury is exercising a vast amount of power.

Mr Richard Caborn (Minister of State (Sport and Tourism), Department for Culture, Media & Sport; Sheffield Central, Labour)

We would like to believe that the Treasury does not have a vast amount of power, but it does. So much so, that the clause is no different from the existing lottery arrangements. It is part of the National Lottery Act 1993, and we are trying to mirror that, and dovetail with the special arrangements on hypothecation. It is in keeping with what is in the 1993 Act.

Question put and agreed to.

Clause 27 ordered to stand part of the Bill.