Identity Cards Bill
9:10 am
Mr Humfrey Malins (Shadow Minister, Home Affairs; Woking, Conservative)
We are grateful for the letter that the Minister has supplied and thank him for his courtesy. We accept that it is always difficult when a Committee is in progress to deal with a query in a letter that can be received by members of the Committee in time for consideration at the next sitting. It puts huge pressure on the Minister. It is often considered that all the pressure is on the Opposition parties, but a great deal of pressure is often placed on the Minister.
We cannot object to the programme motion, but it is worth my pointing out that we will have to debate and scrutinise fully something in the order of 20 clauses, from clause 26 onwards, between our start after lunch and our conclusion. Give or take a bit, that is half the Bill and it is difficult to imagine that amount being debated fully in only one sitting of the Committee. Moreover, we must not only deal with those clauses, but discuss the important schedule 2, new clauses 1 and 2 and the new schedule. That will be extreme difficulties but, having said that, the Minister has been kind enough to amend the order to provide us with an extra hour for our discussions. Of course, an hour is not adequate, but it is certainly a move forward, to which Conservative Members cannot object and for which we are grateful.
Question put and agreed to.