Dissolution
National Lottery Bill
11:00 am
Richard Caborn (Minister of State (Sport), Department for Culture, Media & Sport; Sheffield Central, Labour)
The amendments relate to clause 15, which deals with the dissolution of the old lottery distributors and the transfer of property. Clause 15 allows the Secretary of State by order to appoint a day on which the Community Fund, the Millennium Commission and the New Opportunities Fund will cease to exist. Such an order may include consequential, incidental or transitional provisions and unless it amends other primary legislation, it is subject to the negative procedure. Government amendment No. 10 clarifies that the Secretary of State will be able under clause 15 to appoint different dates on which the three Lottery distributors will cease to exist if required. The amendment will allow a greater degree of flexibility in deciding when to dissolve the existing distributors, allowing a seamless operational transition to the establishment of the Big Lottery Fund.
I commend the hon. Member for East Devon on amendment No. 66, which would serve much the same purpose as the Government amendment. Amendment No. 102, tabled by the hon. Member for Isle of Wight, would also make it clear that the existing distributors can be dissolved on separate days. I assure them that Government amendment No. 10 adequately deals with that point and makes amendments Nos. 66 and 102 unnecessary.
Amendment No. 67 would insert new words into subsection (1) of clause 15 to maintain funding for commitments made by the three named distributors prior to their dissolution. The amendment is unnecessary as provision is already made for that. Clause 16 provides that all the existing liabilities of the three distributors, including any funding commitments made prior to dissolution, are transferred to the Big Lottery Fund.
Amendment No. 69 would amend clause 15(3) so that the dissolution order would be subject to the affirmative resolution procedure and would therefore have to be debated in both Houses. We believe that this is completely unnecessary and would risk delaying the transition unnecessary and would risk delaying the transition Big Lottery Fund. The merits of whether these bodies should be dissolved and replaced by the Big Lottery Fund aside, the dissolution order is simply a necessary technical requirement to ensure a seamless transition.
The affirmative procedure will apply if the order contains consequential provision that amends other primary legislation in line with the recommendations of the Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform Committee. I hope that, in the light of what I have said, hon. Members will not press their amendments.