Clause 18
Welfare Reform Bill
Public Bill Committees, 31 October 2006, 6:00 pm
Anne McGuire (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Disabled People), Department for Work and Pensions; Stirling, Labour)
The flexibility is built into the Bill because if we need to extend a pilot beyond the 24-month period, clause 18(7) allows for replacing one pilot with another, which would be dependent on Parliament’s approval. If it went up to five years it would stultify the pilot rather than encouraging us to learn from it. In the spirit in which the amendment was tabled, I ask the hon. Gentleman to withdraw it.