Channel Tunnel Rail Link (Supplementary Provisions) Bill
10:30 am
Peter Atkinson (Hexham, Conservative)
Before we begin, I have a few housekeeping announcements to make. If men wish to take off their jackets, they may. Will everyone please ensure that mobile phones are silenced? I remind the Committee that there is a Ways and Means resolution in relation to the Bill, of which copies are available in the Room, and that adequate notice should be given of amendments, because it is not my general intention to call starred amendments.
The process of taking oral evidence in Public Bill Committees is still quite new, so it may help if I briefly explain what we are going to do. Having said that, it is as new to me as it probably is to many of you, so please bear with us. The Committee first considers the programme motion on the amendment paper. Debate on that, if it is necessary, is limited to half an hour. We shall then proceed to a motion to report written evidence and afterward to a motion to permit the Committee to deliberate in private in advance of the oral evidence session. I hope that we can take those latter motions formally. The purpose of the private session is to consider the brief that we have been given, and to allow questions to be dealt with.
Assuming that the second motion is agreed, the Committee will then move into public session for the oral evidence. If the Committee completes its questioning of witnesses in good time, we will move on to clause-by-clause consideration. If we manage that before 1 pm, we shall have to move to Committee Room 12, for reasons that I shall not bore you with. We shall adjourn for 15 minutes while that happens. Finally, will speakers please remain seated when they speak? The reason is that the microphones in this Room do not work.