Clause 36
Housing and Regeneration Bill
9:45 am
Iain Wright (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Communities and Local Government; Hartlepool, Labour)
I thank the right hon. Gentleman for that line of questioning. I do not have the Hansard for 11 December in front of me, but I seem to recall from my genning up for this debate that the right hon. Gentleman was extraordinarily helpful to me in respect of this matter. I believe he realises, because I think he made the point in December, that the provisions are not, in essence, a change in policy terms or in the legal framework. He mentioned in December that the Housing Corporation operates a similar system under the Housing Act 1996, and I believe he agrees that it is not unreasonable to require repayment of more grant than had been originally understood would go unchallenged.
On the direct point about dialogue between officials and the CML, I assure the right hon. Gentleman that my officials have been discussing the matter with the organisation. The discussion is ongoing, because we are keen to reassure the CML of the nature of the clause and subsequent relevant clauses, and to ease its concerns. I believe that the dialogue has proved fruitful, and I hope that I have reassured the right hon. Gentleman in that regard.