National Insurance Contributions Bill
10:30 am
Christopher Chope (Christchurch, Conservative)
Before we begin, I have a few preliminary announcements to make. If people wish, they can remove their jackets; I see that one or two hon. Members have already done so. Will all members of the Committee please ensure that their mobile phones and pagers are turned off or are switched to silent mode during our proceedings?
Adequate notice should be given of amendments. As a general rule, I do not intend to call starred amendments, so the reality is probably that the time for amendments is passed.
We are still in the early days of taking oral evidence in Public Bill Committees, so it might be helpful if I explain the procedure to make it clear to everyone. The Committee will first be asked to consider the programme motion on the amendment paper, for which debate is limited to half an hour. We will then proceed to consider a motion to report written evidence and a motion to permit the Committee to deliberate in private in advance of the oral evidence sessions that I hope we can take formally.
Assuming that the third motion is agreed to, the Committee will then move into a brief private session. When the Committee has deliberated, witnesses and members of the public will be invited back into the room and our oral evidence session will commence. If the Committee finishes its questioning at a reasonable time before One o’clock—I understand that that is the expectation—it will move on to the more familiar proceedings of clause-by-clause scrutiny of the Bill, after a short suspension to rearrange the room. I hope that that is clear. I now call the Minister to move the programme motion.