Constitutional Reform (Prerogative Powers and Civil Service etc.) Bill [HL]

My Lords, that is a recommendation to which we shall give serious consideration. It is in no one’s interest that that confusion exists, because the role of special advisers and the value that they bring to any administration is immense. Their different and respective roles need to be understood. There are a number of other issues arising from the noble Lord’s Bill which time does not permit me to dwell on. We have answered Questions on the Parliamentary Commissioner for Administration, and I do not intend to go over the matter in detail today. There is also the issue of public appointments and nationality requirements. I am happy to put our thoughts on that in correspondence to the noble Lord to clarify our position. I am over-staying my welcome at the Dispatch Box this afternoon and preventing my noble friend Lord Evans of Temple Guiting from playing his part in the proceedings. I set out the reasons why the Government do not lend their support to the Bill. That is not to say that there are not things in the Bill that are of merit, some of which we have already taken on board outside the realms of legislation. There have been issues that were helpfully raised during today’s debate. I add my thanks to the noble Lord, Lord Lester of Herne Hill, for the way in which he introduced his Bill. As the noble Lord, Lord Maclennan, said, it is very much in a finished form and we should be grateful for that, because it is crystal clear in its intent. There have been many telling contributions. I listened particularly to those of the noble Lord, Lord Lipsey. His insistence that we ought to reflect much more on the culture that surrounds government and the issue of trust that goes with that is where this debate begins and ends, and I thought his comments on that point were very well made. As the Government spokesman responsible for this area of policy, I will continue to reflect carefully on all the comments that have been made in what was an interesting and important debate. No doubt these are issues and matters we shall return to in more forensic detail at a later date when the Bill has had some time—how much time, I do not know—for further consideration. For now, though, I shall sit down, having listened, and wanting to listen some more, to the noble Lord, Lord Lester.