Statistics and Registration Service Bill

I am grateful to the Minister for that reply, and grateful for the support of my noble friend on the Front Bench. On the basis of the Minister’s response, I could be tempted to believe that the Government believe that the objective of data protection and safeguards in respect of it can be shuffled into the background. That makes me distinctly uncomfortable, I am bound to say. I really do not want to return to the issue on Report, and in a sense the Minister is right that it is not incumbent necessarily that this provision should appear at this particular place in the Bill. But almost in a fit of pique, purely and simply because the Government seem to be so dismissive of the whole concept of data protection, I really would like to test the opinion of the Committee. On Question, Whether the said amendment(No. 39) shall be agreed to? Their Lordships divided: Contents, 36; Not-Contents, 40. Clause 7 agreed to. Clause 8 [Monitoring and reporting of official statistics]: [Amendment No. 40 not moved.]