Pensions Bill

I hear what the Minister says. I was trying to give a reasonably balanced and constructive response, and was going to say that we do not want to replicate the work. The deadline in our amendment of 31 December 2007 may well be rather too soon, and I am happy to take that back and consider it. The Minister was stressing, however, that he did not think it was right for the delivery authority to do the analysis in its initial stages. If he meant that it was not right for the authority to do it at all, he should have said so, but we are talking about initial stages and I am responding in that spirit when I say that I think it would be right, but we should think about when and how, after the department has done the initial work, it is then appropriate to move on to an independent and more consumer-focused and consumer-related organisation. That is the point I am trying to make. I thank noble Lords from all sides of the Committee who have spoken in support: the noble Lord, Lord Blackwell, from the Conservative Benches and the noble Baroness, Lady Noakes, in general terms, along with the noble Baroness, Lady Turner, from the Labour Benches, and the noble Baronesses, Lady Howe and Lady Greengross, with the latter’s great experience of these matters. We do not want to be too purist on the question of public subsidy, bearing in mind that debt and pensions advice is to some extent integrated, that we subsidise the citizens advice bureaux and other similar organisations for perfectly good public reasons, and that part of the point of the whole exercise will be to help people save so that they avoid landing up on means-tested benefits in future. By all means let us look at how far advice can be paid for by the delivery authority, but if we are trying to get through to people in lower income groups, it is vital that it is free to the individual at the point of need or the point of sale, as the noble Lord, Lord Blackwell, said. There are interesting issues here, and I am inclined to consider carefully what the Minister said. However, I hope that in consultation with the Conservative Front Bench we will be able to arrive at something for Report on which we will be able to press the Minister harder. With that, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.