Sustainable Communities Bill

I should like to finish my point first. New clause 6 would replace clause 5, which was a softened version of the original provision and gave the Secretary of State more leeway while still giving local authorities the right to argue for the reallocation of moneys irrespective of function. The Minister did not oppose the clause in Committee; in fact, in the afternoon sitting of 23 May he said that he did not intend to oppose new clause 3, as it was then. He was true to his word and we were told to expect amendments to the detail, but not to the principle. Today, we shall be considering an amendment to remove clause 5 completely and when the Minister explains that proposal, he will—with your indulgence, Mr. Deputy Speaker—steer us towards his amendments to new clause 1. I look forward to his arguments that his proposals are an authentic and satisfactory response to the points we are making and the principles we are trying to establish and make clear in the Bill. In the distinctive spirit of consensus and cross-party support that is so integral to the Bill, we shall try to keep an open mind, but he knows that we were disappointed and have not been persuaded thus far, which is why we tabled the new clause as a compromise. We did so for two reasons, the first of which relates to form and narrative. As I hope I have explained, we need a mechanism to follow clause 4. In Committee, there was much talk of the campaign for clear English, led by the right hon. Member for Holborn and St. Pancras (Frank Dobson), who pointed out that much of the legislation that leaves this place is impenetrable to the public. It was put to me that if the ten commandments had been handed to parliamentary counsel, the audience would have scratched their heads, saying, ““What do you think he meant by that?”” There is some truth in that observation. The Minister’s new clause 1—if I may refer to it, Mr. Deputy Speaker—has a useful provision about the right to transfer functions, which we have, in effect, copied into new clause 6, but it is in the wrong context—a national plan that is a one-off exercise in terms of the Bill. We see the publishing of local spending reports as a regular process that is subject to review, and certainly not as a one-off exercise. The Minister’s proposal is in danger of leaving us with a Bill that lacks coherence.