Building Societies (Funding) and Mutual Societies (Transfers) Bill

I am grateful, Madam Deputy Speaker. You enable me to answer the hon. Gentleman's other point on how we would introduce safeguards, in respect of which I have a bit of a problem with Lords amendment No. 1. At the moment, one of the safeguards is that before any approval, if the issue is a hybrid one, anybody who felt aggrieved could petition the other place under the hybrid instrument procedure. However, under Lords amendment No. 1, such a move would be excluded. Paragraph 6 of the explanatory notes on the Lords amendments refers to the justification for that, but it does not wash. Paragraph 6 states:"““Lords Amendment 1 ensures that any order made under clause 3 which may have effects peculiar to a particular mutual will not be dealt with under the hybrid instrument procedure…As a result of the addition of 'EEA mutual' to clause 3 it is possible that an order… could, for example, require an EEA mutual society acquiring a UK mutual to give transferring members full membership rights in the EEA mutual.””" Most of us would think that a good idea. However, the paragraph goes on:"““If the EEA mutual has a unique legal form that might raise a question of hybridity.””" Okay—so it raises a question of hybridity. If the hybrid instrument procedure were applied, members of the UK mutual subject to it would be able to decide whether, either as individuals or collectively, they wished to petition the other place under that procedure. Lords amendment No. 1 would ensure, as paragraph 6 goes on,"““that the hybrid instrument procedure would not apply, should such a situation arise.””" Why should it not apply? What mischief could possibly result from the hybrid instrument procedure? The essence of that procedure in the other place is that an opportunity is given to petition, just as people can petition against a private Bill or a hybrid Bill. If the relevant people consider that they need to petition against it, they can; the petition is then considered by the relevant Committee in the other place. That can either reject the petition as being irrelevant or without substance, or say that the petition has substance and merit, and proceed accordingly.