Dormant Bank and Building Society Accounts Bill [Lords]

The hon. Gentleman may well be right that that funding is not a statutory responsibility, but in a way that gives the Government a bit of a let out by saying that they do not have to fund such activities—they know that X million pounds will be flowing through from the reclaim fund, so they feel that they can reduce expenditure. I think we all want to see additionality; the money should come on top of the amount of money that the Government intend to spend. One of the requirements that the Government will have to work hard at, together with the Big Lottery Fund, will be how to demonstrate that the funding is additional to existing Government expenditure rather than a substitute for it. Another aspect of the legislation that we need to think about quite carefully is the fact that we are establishing a legal framework for a voluntary agreement by banks and building societies to transfer money from dormant accounts to a reclaim fund and for the surplus money to be used for the public good at the direction of a Government Minister. There is a hybridity in that process—I am aware that that word has a particular meaning in parliamentary terms, but what the Bill provides is very much a hybrid arrangement. We are talking about an essentially voluntary activity on the part of the banks and building societies, yet the money raised through that voluntary activity will be spent at the direction of the Government. That is why it is important that there is proper scrutiny of how the scheme works. I have already touched on the need for scrutiny of the reclaim fund. In the other place, Baroness Noakes successfully moved an amendment introducing a triennial review of the scheme. I noted the Government's desire in Committee to remove the requirement in perpetuity for a triennial review. We need to ensure that the scheme is working properly, and I am not sure that simply saying that there will be a review in three years and that will be that is the right answer, given the particular and peculiar nature of the scheme that we are discussing today. The review will help to shine a spotlight on how well banks perform and how well they reunite their customers with their funds. It will act as an incentive to banks and building societies to take appropriate steps to trace owners. It will also become apparent when we look at how much money is recovered from the reclaim fund by customers just how well or badly banks have done in that important preparatory work. It is important that that public scrutiny is undertaken. The voluntary nature of the scheme, as well as requiring a particular degree of parliamentary scrutiny, has another benefit. It means that the cost of the scheme should be lower than that of a compulsory scheme, as it should have the benefit of reducing administrative costs and ensuring that much of the money that flows out of dormant accounts is available for distribution. It is therefore important that as few hands as possible dip into the funds and that any administration costs are kept under control. The Opposition certainly expressed concern in the other place in respect of the Big Lottery Fund's administration costs and the costs that the Government could defray from the scheme, and we will return to that in Committee. When the Bill completes its passage through Parliament, it will mark the end of the opening phase of how we deal with unclaimed assets. People will want to consider how the Bill works in practice and to discover what lessons can be learned for other categories of unclaimed assets. The Young review of the financial assistance scheme pointed out that there were many different classes of dormant assets sitting in pension accounts and on life assurance company balance sheets and that people had forgotten about premium bond winnings. Once the scheme has worked its way through the system, there will be pressure to consider what else should be included within its scope. Again, the clause on triennial review includes that likelihood. The Bill is a test-bed. Its results will be scrutinised carefully to find out what lessons can be learned. The scheme will be scrutinised on its own merits, too, to discover how effectively it works to provide proper protection for consumers, by ensuring that they do not lose their right to money that has been put into a dormant account. People will want the scheme to be run efficiently at every stage, and they will want it to put the emphasis on consumer protection, as well as on releasing money for good causes. Financial institutions want the scheme to safeguard their obligations to their customers and members, too. Charities and voluntary groups want the scheme to deliver clear benefits for them, as well as support for the Government's priorities. The Bill provides a framework for that to happen. It is now our task to ensure that it is improved, so that it meets the expectations of all the stakeholders involved in putting together the scheme.