Borders, Citizenship and Immigration Bill [Lords]

The hon. Gentleman is right: it is disturbing. The truth of the matter, in my view, is that the Government themselves do not know what is in the proposals. When they discussed the Bill last year—it was then the very big Bill that he described—and placed it before the Select Committee for scrutiny, many of its provisions were not put to us, and that is why we stopped our deliberations. I do not think that the Government know what they want to do about this scheme. That is why they now have a wonderful opportunity—the Minister will be very good at this, because he is extremely good at engaging with communities—to arrange proper consultation up and down the country, especially with the groups that are most affected, on what the provisions should be. However, the matter will have to return to Parliament so that there is adequate scrutiny of what the Government propose. I do not think that the Minister is in a position at this moment to place his proposals before Parliament, because I do not think he knows what they are. I emphasise to him that I do not mean that in a nasty way.