Local Government Bill [HL]

My Lords, issues have been raised about the wording of the amendment. I said at the beginning of my contribution that of course amendments in this House should not relate to the issue of who should be paying for what and how much—hence, the wording of the amendment, which calls for a report. Amendments are not meant to be tabled in this House relating to the paying of moneys or to financial affairs, in that sense of the word. We want to see these elections held shortly. One of the issues concerned, and why it is perfectly relevant despite the constraints affecting the wording of the amendment, is the reference to costs. Obviously, if we are going to end up with a significant difference of opinion between the department and the local authorities over the timescale within which these elections could occur, that could affect the costs. The Minister has been abundantly clear in her view of what the law says. I simply refer again to the letter that she sent to me on 8 July, stating that as a result, "““the terms of office of one-third of the members of Exeter and Norwich city councils, which had been extended by the Orders, ended on the 5 July and there will be by-elections to fill these vacancies within 35 days as required by statute””." There are no ifs and no buts; instead, "““there will be by-elections to fill these vacancies within 35 days as required by statute””." Obviously, I asked the Minister whether she stood by that very clear legal opinion—there were no ifs or buts in what she said. I put to her that there were, apparently, in legal circles people who held a different view. I asked her about her interpretation as to whether these were casual vacancies or whether they were ordinary vacancies. That, it seems to me, affects the question of whether they have to be held within 35 days. I can only note with regret that although the Minister, in her letter of 8 July, was quite willing to offer a very specific view of what the law says, when challenged here today about what she said, she dodges the question, to put it bluntly, and declines to answer. That is the first point. The second point relates to costs. Unless I have not been listening properly, the Minister has given no indication of who should pay the costs. I simply reiterate that the Minister, in her letter to me, was quite clear that the issue that had arisen at the elections was as a result of the decisions taken by the previous Government—that is, central government. One would therefore have thought that, if that was her view, she would then say that it was not the responsibility of the local authorities to pick up the bill but the responsibility of central government. Once again, we do not seem to have had a clear response, or any response at all, to a clear question. However, I will carefully read the Minister’s reply in Hansard to ensure that I have not misinterpreted it. In the mean time, I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment 4 withdrawn. Clause 2 : Consequential electoral provision Clause 2 : Consequential electoral provision