UK Parliament / Open data

Budget Responsibility and National Audit Bill [HL]

My Lords, will the Minister clarify one or two of his remarks? I got a bit lost. I think I am right that he is now saying that the real distinction is exec versus non-exec, not expert versus non-expert, so we have moved on from the Explanatory Notes on those clauses to something different. Do I therefore understand that the non-execs could include people who would be regarded as experts? My second question, and I blame myself for this as I did not emphasise it in my opening remarks, concerns the rubric in the Bill, ““two or more””. I meant to ask: what is the point of ““or more””? Two seems a lot. Why have the Government not been able to make up their mind what they think the right number is? I was very puzzled by that. I would have thought that two, full stop, would be enough. Certainly, if I were doing this, I would say, ““If we’re going to have to have these people, a couple of them are fine””, but I do not see where the ““or more”” comes in, unless we go along with my noble friend Lord Eatwell that the two that we have turn out not to be able to make tea and we need a third one for that purpose.

About this proceeding contribution

Reference

722 c182-3GC 

Session

2010-12

Chamber / Committee

House of Lords Grand Committee
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