Budget Responsibility and National Audit Bill [HL]

Absolutely. We have just heard clarity provided from this incredibly obscurantist piece of drafting. This subsection is a negative. It says: "““Where any Government policies are relevant … the Office may not consider””." You are taken to the negative. The verb with operational significance in that sentence is ““may not””. The noble Lord, Lord Newby, has hit the nail on the head. If one really wants to achieve what we are all trying to achieve, this subsection should be split into two with Clause 5(3) saying, ““Take these things into account”” and a new Clause 5(4) saying, ““Don’t mess around looking at other people’s policies””.