[2nd Allocated Day]

I am grateful to the hon. Gentleman, but I should also say that the Minister acknowledged in his opening remarks that there was an issue that needed further work and clarification. I entirely welcomed that statement and will be happy to be involved in any discussions that might advance the point. However, in spite of the discussions and debates so far, the issue remains unresolved. It might be resolved in another place, but until then it is important to make the totemic point that the matter is of such significant concern that it is worth our while pressing the matter further. I shall canter through my many amendments as briefly as possible. We are under a time constraint, and I will try to move through them as quickly as I can. I hope that hon. Members will bear with me if I do not take further interventions. New clauses 16 and 17 would remove the independence of the commissioning groups from the NHS board by restoring the Secretary of State's power to delegate functions to NHS commissioners and direct them where appropriate. That allows the restoration of the Secretary of State's duty to provide or secure provision of the health service as per the 1946 Act, which used those very words. That would restore fully accountable spending in respect of the £80 billion of taxpayers' money that goes through that route. We cannot provide a duty without providing the power, so the two things are clearly linked. Amendment 1197 would delete clause 4; it involves the ““hands off”” issue that has been raised before. Clause 4 would otherwise prevent the Secretary of State from directing clinical commissioning groups and the NHS commissioning board. Amendment 1198 would delete the same duty in respect of the NHS commissioning board, but would not interfere with clinical commissioning group autonomy. Rather than just asserting the opposite, will the Minister publish the legal advice that appears to contradict the advice that has been obtained? That states that the ““hands off”” clause is a real barrier to the Secretary of State's intervention—as, after all, it is designed to be. Members could read the two bits of advice and see which was more convincing. Better still, will the Minister amend the Bill to put the matter beyond doubt?