My Lords, we are extremely grateful to the noble Baroness for that reply. There are obviously a lot of issues that we may want to return to, but clearly the main debate is about the duty of candour. It has been a good debate because noble Lords have identified the problems of a statutory duty on individuals. This presents some real challenges, which clearly need to be thought out with great care and attention. I very much accept that there is a real risk of perverse incentives and discouraging staff doing the right thing because of the fear of prosecution.
However, I am puzzled about the duty of candour. I do not understand why the Government have included this offence of supplying false or misleading information in the Bill when the duty of candour, which is clearly much more important, will be relegated to secondary legislation. From the debate and the comments of all
noble Lords who spoke, clearly this is not easy. It has to be got right. The best way to get it right is through primary legislation.
The problem with secondary legislation is that, at best, we will have an hour and a half of debate and we are not allowed to amend it. This issue is so complex and important that it warrants more. I strongly recommend that the Government to look at this again and bring back an amendment on Report in the light of Professor Donald Berwick’s recommendation. I think that they will find that the duty of candour is the flagship of the Francis report. Not to have it included in the Bill means that we are missing something. I suspect that patients will miss out in the end.
Having said that, this is a good way to conclude our discussions tonight and I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.