---

Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions (Northern Ireland) Order 2005

My Lords, we too support the order in that it is a general tidying-up exercise, particularly given the helpful Explanatory Notes. It brings the law in Northern Ireland into line with that which has existed in England and Wales since 1989. It has certainly taken its time to do so. I was particularly interested in paragraph 8 of the Explanatory Notes. It talks of how in Northern Ireland savings from a housekeeping allowance paid by a husband to a wife, and any proceeds thereof, belong to the husband. The rule does not apply where an allowance is paid by a wife to her husband and is thus discriminatory and outdated. I could not agree more.