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Consumer Credit Bill

The Minister said that my proposal to extend this period from 12 months to two months would be too difficult, or too difficult for the professionals in the industry. Have the professionals had more of the ministerial ear than people who work in debt counselling and those who must take up these loans? I fared better with my question about illegible and incomprehensible records. While I appreciate that the Minister cannot commit the Office of Fair Trading, I hope that he will encourage it to look further at this matter. I picked up the idea that someone with a loan for than 12 months could get a statement if they were in arrears. Perhaps I did not hear the Minister correctly. I was not very impressed by the idea that it was going to be too complex. Is not the nature of the business that you decide to make hundreds of loans of small amounts? That is what you decide to do. A shopkeeper who decides to sell lots of things for 25p has to record all those sales. That is the nature of the business. I have a final suggestion. It is not beyond the wit of man, and it has happened before. As this is a United Kingdom Bill, certain things could be tried in various parts of the country. I recall the community charge in Scotland and compulsory seatbelts in Northern Ireland. Is it possible within the legislation to run a trial in Scotland of extending the period to two months? Could the Bill cope with that?