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Identity Cards Bill

The noble Lord has just made my point for me. He said that the specification was wrong; the costs were wrong; the estimates were wrong. This is exactly what we are complaining about. The more he speaks, the more he makes the case for the amendment. I do not have to go on numbering the mistakes that the Government have made, because I am a tactful and kindly soul and do not want to tell them about too many of them. Estimates are provided for battleships and buildings, and, above all, Parliament has to vote the supply. That is what the House of Commons is for. It ought to know how much money it is voting for and why. Our forefathers died to make sure that Parliament gave the King money only if it said so and if it knew what its specific purpose was. This is a fundamental constitutional clause. The Minister may sigh. She has heard me give this lecture previously. I will give it again and again and again, because this Government do not understand that simple point. Parliament exists to control the executive, to give it the money to do its work and to tell it how much it needs. That is why this amendment, or something very like it, is of fundamental importance.