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National Lottery Bill

My Lords, we have made great progress since Committee. Once again, I recognise my debt to the noble Lord, Lord Joffe, who spoke on that occasion and helped greatly in identifying the real issues at stake. I confess that I am sorry about the difficulties of the noble Viscount, Lord Astor, with the figures and that he has identified some inconsistency. I am afraid that the annual report can only provide a snapshot at the time of expenditure. The amounts paid out may vary slightly from the awards made, for reasons that all of us would recognise with such grants. There are some minor difficulties with the accounts, but, as the noble Lord, Lord Joffe, indicated, not such as to occasion great anxiety about the way in which these programmes are managed. I want to give the noble Viscount, Lord Astor, the assurance that he seeks—these figures will be carried in the annual report as accurately as they can be made at the time. We have nothing to hide. The lottery has nothing to hide. The one case of some anxiety that we discussed in Committee did not have too much substance. With that, I hope that the noble Viscount will think that I have given him the reassurance required.