---

National Lottery Bill

My Lords, I, too, thank the Minister for his exposition. We had an important debate on prescription and compliance and there was a difference of opinion, but the Government listened and took account of the views that were held. In terms of the subject matter and the thematic approach to lottery funding, there was no argument that at the high level it was right that there should be an element of specification. However, in the detail and at the project level, we all felt that there was potential for prescription and for forcing the Big Lottery Fund to comply, and we felt that the Bill was wrongly set out in that regard. The Government subsequently agreed in spirit to the opposition amendments and they have brought back what they believe to be the right way of expressing this in the Bill. On some of these issues, this is wet towel time, but I regret that this is a somewhat convoluted way of giving the Government the ability in the Bill to force compliance with a direction, which then means that something has to be ““taken into account””. It seems to me that this two-stage process was more elegantly put in the original amendment, but those are the strange ways of parliamentary draftsmen, and who are we mortals to argue in the circumstances? I agree with the noble Viscount that, ultimately, the Government have come up with an amendment that meets the case, convoluted though it may be.