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Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill [Lords]

We have not issued the press release yet, but it will go out very shortly and my announcement in the House may put some pressure on the Committee to make sure that it does. My guess is that we will look for evidence some time towards the end of April, with hearings probably in early May. We regard this area as an important part of consumer protection that has not received enough scrutiny recently. I hope that the House will welcome our decision to conduct the inquiry. I have spoken for quite long enough. This is an important Bill and I welcome the spirit of what it tries to do. My caveats and cautions are genuinely intended in the spirit of helpfulness. The House should embrace quite warmly the philosophy underlying the Bill, but there are important questions relating to the transition to the new environment and I hope that the Minister will be able to address those when he replies to the debate later.