---

Further Education and Training Bill [HL]

My Lords, I do not think that anybody is challenging the principle of intervention. My noble friend Lady Morris is challenging the extension of the powers of intervention and their delegation to the Learning and Skills Council. As the Minister for Lifelong Learning said in another place, "““in extremis, when all else fails, there has to be a back-stop power of intervention””.—[Official Report, Commons, 12/7/07; col. 1650.]" That was the Minister’s justification for the amendments. I do not think that anybody is challenging the backstop power of intervention; instead, it is proposed that it should remain with the Secretary of State, contrary to the belief of the noble Lord, Lord Sutherland. I feel that that is the right place for it. The provisions go far further than dealing with something ““in extremis””—a backstop position. As pointed out by my noble friend Lady Morris, there can be 61 steps on the route to intervention. No doubt that is a very sensible set of procedures for the Learning and Skills Council to have. However, throughout the Bill’s progress, there have been questions about whether it is sensible to increase the powers available to the LSC. It remains difficult to agree that it is either stable or confident enough to be entrusted with the proposed power of direction. In another place, the Minister indicated that further legislation would be needed, perhaps within three years. The LSC is also continuously being reorganised. There is recent evidence of this. Although the chief executive signed its report and accounts early in July last year, the LSC told me just today that it did not have a date on which the 2006-07 accounts would be available. That is surely a sign of change, instability and a lack of confidence. It would not be wise to delegate this important power to make directions to the LSC, so I support my noble friend’s amendment.