---

Legal Services Bill [HL]

My Lords, allow me to compose myself before I continue. Once the Bill becomes an Act, the matter will be entirely in the hands of the Legal Services Board. From the moment the Bill becomes law, the Government will not be able to intervene. How will they be confident that the Legal Services Board will take these issues seriously, which I think is what lies behind the intervention made by the noble Lord, Lord Neill of Bladen? He wants to be confident that the Legal Services Board will investigate all these matters before 2011. Although we on these Benches supported the sunrise clause at an earlier stage, we are hesitant about supporting it again this late, provided the Government can give us some real assurance that these issues will be properly confronted and dealt with between now and 2011. Otherwise, the consequences could be dire.