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Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill

My right hon. Friend makes his point very well, and I share his concern. I agree that parishes are concerned about decisions being made for them. When we deal with a later group of amendments involving parishes, I shall return to my right hon. Friend's question about their position should a principal authority, namely a district council, recommend their closure as part of a community-governance review. It is feared that there would not be sufficient recourse for them to combat such recommendations. Both here and in the other place, it was pointed out that simply recommending that they have recourse to law might not take account of the difficulties that parish councils would experience when confronted with the administrative power and financial resources of a principal authority recommending their closure. Perhaps, either at this stage or when we reach the amendments specifically relating to parishes, we could be given a clear and unambiguous answer to my right hon. Friend's question.