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Immigration and Nationality (Fees) (Amendment No. 2) Regulations 2008

I take that point. I shall get back to the noble Lord in writing on who we have talked to and what the position is, as I am not clear on that. He also asked whether consideration of applications should not be delayed pending payment of the fee. It is fair that users of the system rather than the UK taxpayer should contribute to this operation; that is the general consensus. If we considered applications before a fee was paid there would be no incentive for the applicant to pay. We must be a little wary of that. The costs for Hong Kong reflect the costs for citizenship and are in line with the 3 per cent increase. I shall come back to him in writing as regards Nepalese citizenship, as it is a detailed point and I am not absolutely clear about it. I do not want to mislead the Committee. I hope that I have answered the key points. If I have missed any, I shall be happy to answer them in writing. However, most people accept that those who benefit from the immigration system should contribute most. As I say, that was very much reflected in our discussions with all the various interested groups. It is appropriate to charge users of the new service for the applications and processes rather than rely on the public purse. I am sure that we all agree with that. I commend the regulations to the Committee. On Question, Motion agreed to.