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Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Scheme

I am delighted that the noble Lord has asked me that question, because I was just coming to that very point. We warmly congratulate the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission on its launch yesterday of activities to mark the achievements of 50 years. That was the reception that the noble Lord, Lord Luce, attended last night. We are considering what we might do to mark that anniversary. No decision has been made yet but part of our consideration includes the possibility of a donation to the proposed endowment fund to scholarships tenable in developing Commonwealth countries. That is our thinking at the moment; there is a lot more to be thought through before we come up with a definite answer. I end, as I began, by thanking the noble Lord, Lord Luce, and all other speakers in this excellent debate. I thank them, too, for the opportunity to set the record straight on the Government’s continuing support for the Commonwealth Scholarship and Fellowship Plan. If I was being tortured, it was done in such a delightful way that I never noticed.