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Equitable Life

I can understand why my right hon. Friend is concerned that an interim payments scheme might add further complexity. No one would want that, but surely it cannot be beyond the wit of all the experts involved to come up with some simple interim payments scheme, because people are going to need some form of payment in a reasonably short time. I am sure that the welcome that policyholders will give today's announcement will be qualified by the talk of the months and years that payments might take. Some people need money much more quickly than that, and I strongly urge my right hon. Friend to consider some form of interim payment scheme as part of the package that she is now discussing.