---

Banking Bill

My Lords, I apologise for not being able to be in my place when the Minister began his remarks. The more that I have heard, the more concerned I am about Amendment 22, which seems not to achieve the purpose that the Minister agrees should be achieved. If it is a matter of necessary or desirable, that is replacing ““necessary”” by ““desirable”” because if it were necessary it would be bound to be desirable. As this power would clearly not be used where it is undesirable, it means that the Minister is not merely achieving nothing but is watering down the purpose that he declares lies behind this amendment.