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Perpetuities and Accumulations Bill [HL]

I crave the indulgence of the Committee to say a few words in the gap. I did not put my name down to speak at Second Reading for the good reason that, as the prospective chairman of the committee that will be hearing evidence in due course, it seemed better that I should not express any view at all on the substance of the Bill. However, I did not want my silence today to be taken in any way as meaning that I had any doubts about the new procedure that we are adopting today for the first time; indeed, I warmly welcome it. The Minister said at the end of his introduction that he hoped that this would be the first of many Bills to adopt this course, and I entirely agree. The noble and learned Lord, Lord Archer, said that he foresaw something of this kind many years ago when he was negotiating with Lord Scarman, the first chairman of the Law Commission. I just hope that the progress that the Bill takes through the House will fulfil some of his early hopes at that stage.