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Companies Act 2006 (Accounts, Reports and Audit) Regulations 2009

I thank the Minister once again for introducing these regulations. I do not think that they are particularly controversial so I will not detain your Lordships long. As the name includes the word "audit" I suppose I should disclose once again my membership of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales although I have not been a practitioner since at least the early 1980s. When these regulations were being debated on Monday in another place, I notice that the Liberal Democrat spokesman asked the Minister several technical questions, which he did not fully answer. Perhaps I can leave it to the noble Lord, Lord Razzall, to pursue these matters if he wishes to do so. On these Benches, we are strong supporters of transparency. Transparency is particular important with company accounts. Although relatively modest in their ambitions, we are supportive of the impetus behind these regulations. When they were debated in another place my honourable friend Oliver Heald asked the Minister why these provisions had taken so long to promulgate. He asked if it was because the Financial Services Authority had taken a very long time to create the rules. The Minister there undertook to make inquiries of the FSA, and it would be helpful to know if there is an answer yet.