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Norwich and Norfolk (Structural Changes) Order 2010

My Lords, I rise at this late stage because I have a screed of reasons why we should accept these orders and I want to speak on behalf of the fair city of Exeter. I would ask the House at this stage to concentrate not on the process but on the substance of the matter and the will of the people of the two cities concerned. I shall make just two points on process. First, it has taken a long time and it has been fairly disastrous. However, it is not the process that now matters; it is the decision on the substance. I started to have some sympathy with the noble Lords, Lord Tope and Lord Rennard, on elections. However, if the city elections proceeded and the cities returned roughly the balance of councillors that they have now—in the case of Exeter, the council recently voted by, I think, 31 to two in favour of unitary status—would the Benches opposite then support unitary status for those cities, or would they ignore public opinion in those cities, as they have done up until this date?