Member

In addition to those safeguards, the Government have now put forward further amendments to reassure the House and the public that we will exercise the EVM responsibly. Government Amendments 47 and 48 create a new requirement that the Secretary of State must consider it “necessary and proportionate” to issue an EVN before doing so. That reflects the commitments I have made throughout the Bill’s passage that we will use the EVM only when it is a necessary and proportionate way of helping to find incorrect payments in relevant benefits. This responds directly to Amendment 49 from the noble Lord, Lord Vaux, and the points he raised in Committee. Although I may have more to add once I have heard from the noble Lord today, I hope noble Lords will agree that this makes this legislation even more robust.