Member

Let me move—at speed—to my noble friend’s Amendment 253, the third of the amendments in this group. As noble Lords have said, it is vital that we ensure the independence of this new regulator. The Government have repeatedly made that point. The Bill empowers, under Clause 53(1), the independent football regulator to levy fees on regulated clubs to cover its operating costs. However, this amendment goes further than that, introducing a mechanism to make the independent football regulator wholly self-sufficient after repaying its initial set-up costs. We think that is essential for several reasons.