Member

I turn to the thrust of my amendment. As the Minister said, he cannot predict what the ONS will do. To that extent, I remain concerned that there is a huge gamble here of a significant sum of money coming on to the department’s balance sheet. The department will then have to get more money from the Treasury or cut back on other bits of its expenditure. I look forward to the Minister’s detailed reply on what I confess is an abstruse subject around what is and what is not public expenditure. In the light of his letter, we may want to come back to this on Report. In the meantime, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.