Member

The Government have said they will bring forward the necessary regulations for this large cohort of people when parliamentary time permits. However, as the Minister knows, those people see time moving relentlessly on and some are very worried they may not live long enough to receive the compensation promised to them. I am the first to recognise how much work is involved in collecting and collating the names and other information necessary to determine eligibility under the heading of “an affected person” and how complicated the regulations will inevitably have to be. However, without stealing the thunder of the noble Baroness, Lady Brinton, I press the Minister on this issue: is it possible for him to go further than the words “when parliamentary time permits” and give us a sense of a more precise timescale for laying the second set of regulations? Can he also shed a clearer light on when payments are likely to be made to the qualifying individuals?