Member

Our second concern is constitutional and even more serious. I pick up where I left off in our debate on group 1. Clause 3(3) would give the Government extraordinarily broad powers, including, in Clause 3, the power to amend an Act of Parliament. Yet, as my noble friend Lady Noakes said, Ministers are seeking those powers before they have decided what policy they intend to pursue. She called this “bizarre”. The consultation has not concluded—in fact, it has barely begun—and the Government’s plans remain unknown. We are told that clarity will come only after the summer and that the power may be narrowed then.