§ Amendment made: In page 17, line 15, leave out "or into".—[Mr. Diamond.]
§ Mr. DiamondI beg to move Amendimmt No. 16, in page 17, line 46, after "Trustee", to insert:
any fee payable to the Comptroller and Auditor General".I always feel sympathetic to fees paid to Comptrollers and Auditors General, or to any other kind of auditor. This Amendment enables the trustees to have power to pay a fee if it is charged. The Bill does not at present contain that power. It was a slight omission and I hope that the Committee will agree that such power should be included.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Mr. DiamondI beg to move Amendment No. 17, in page 17, line 46, to leave out third "and" and to insert "or".
As a result of this Amendment, the trustees would be free to adopt either of the two normal methods of superannuating staff—by paying the pensions themselves or by making contributions to an insurance company so that the pensions were paid by that company. At present, the freedom to do this is not included in the Bill and the Government believe that this Amendment is preferable.
§ Amendment agreed to.
§ Schedule, as amended, agreed to.
§ Schedules 3 to 5 agreed to.
§ Sir D. RentonOn a point of order, Mr. Hynd. I assume that this does not mean that it is intended to take the Report stage straight away. Many 626 matters are to be considered by the Government, according to the Chief Secretary. Perhaps I have mistaken the Question before the Committee.
§ Mr. DiamondPerhaps, Mr. Hynd, I may be forgiven if I answer both parts of the right hon. and learned Gentleman's question—that part concerning the rules of order as well as the substantive part. It would not be in order to take the Report stage now, because we have amended the Bill; and certainly it would not be the Government's intention, having agreed to look again at certain aspects, to go ahead with the Report stage now.
§ Question put and agreed to.
§ Bill reported, with Amendments; as amended to be considered upon Monday next and to be printed. [Bill 67.]