Compensation Bill [HL]

moved, as an amendment to Amendment No. 35, Amendment No. 36:"Line 10, after ““relate”” insert ““both to the applicant and””" The noble Lord said: In the amendments introduced by the Government today there is a sensible list of criteria which the regulator should consider. But there are two potential gaps in the list. The Minister will know how concerned I am about the way in which claims management services are advertised. I believe this to be an area which the regulator ought to be considering on any application. Many of the current advertisements are frankly distasteful. More particularly, Amendment No. 38 would enable the regulator, when considering an application from an existing provider of services, to look at their track record on advertising and require some improvement. My second point about the list relates to the problems caused by claims farmers who fail to advise claimants that a free alternative service is available. That is particularly rife in the area of endowment mis-selling but has been a problem elsewhere—in the context of criminal injury claims, for example. In Grand Committee, I highlighted the actions of one particular company following the tragic bombings on 7 July. This is an important area of activity to be considered by the regulator when granting authorisations. My final point on the criteria for the regulator is a technical one about the Government’s drafting on paragraph 5(2)(b), where it seems that the regulations proposed need to refer to the applicant for authorisation as well as to persons employed or otherwise connected with the applicant. I beg to move.