Government of Wales Bill

My Lords, I am afraid that I am unable to acknowledge the point that the noble Lord, Lord Livsey, wishes. I have spoken to my noble friend Lord Barnett about the Barnett formula. I believe that he is embarrassed that his name is attached to something that comes up about twice a week in your Lordships’ House. I have not heard him say that he supports the amendment. Perhaps we should suggest to him that, to get his embarrassment under control, it should be called the ““Livsey formula”” rather than the Barnett formula. As we debated in Committee, the issue of funding for Wales raised by Amendment No. 73 is inseparable from the issue of public expenditure in the UK as a whole. The ambit of the Bill obviously relates only to Wales. As we know, the Barnett formula is operated by the Treasury and determines the funding allocations for Northern Ireland and Scotland as well as Wales. Our view is that it has served the United Kingdom very effectively. The Government will continue to monitor the operation of the current formula to make sure that it is being applied properly and rigorously. The mechanism is clear and has advantages for devolved government. It is simple and understandable. The Government have taken a careful look at the matter and have concluded that no advantage would be gained by reopening the question of the Barnett formula. I draw your Lordships’ attention to the fact that this amendment was debated, voted on and resoundingly rejected by 281 votes to 44 on Report in the Commons. Obviously, the last thing that we want to get into tonight is a detailed debate on the Barnett formula, but the Government’s view is quite contrary to that expressed by the noble Lord, Lord Livsey. The spending review 2004 delivered an excellent settlement for Wales: an extra £2.5 billion to spend each year by 2007–08. The formula provided average growth of over 4 per cent each year over the spending period. The spending on Wales is higher than the UK average. The latest Treasury figures show that government spending per person in Wales remains well above UK levels and ahead of England. Spending on health—the point that the noble Lord, Lord Livsey, specifically raised—is three percentage points ahead of the UK and five percentage points above England. It may be that, with all due respect, the noble Lord is looking a gift horse in the mouth. I suggest that he withdraws his amendment.