Digital Switchover (Disclosure of Information) Bill

I am not sure that I was suggesting that, although I may do so now that the hon. Gentleman has put the idea into my mind. I may even say that it was my idea. Clearly, the scheme could expand. The Bill is doing an amazing thing. I talked earlier about Border Television being a pilot—or ““pioneer”” as we are now supposed to call them—on this issue. However, it is not only a pioneer for this scheme in seeing how effective the switchover will be— although we all pray that it goes as well as the Government say and that the preparations are in place—it is also a pioneer in respect of the number of people eligible for the assessment and other related matters. I hope that there is flexibility and that the Minister feels that he has enough of it in case all of a sudden there is a dramatic increase in the number of people who become eligible, such as certified blind people who decide to register simply because of the Bill and the fact that they want to take advantage of an important benefit. We do not know how much cost will be involved per individual. Earlier, one of my hon. Friends asked how many people and how much money would be involved—surely the cost of a digital box would be only £30, he said. The cost of digital boxes is falling all the time. However, the issue is much wider than that; the costs for the elderly and those with disabilities may be larger than we think.