Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Bill

I shall be brief. I note that in the previous sitting Clause 234 in Part 15 was not debated. It is not my duty to debate it now, except to say that I welcome all the transfer of powers to the Welsh Assembly contained in it. Some MPs in the other place have said that these aspects of the legislation are slipping through the net, but I note that the Secretary of State for Wales has said that he will now brief Welsh MPs on those aspects of Bills such as this. Proposed new Section 79B in Clause 238 actually defines local authorities in Wales and how the legislation is brought about in relation to Wales. It was certainly not my wish to drag civil servants here from Cardiff to listen to what I was going to say, because that would be unnecessary, but the clause relates to contracting out, which is important in a Welsh context in which contracting out is well established, as in other local authorities in other parts of the UK. I am sure that Members of the National Assembly for Wales will have wished to have had some input into this part of the legislation, as contracting out can be contentious. Indeed, if my interpretation is correct, I note that, in a briefing note that I have had for some time on the new powers for the Assembly, best value is given—mutter—12.5. The briefing note—““Annex A: memorandum on new powers for the National Assembly for Wales”” in the 11th report of the Select Committee on Delegated Powers and Regulatory Reform—talks about best value in the context of the Beecham review on local government in Wales, and states: "““The Assembly Government strongly agrees with the principle behind many of the proposed reforms””." I note that it refers to the ““Assembly Government””, but there is no comment on what other Members of the National Assembly for Wales felt about it. I would be very grateful if the Minister would write to me and let me know what consultation there was with anyone who is not a Member of the Assembly Government and what they think about this. I realise that the agreement in Wales for the Assembly Government has only just been completed. None the less, the briefing note, which is dated May, refers to it, and I simply wonder how the Assembly Members have been consulted.