Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Bill [HL]

Not at all. I was just about to say that at the moment that is not the case. All these bodies are keen to achieve better levels of representation in the communities they serve; so much so that they have been busy working to attract more people. In 2007, there was a clustered recruitment programme to assist recruitment to independent monitoring boards—in particular, those that had experienced difficulties in attracting new, or a sufficiently diverse mix of, applicants. They have a network of IMB members who go out to talk to local communities, professional groups and local colleges, but the different bodies have been doing that separately. The reason for local authorities to get involved is to help those bodies, not to supplant them or reduce their presence. It is to broaden their opportunities to reach a wider group of people as well, in addition to what they do. It is supporting them. Local authorities are in the Bill because our discussions with the relevant bodies showed that that is what they want.