House of Lords (Members’ Taxation Status) Bill [HL]

My Lords, I do not intend to delay your Lordships for more than a short time on this Motion which the House will no doubt agree in a few moments. However, I hope that the noble Lord, Lord Oakeshott, understands that many of us face the prospect of going through this Committee stage with considerable regret. The fact is that the Bill has now been before your Lordships, I think, three times in identical terms. The noble Lord has not apparently been moved by anything that has been said on the various occasions upon which the Bill has been considered. The result, therefore, is that we receive the identical Bill yet again. Would it not have been helpful for the noble Lord to have taken into account some of the views expressed on the previous occasions the Bill was before your Lordships, and reflected them in the drafting of the Bill now before us, thereby perhaps reducing the need for such an extensive Committee stage as we are now facing?