Saving Gateway Accounts Bill

That may well be useful, but the fact remains that HMRC is not good at doing this kind of thing, and that is what is causing the problem in the drafting. Inevitably there will be data transfer periodically rather than in real time, and that will lead to delays. That is the fundamental burden, and it would take a lot to convince me that HMRC will be efficient once it has this to deal with. Structurally, there is a problem in the scheme. The Minister says that it is not right to exclude someone because they have come out of eligibility before the notice is issued. I have no problem with that because it implies that there is no genuine entitlement in the same sense that there is an ongoing entitlement to benefits. For example, a very rich person could register, get his entitlement and move out of benefit simply to get the saving gateway account. The Minister again quoted the small number expected to be in this category, but that does not take account of behavioural changes. The Government are creating a problem for themselves. The Minister said that having the issue dealt with by declaration was not desirable because it would mean that the person would have to declare to the provider, although the provider would not have to do anything by way of validation. But the rules already provide that the applicant for a saving gateway account should make a declaration that he is entitled to it, and I do not see how anything additional could come from that. I appreciate that the Government want to do it this way, but I do not think that offering people who have a passing acquaintance with the benefits system a three-month entitlement to open an account is the most just way of spending public money. Indeed, to me it seems to be a waste of public money. I shall think about what the Minister has said and contemplate the possibility of a meeting with HMRC before we reach the Report stage. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment 2 withdrawn. Clause 1 agreed.