Saving Gateway Accounts Bill

My Lords, I am grateful for the Government bringing forward this amendment. I supported the broadly analogous amendment put down by the noble Baroness in Committee. I am particularly pleased that the review will look to any barriers which may exist around the opening of saving gateway accounts, as the Minister knows. One of my principal concerns about this Bill is that, far from there being competition between saving gateway providers, there will not be any providers because it will not be economically viable for banks, building societies or the Post Office to do it. That provision in this amendment is helpful because it allows that potential problem to be looked at. I have one remaining concern about the amendment, which is the suggestion that no review will take place until after seven years of Clause 6 coming into force. Seven years is a long time. If the scheme is working well, seven years may be fine. But if there are problems with the scheme in any material respect, to wait seven years before you even start looking at it seems to be too long. Although I know the Minister believes that seven years is the right period, I want to confirm the provision in the amendment. It does not say that the review will be after seven years, but that it will be within seven years. Therefore, if there were strong arguments for having a review earlier, you would still be able to do it under the legislation even though, were the Minister still to be in his post in seven years’ time, he could wait for the seven years to elapse before he did it.