Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Bill

I am delighted to have the opportunity to join the Committee stage of discussions at last on a very interesting amendment. I thank the noble Lord, Lord Elton, for introducing it and enabling us to have this discussion. It allows me to make a point about the reading of the Bill. Throughout our deliberations so far in Committee, I have been impressed by noble Lords’ expectations about what they expect to understand from the drafting of a Bill. When you are wading through a Bill, as many noble Lords will know, piecing together its meaning is very difficult. Sometimes we have to go through the detail in Committee to flush these things out and share them with the House. When you read a Bill, you also have to read in previous pieces of legislation, so I understand noble Lords’ frustrations with the complexity of the drafting and the length of the Bill. I feel very strongly that we on the Government Benches must work harder to ensure that noble Lords have satisfaction as far as the interpretation is concerned. Having said that, I appreciate that the noble Lord, Lord Elton, has made his case with customary verve, eloquence and precision, and I share his desire to ensure that our legislation, even when dealing with complex matters, is written in as plain, accessible and understandable language as possible and that the drafting is precise. The Oxford English Dictionary definition of "specification" is the, ""Specific, explicit, or detailed mention, enumeration, or statement of something"." Allowing for some flexibility in certain areas is essentially the role of the Specification of Apprenticeship Standards for England and its sister document in Wales. As a Whip, I once told a Minister off for waving exhibits around, so I will probably get told off in a minute, but I have in my hand the specification document that has been circulated for consultation. It will set out the standards that all apprenticeships must meet. Although the noble Lord, Lord Elton, has made a tempting case for the title "register", as he will be aware, our consultation on the draft Specification of Apprenticeship Standards for England has recently closed. We have received 400 responses. During that process, the term "specification", or SASE for short, has become widely used. It is a familiar term to those who have been involved in the consultation, who are clear about what it means. I would be reluctant, because of that, to lose that meaning at this stage, or to risk confusing employers, colleagues, colleges and others around the country by changing the name now, particularly when the arguments for the choice of name perhaps are a bit finely balanced. I have listened to what noble Lords have to say. The document has a life now, and I hope that with that recognition, the noble Lord will consider withdrawing his amendment.