Constitutional Reform and Governance Bill

Indeed. The Father of the House states the essence of that case. The alternative case, as advocated by Professor Heald, is that there is still a body that has influence with respect to the provision of resources in establishing the strategy for the NAO, and that that body could be used to influence. The Father of the House rightly makes the argument against that and I suspect that the Committee will be satisfied by that, but it is helpful to put it on the record and for him to put the counter-argument. As hon. Members have said, we are dealing with an important organisation. Other countries often look to what we do as an example of an effective means of scrutinising public expenditure. We must get it right, because it is important both in the UK and internationally. The concern is that the private sector corporate governance structure that we are putting place may not be appropriate for the very particular needs that exist in this area. I am not endorsing that line of argument, but it should be stated. I look forward to others addressing those concerns.