My Lords, I have some sympathy with the amendment moved by the noble Baroness, Lady Whitaker. The protection of designs is a hugely important part of the whole question of intellectual property. I am not convinced that the Bill as drafted adequately protects this, and I shall be very interested to hear what my noble friend on the Front Bench says. I understand the points that have been made by my noble friend Lord Clement-Jones and others about the desire of the people who might want to use this for other purposes, but I feel very strongly that it is necessary to protect the property rights of those who were responsible for the original design. As I understand the amendment of the noble Baroness, Lady Whitaker, that is the intention that she has put forward.
When I spoke on this Bill before, both in Committee and at the previous Report sitting, I was initially given the impression that this issue was not sufficiently high on the Government’s agenda. However, by the time we had finished the Committee stage, and in the light of the amendments which my noble friend has tabled and to which reference has already been made, I have been reassured. However, I still feel that those who are responsible for creating the designs—they may be designs of all sorts of artefacts and artistic works—should have their rights properly protected. Having heard the noble Baroness, Lady Whitaker, and having read some of the briefing on this from bodies that represent designers of all sorts, I am not wholly satisfied that the individual’s rights are properly protected. I shall be interested to hear what my noble friend has to say when he replies to this debate.
I should add that I am very much in favour of and welcome government Amendment 84A in this group. That seems to be a considerable improvement and reinforces my view that my noble friend is doing his best to try to hold the balance fairly. However, on this question of design, on which the noble Baroness, Lady Whitaker, laid emphasis, and on which I have seen some of the representations that have been made, I still require reassurance. I hope that my noble friend may be able to provide it.