Equitable Life (Payments) Bill

Charlie Elphicke Excerpts

Wednesday 10th November 2010 Commons Chamber

[Jonathan Evans]

Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

[Charlie Elphicke (Dover) (Con)]

rose—

[Mrs Main]

rose—

--- Later in debate ---

[Charlie Elphicke]

rose—

[Chris Leslie]

I give way to my good friend from Dover.

[Charlie Elphicke]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way. I know him to be a generous Member of the House. With his customary generosity, will he acknowledge that the amount is nevertheless three times that which the previous Government said they would have given as compensation?

[Chris Leslie]

We will not know that, because Chadwick’s report was published after the general election. We had a series of steps that would have then been taken, but history went in a different direction because the spending review and the Budget were undertaken by a different party, not by our party in government. I am not saying that there are magic solutions to this issue. These are complex matters and there are technical reasons for both the methodologies that are being used in the compensation and the timings and the discussions around them. It is important to bear in mind the wider needs of the public purse. We have consistently said that and now the Government have come round to that point of view. I understand why they did.