As he so often does, the hon. Member for Burnley (Mr. Pike) has hit the nail on the head: only by encouraging such competition have we achieved as great an improvement in service as we have in recent years. I want that improvement to go much further. The big banks have great influence on Treasury officials; they have had a semi-incestuous relationship for decades. The big banks should not get their way on this matter; the Committee should ensure that true competition is retained.

I understand that it has been suggested in certain quarters that my amendments are defective—that they do not precisely achieve the object that I seek. If that is true, I should be very happy if, by agreement between the two Front-Bench teams, they were amended slightly, perhaps in another place, and brought back for notional approval in this place. However, I believe that what I suggest is desirable and is in the interests of the building society movement, the converting societies and society in general, so I hope that I shall receive a favourable response from my hon. Friend the Economic Secretary.