[Dr William McCrea in the Chair]

I have a few preliminary announcements. Members are welcome to remove their jackets if they wish, as I see some have already done. I ask Members and others in the room to ensure that all electronic devices are turned off or switched to silent mode. Tea and coffee are not permitted in Committee.

Before we begin our line by line consideration of the Bill, some brief explanation may be useful to those who are relatively new to Public Bill Committees. The selection list for this afternoon’s sitting is available in the room and shows how the amendments selected for debate have been grouped for discussion. Grouped amendments are generally about the same or a similar issue. The Member who has their name to the lead amendment in a group is called first. Other Members, including the Minister, are then free to catch my eye to speak on any or all amendments in the group. A Member may speak more than once in a single debate. At the end of the debate on a group of amendments, I will call the Member who moved the lead amendment to speak again. If any Member wishes to seek a vote on any other amendment in the group, they should let me know. Please note that decisions on amendments do not take place in the order they are debated, but in the order that they appear on the amendment paper. There is no set time for the Adjournment of the Committee; it is in the hands of the Whips. An Adjournment at around 5 pm is conventional, that is, if we have not concluded proceedings before then. I hope that explanation is helpful to the Committee. We now begin our line by line consideration of the Bill.