We were … disappointed that no firm commitment was made in this year's Queen's Speech to bring forward a bill putting the civil service on a statutory footing. We urge the Government to make legislative time available for this as soon as possible. (Paragraph 2)

I would like, firstly, to take the opportunity to thank the Committee for its invaluable scrutiny of the Civil Service proposals.

As set out in the Queen's Speech, the Government is committed to taking forward our proposals for constitutional renewal. We are giving careful consideration to both your recommendations and those of the Joint Committee in developing the proposals.

As Jack Straw has already said, it is our earnest intention to bring forward the Bill but this will depend on progress made in the Parliamentary timetable in relation to other competing priorities. I am sorry that I cannot give you a more definite timetable at this stage, but I can reassure you of our commitment to the Constitutional Renewal package.