The Child Trust Funds Bill will ensure that every child, whatever their family background, will have access at the age of 18 when they begin their adult life to a stock of assets which they can invest in their future. The child trust fund will also help children and their parents to understand the benefits of saving and investment and how to engage with financial institutions.The Government are today publishing draft child trust fund regulations. These draft regulations will be of particular interest to potential providers of the child trust fund.The draft regulations include the requirements for a stakeholder child trust fund account. Every child trust fund provider will make a stakeholder account available as one of the investment options. A stakeholder child trust fund account will have its charges capped at 1.5 per cent. per year, and providers will be required to accept all contributions of £10 and above. No charges will apply to transfers between different types of accounts, including from stakeholder to non-stakeholder, and between providers.The Government's decision on the charge cap is in the best interests of consumers, as it encourages as wide a selection of providers as possible to offer child trust fund accounts. A large number of providers will encourage competition and ensure the best value for consumers. The Government will continue to monitor that the level of the charge cap best meets the interests of consumers.The decision was evidence-based and considered the particular characteristics of the child trust fund. The economics of the child trust fund are very different to other financial products, such as the stakeholder pensions. In particular child trust fund accounts will be smaller in terms of the average size of funds compared to pensions and will have a lower minimum contribution level than other stakeholder products.The evidence on which the decision for the cap was based included the report commissioned by the Government from Deloitte, which looked at the trade-offs of different charge caps for providers and consumers. Deloitte's report will be published later this year, at the same time as their report on the other products in the stakeholder suite.The minimum contribution for the stakeholder account has been set to ensure the child trust fund is accessible to all savers, including those who cannot commit to regular contributions. Providers will be free to accept lower contributions if they wish and it is expected that competition amongst providers could drive down the minimum amounts accepted.

I am today announcing that the Government intend to implement a package of measures which will help achieve better value for money in the Criminal Defence Service (formerly Criminal Legal Aid) while ensuring that help continues to go to those who need it most.The package draws upon proposals contained in the consultation paper on the Criminal Defence Service (CDS) "Delivering Value for Money in the Criminal Defence Service", which was published last year. After considering the responses to the consultation we intend to introduce the following changes to the CDS:

I have published today a second progress report on the £22 billion sustainable communities plan, titled "Making it Happen: The Northern Way". It looks at the successes since the communities plan was published in February 2003, and at the challenges still to come. This follows on from the first statement, published in July 2003 on the Thames gateway and the growth areas.The statement reports on the action being taken to regenerate our established urban and rural communities in the north and the midlands. It recognises the new confidence and energy that can be found in many of our northern and midland towns and cities, and seeks to build on this.We recognise that establishing sustainable communities in the North is as much about economic growth and employment as it is in the rest of the country. The statement makes clear that the north needs a long-term vision to exploit fully the economic and transport corridors connecting it—a "Northern Way", which looks east to west as well as north to south.This idea of a northern way—a bold vision that exploits the economic and transport corridors that bind the north—is an example of the new ways of thinking that we need to tap the potential of the north.We are convinced of the potential for an economic renaissance in the north, and we have pledged to work with the RDAs and the regional planning bodies to develop this vision, together with other key partners. This is alongside the other work that the Government is already doing to improve the relative economic performance of the north.The report I am launching today offers a vision for renewal and growth that will bring the jobs, investment and renewed housing that can create truly sustainable communities across the northern regions.We are working to revive communities, renew the homes and rebuild the streets in the areas most affected by abandonment and decay. I am announcing today that the Merseyside market renewal pathfinder will receive £86 million and that NewcastleGateshead market renewal pathfinder will receive £69 million until March 2006 to help tackle the terrible problems caused by low demand. This is in addition to an allocation of £4 million each for an early action programme.By March 2006, Merseyside expects to deliver: the demolition of over 2,700 redundant and obsolete homes, the refurbishment of 325 homes, over 1,600 new homes built and the widespread delivery of additional management measures designed to overcome the problems of low demand.By March 2006, NewcastleGateshead expects to deliver: the demolition of almost 2,000 redundant and obsolete properties, 100 new homes built, over 2,000 homes refurbished, and around seven hectares of land acquired for potential later developmentOther announcements today include:

I am today announcing the extension of the London-Stansted-Cambridge growth area to include Peterborough, and all of Cambridgeshire.This takes account of the important role and potential of Peterborough in contributing to growth as part of the London-Stansted-Cambridge growth area, and the work of the Regional Planning Panel for the East of England in preparing new Regional Planning Guidance.It also reflects the important work under way on sustainable housing growth across Cambridgeshire, and particularly through the Cambridge Sub Region Infrastructure Partnership, which includes Fenland, East Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire.The complete list of local authorities now included in the London-Stansted-Cambridge growth area is: