⁸¹Bennion, Statute Law, Oyez Publishing Limited, 1980, pp 71–72.      ⁸²Ho n M rs Justice  Arden, “Im proving the Statute B ook: A Law Reformer’s V iewpoint”,  Statute Law Review, Volume 18, Number 3, pp 169-176. 58 they go through the House, they are not subject to amendment. These Bills therefore take up a minimum of Government time. 116 The  English  Law  Commission  introduced  a  further  refinement,  including  in consolidation Bills not only amendments under the 1949 Act, but also amendments recommended by  that Commission. Again, these Bills are scrutinised by a joint select committee of both Houses, which gives its views to Parliament. Members are not prevented from proposing amendments to Bills in this category, but there is a convention that members will not take up this opportunity to attempt substantial changes in the law.⁸¹ 117 In an address given to the Statute Law Society in London in 1997, the Chairman of the English Law Commission, Hon Mrs Justice Arden, said: As regards the consolidation of statutes, the Chairman receives regular reports on the work being  done  by  Parliamentary  Counsel  at  the  Law  Commission  to  prepare  consolidation Bills.  Consolidation  is  a  highly  skilled  task,  requiring  painstaking  care  by  counsel  and support   from   the   government   departm ents   involved.   This   part   of   the   work   of   the Commission has its fair share of problems. One of the major stumbling blocks often turns out to be the decision by the department to devote its resourc es to something else. Save in the most exceptional case we learn about this before work on the consolidation begins. But the  fact  remains,  there  are  relatively  few  statutes  which,  for  one  reason  or  another, dep artments want co nsolidated. T his is just as well because the Commission’s resources for this work are limited. Thus consolidation will take place, we would hope at a steady rate, but consolidation alone will not transform the statute book.⁸²