Thursday 21st September 2023
(1 year, 3 months ago)
Lords ChamberLevelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 View all Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 Debates Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts Amendment Paper: HL Bill 173-I Marshalled list for Third Reading - (20 Sep 2023)
The Lord Privy Seal (Lord True) (Con)
My Lords, I have it in command from His Majesty the King and His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales to acquaint the House that they, having been informed of the purport of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill, have consented to place their interests, so far as they are affected by the Bill, at the disposal of Parliament for the purposes of the Bill.
Earl Howe (Con)
My Lords, before we begin Third Reading, I will make a statement on legislative consent. A small number of the provisions in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill apply to England and Wales, and a number also apply to Scotland and/or Northern Ireland. There are, as a consequence, provisions in the Bill that engage the legislative consent process in the Scottish Parliament, Senedd Cymru and the Northern Ireland Assembly. Throughout the preparation and passage of the Bill, we have worked closely with each of the devolved Administrations, and I pay tribute to officials and Ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland for their constructive engagement and support.
I am pleased to report that the Welsh Government have issued legislative consent support for the Bill in principle. They will hold their legislative consent vote in the Senedd in October. We will continue to engage the Scottish Government to endeavour to reach an agreement so that they are able to recommend that legislative consent be given by the Scottish Parliament.
Due to the continued absence of the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive, a legislative consent Motion cannot, in that case, be secured. I reassure noble Lords that the Government will continue to engage with officials from the Northern Ireland Civil Service, as well as the Northern Ireland Executive once it is sitting.
With the leave of the House, on behalf of my noble friend Lady Scott of Bybrook and at her request, I beg to move that the Bill be now read a third time.
Clause 157: Power to specify environmental outcomes
Amendment 1
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment fulfils an undertaking made at Report stage and clarifies that the definition of “environmental protection” includes the protection of chalk streams from abstraction and pollution.
Earl Howe (Con)
My Lords, I will also speak to the other amendments in the name of my noble friend Lady Scott of Bybrook. On Report, my noble friend Lord Trenchard tabled an amendment on chalk streams that highlighted their special status and the passion across the House for protecting these habitats further. Although we supported the intent of the amendment, we needed to fix some technical issues within the drafting. We committed to bring forward an amendment at Third Reading to provide clarity and reassurance on chalk streams in the context of environmental outcomes reports.
Therefore, Amendments 1 and 2 would include chalk streams in the definitions of “environmental protection” and “natural environment”. This means that, when setting the outcomes that will drive the new regime, the Government can ensure the protection of chalk streams, including from the effects of physical damage, abstraction and pollution. I thank my noble friend for working with us on this amendment to improve the health of England’s chalk streams.
Following the Government’s statement during the previous stage of the Bill, I am bringing forward Amendment 9, which relates to national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty, collectively known as “protected landscapes”. This amendment addresses the issues raised on Report by my noble friend Lord Randall of Uxbridge. It will enhance protected landscape management plans and bolster the contribution of partners to help deliver them, ensuring better outcomes for people and nature. As home to some of our most iconic and beautiful places, protected landscapes are crucial delivery partners that are at the heart of our work to unleash rural prosperity and create a network of beautiful and nature-rich spaces that can be enjoyed by all parts of society.
We have made technical drafting amendments to ensure that the amendment operates correctly in practice. This includes amending the individual Acts to strengthen the duty on relevant authorities to contribute to delivery of the purposes of protected landscapes and creating a power to make regulations. The Secretary of State now has the power to bring forward these regulations, and the Government are committed to doing so in a timely manner. I know this is an issue dear to many noble Lords, including my noble friend Lord Randall, who has worked tirelessly on this matter. As such, I hope that noble Lords will lend support to this amendment.
I turn to Amendments 3, 4, 10, 11 and 16 to 54. As noble Lords will recall, this House was not content to accept government Amendments 247YY and 247YYA on Report, which related to nutrients. It is therefore necessary for the Government to reverse any amendments that were consequential on Amendments 247YY and 247YYA, and to fill legislative gaps that have arisen due to Amendments 247YY and 247YYA not being agreed to. This includes amendments which will provide a clear link between new Section 96G of the Water Industry Act, which enables water companies to take a catchment-permitting approach when upgrading waste- water treatment works, and new Regulations 85A, 85B and 110A in the habitats regulations, which direct local planning authorities to assume that the proposed upgrades are certain for the purpose of planning decisions.
The Government have also tabled minor and technical Amendments 10 and 11. Clause 256 of the Bill changes all references to “retained direct EU legislation” in this Bill to “assimilated direct legislation” in line with Section 5 of the retained EU law Act, as that Bill received Royal Assent during the passage of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill. One of these references was to the draft amendments concerning nutrient neutrality that were defeated by a vote in the House of Lords on 13 September. This amendment removes the reference.
Noble Lords will recall that we agreed amendments on Report in the name of my noble friend Lord Moylan, in relation to a road user charging scheme in London. The effect will be to enable London borough councils that are meeting their air quality standards and objectives under the Environment Act 1995, or have an approved plan to do so, to opt out of certain road user charging schemes proposed by Transport for London. This is a focused, sensible and proportionate rebalancing of mayoral powers with borough interests in the capital.
This group of government amendments is minor and technical in nature, but they are important none the less. The collective effect of Amendments 5, 7 and 8 is to clarify the eligibility of relevant London borough councils seeking to opt out of certain future road user charging schemes. They improve the drafting by ensuring that the provisions cover each case that could arise in relation to a London borough council. For example, where a council was eligible when it first gave notice but subsequently became ineligible on account of the introduction of an air quality management area, it will have the opportunity to submit an alternative plan during the opt-out period, thereby opening up the opportunity to become potentially eligible again. The collective effect of Amendments 13 and 14 is to correct the extent of Clause 253 so that it extends to England, Wales and Scotland, reflecting the extent of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, which it amends. The concept of application is distinct from that of extent—and these provisions will, of course, in practice apply only to London.
Lastly, Amendment 6 will ensure consistency in the language used and avoid any potential misunderstanding that opt-out notices can be given outside of the defined 10-week opt-out period. I beg to move.
The Earl of Caithness (Con)
My Lords, first, I ask my noble friend to send our best wishes to our noble friend Lady Scott of Bybrook. Secondly, I thank him very much for honouring the commitment made by the noble Lord, Lord Benyon, with regard to Amendments 1 and 2 on chalk streams, on behalf of my noble friend Lord Trenchard, who apologises for not being here himself. We are particularly grateful that this has happened, and I am equally grateful that nutrient neutrality is as it was. On the one hand, the Government were going to protect chalk streams but, on the other hand, they were going to increase pollution. So, I think that chalk streams have a better chance now and I am grateful to my noble friend.
Lord Randall of Uxbridge (Con)
My Lords, I want to thank the Government and in particular my noble friend Lord Howe, the Minister. It is an interesting symmetry that he is the one proposing the amendment on areas of outstanding natural beauty in national parks, as my forebears came from the Chilterns—although I have a feeling that we were more tenant farmers than anything else. So we share a common love of these areas.
I give grateful thanks that this has been a cross-party campaign, with a lot of help from Wildlife and Countryside Link—and, of course, the Glover review. I pay particular tribute to the noble Baronesses, Lady Jones of Whitchurch and Lady Willis of Summertown, for helping me by moving some of the amendments earlier, when I was still ill, and I thank the Government for seeing sense on this. There is more to do on preserving our wonderful landscapes—we will be talking about protection of SSSIs in more depth whenever I get the opportunity. But I am going to stick there and thank the Government, and everybody else, very much indeed for making this happen.
Baroness Jones of Whitchurch (Lab)
My Lords, first, I remind noble Lords of my interest in the South Downs National Park. I add my welcome to that of the noble Lord, Lord Randall, for government Amendment 9, which fulfils the commitment that was made on Report to take the rather weak phraseology of public bodies “having regard to”, which we knew in practice was not working, to a much stronger phraseology —that public bodies should “further the interests and statutory purposes” of national parks. It sounds technical, but it makes a big difference in practice. The fact that that is linked to management plans and the targets and so on really helps make sure that those processes will work in tandem and will be in force.
Of course, the new government amendment changes the wording that we had in our amendment on Report, which said that the Secretary of State “must” make regulations—and now we have the normal government fall-back phrase of “may” make regulations. I take it in good heart from the Minister that the government intent is here, and we do not need to worry too much about “must” being replaced by “may”. I hope that the Government’s intent is properly made in good faith.
The Minister talked about the timing of the regulations and doing this in a timely manner—and that could hide a thousand sins. So I shall not be the first person to push him a little bit and say, “What is this timely manner? Can we expect something this side of Christmas, or will it drift on beyond that?” Any further light he could shed on that would be much appreciated.
The noble Lord, Lord Randall, made reference to the Glover review. There are other issues that are outstanding from that review. I hope that the Minister can give some commitment to continuing to look again at those recommendations and find ways in which to roll out those recommendations so that we have a complete picture and substance from Glover, which, as the noble Lord, Lord Randall, said, was widely praised across all parties.
There continues to be a weakness in legislation relating to national parks, in terms of their power of competence, which prevents national parks operating outside their borders. This matters, because national parks increasingly operate in partnerships across wider landscapes than their own borders. The current legislation prevents many of the opportunities that they would have to work in broader partnerships and to take up opportunities.
To take one example of that, in the South Downs we are leading on the development of the green finance initiative, but the legal limits on our scope and powers prevent us providing green finance support to our neighbouring areas of outstanding natural beauty. There is a problem with the terminology and phraseology of the current legislation. I do not suppose that the Minister will feel able to give any commitments on this now, but I hope that he will continue the dialogue to look at ways to address this. Everybody would accept that more—and broader—partnerships, particularly in terms of the local landscape review, would be really effective.
In the meantime, I very much welcome Amendment 9 and I am pleased to support it.
Baroness Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville (LD)
My Lords, I also thank the Minister for his introductory comments. Amendments 1 and 2 on chalk streams are to be welcomed and I thank the noble Viscount, Lord Trenchard, for his work on this and for pursuing it to make absolutely certain that the Government saw its importance. I am sure that if my late noble friend Lord Chidgey were here, he would also welcome this, as he was a great champion of chalk streams.
The amendments on national parks give security to protected landscapes and assist those who run them in ensuring that they are preserved for generations to enjoy. I support the comments of the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Whitchurch, on national parks not being able to work outside their boundaries. I hope that the Government will look at this and perhaps reconsider.
Amendments 3, 10, 11 and 16 to 24 on the nutrients issue are all consequential tidying-up amendments, but they are to be welcomed. I thank the Minister and the Government for their work on this and for what seems a sensible way forward.
Earl Howe (Con)
My Lords, I am grateful to all noble Lords for their welcome for these amendments. I note the comments of the noble Baroness, Lady Jones of Whitchurch, in particular. On the specific question that she asked about the meaning of “in a timely manner”, I fear I cannot go much further than that except to express the Government’s full intention to bring these provisions into operation as soon as we are ready to do so and as soon as the regulations have been drafted. If there is anything further that I can tell her, having received further advice, I will of course write to her.
The Lord Bishop of Chichester
My Lords, before the debate concludes, I speak briefly on behalf of my right reverend friend the Bishop of Bristol to record thanks to the noble Baroness, Lady Scott of Bybrook, for all the constructive work that is represented in this Bill and to assure the noble Baroness—
The Deputy Speaker (Lord Russell of Liverpool) (CB)
I think the right time to speak is at the next stage of the business when we move that the Bill do now pass and have valedictory comments.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment fulfils an undertaking made at Report stage and clarifies that the definition of “natural environment” includes chalk streams.
“(iv) where a direction relating to the plant and the related nutrient pollution standard is made or revoked under regulation 85C or 110B of the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/1012) (disapplication of assumption that the plant will meet the standard on and after the upgrade date or applicable date), that fact and the date on which the direction or revocation takes effect;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment reinstates the requirement on the Secretary of State to maintain and publish online a document including the dates on which any direction or revocation made under the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 and relating to a particular plant takes effect. The requirement was removed at Report stage in connection with other amendments that were not agreed.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment reinstates the wording in Clause 174 introducing Schedule 16, which was amended at Report stage in connection with other amendments that were not agreed.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment amends Clause 253 (road user charging schemes in London), which enables London borough councils to opt out from certain road user charging schemes, to improve the drafting by ensuring that the provisions cover each case which could arise in relation to a London borough council.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment makes a minor change to Clause 253 (road user charging schemes in London) to improve the drafting by ensuring consistency in the language used.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment amends Clause 253 (road user charging schemes in London), which enables London borough councils to opt out from certain road user charging schemes, to improve the drafting by ensuring that the provisions cover each case which could arise in relation to a London borough council.
Member;s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment in the Minister’s name to Clause 253, page 295, line 42 (road user charging schemes in London).
“Protected landscapes(1) The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 is amended in accordance with subsections (2) and (3).(2) In section 4A (application of Part 2 of Act to Wales), after subsection (2) insert—“(3) Subsection (1) does not apply in relation to section 11A(1A) or (1B) (duty to further statutory purposes of National Parks in England).”(3) In section 11A (duty to have regard to purposes of National Parks)—(a) in the heading, for “to have regard” substitute “in relation”;(b) after subsection (1), insert—“(1A) In exercising or performing any functions in relation to, or so as to affect, land in any National Park in England, a relevant authority other than a devolved Welsh authority must seek to further the purposes specified in section 5(1) and if it appears that there is a conflict between those purposes, must attach greater weight to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the area comprised in the National Park.(1B) In exercising or performing any functions in relation to, or so as to affect, land in any National Park in England, a devolved Welsh authority must have regard to the purposes specified in section 5(1) and if it appears that there is a conflict between those purposes, must attach greater weight to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the area comprised in the National Park.”;(c) in subsection (2), after “Park”, in the first place it occurs, insert “in Wales”;(d) after that subsection, insert—“(2A) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about how a relevant authority is to comply with the duty under subsection (1A) (including provision about things that the authority may, must or must not do to comply with the duty).”(e) after subsection (5), insert—“(5A) In this section, “devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in the Government of Wales Act 2006 (see, in particular, section 157A of that Act).”(4) After section 66 of the Environment Act 1995 (national park management plans), insert—“66A National Park Management Plans (England): further provision(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring a National Park Management Plan for a park in England to contribute to the meeting of any target set under Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Environment Act 2021;(b) setting out how such a Management Plan must contribute to the meeting of such targets;(c) setting out how such a Management Plan must further the purposes specified in section 5(1) of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949.(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring a relevant authority other than a devolved Welsh authority to contribute to the preparation, implementation or review of a National Park Management Plan for a park in England;(b) setting out how such a relevant authority may or must do so.(4) In this section—“devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in the Government of Wales Act 2006 (see, in particular, section 157A of that Act);“relevant authority” has the same meaning as in section 11A of the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949.66B Regulations under section 66A: procedure etc(1) The power to make regulations under section 66A—(a) is exercisable by statutory instrument;(b) includes power to make different provision for different purposes or different areas;(c) includes power to make incidental, supplementary, consequential, transitional, transitory or saving provision.(2) A statutory instrument containing regulations under section 66A is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.”(5) The Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 is amended in accordance with subsections (6) to (10).(6) In section 85 (general duty of public bodies etc)— (a) before subsection (1), insert—“(A1) In exercising or performing any functions in relation to, or so as to affect, land in an area of outstanding natural beauty in England, a relevant authority other than a devolved Welsh authority must seek to further the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the area of outstanding natural beauty.(A2) In exercising or performing any functions in relation to, or so as to affect, land in an area of outstanding natural beauty in England, a devolved Welsh authority must have regard to the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the area of outstanding natural beauty.”;(b) in subsection (1), after “beauty”, in the first place it occurs, insert “in Wales”;(c) after that subsection, insert—“(1A) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about how a relevant authority is to comply with the duty under subsection (A1) (including provision about things that the authority may, must or must not do to comply with the duty).”(d) in subsection (3), after “(2)—” insert—““devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in the Government of Wales Act 2006 (see, in particular, section 157A of that Act);”.(7) In section 87 (general purposes and powers)—(a) before subsection (1) insert—“(A1) It is the duty of a conservation board established in relation to an area in England, in the exercise of their functions, to seek to further—(a) the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of the area of outstanding natural beauty, and(b) the purpose of increasing the understanding and enjoyment by the public of the special qualities of the area of outstanding natural beauty,but if it appears to the board that there is a conflict between those purposes, they are to attach greater weight to the purpose mentioned in paragraph (a).”;(b) in subsection (1), after “board”, in the first place it occurs, insert “established in relation to an area in Wales”;(c) in subsection (2), for the words from “while” to “(1)” substitute “whilst fulfilling their duties under subsection (A1) or (1) (as the case may be)”.(8) In section 90 (supplementary provisions relating to management plans), after subsection (2) insert—“(2A) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring a plan under section 89 relating to an area of outstanding natural beauty in England to contribute to the meeting of any target set under Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Environment Act 2021;(b) setting out how such a plan must contribute to the meeting of such targets;(c) setting out how a plan under section 89 relating to an area of outstanding natural beauty in England must further the purpose of conserving and enhancing the natural beauty of that area.”(9) After that section insert—“90A Duty of public bodies etc in relation to management plans(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring a relevant authority other than a devolved Welsh authority to contribute to the preparation, implementation or review of a plan under section 89 relating to an area of outstanding natural beauty in England; (b) setting out how such a relevant authority may or must do so.(2) In this section—“devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in the Government of Wales Act 2006 (see, in particular, section 157A of that Act);“relevant authority” has the same meaning as in section 85.”(10) After section 91 insert—“91A Regulations under Part 4(1) A power to make regulations under this Part—(a) is exercisable by statutory instrument;(b) includes power to make different provision for different purposes or different areas;(c) includes power to make consequential, incidental, supplementary, transitional, transitory or saving provision.(2) Regulations under this Part are to be made by statutory instrument.(3) A statutory instrument containing regulations under this Part is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.”(11) The Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Act 1988 is amended in accordance with subsections (12) to (15).(12) In section 3 (the Broads Plan), after subsection (6) insert—“(7) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring the Broads Plan to contribute to the meeting of any target set under Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Environment Act 2021;(b) setting out how the Broads Plan must contribute to the meeting of such targets;(c) setting out how the Broads Plan must further the purposes mentioned in subsection (8).(8) The purposes are the purposes of—(a) conserving and enhancing the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage of the Broads;(b) promoting opportunities for the understanding and enjoyment of the special qualities of the Broads by the public; and(c) protecting the interests of navigation.”(13) In section 17A (general duty of public bodies etc)—(a) in subsection (1), for “shall have regard to” substitute “must seek to further”;(b) after that subsection insert—“(1A) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision about how a relevant authority is to comply with the duty under subsection (1) (including provision about things that the authority may, must or must not do to comply with the duty).”(14) After that section insert—“17B Duty of public bodies etc to contribute to the Broads Plan(1) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision—(a) requiring a relevant authority other than a devolved Welsh authority to contribute to the implementation or review of the Broads Plan;(b) setting out how such a relevant authority may or must do so.(2) In this section—“devolved Welsh authority” has the same meaning as in the Government of Wales Act 2006 (see, in particular, section 157A of that Act); “relevant authority” has the same meaning as in section 17A.”(15) In section 24 (orders and byelaws)—(a) in the heading, after “orders” insert “, regulations”;(b) in subsection (1), after “orders” insert “or regulations”;(c) in subsection (3), after “orders” insert “, regulations”.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment has been tabled following an undertaking given at Report stage and confers a power to require management plans relating to National Parks and AONB in England and the Broads to contribute to meeting targets under the Environment Act 2021, and to furthering the purposes of the protected landscapes. The clause also confers a power to require certain public bodies to contribute to preparing, implementing and reviewing such plans. The clause strengthens the duty on certain public authorities when carrying out functions in relation to these landscapes to seek to further the statutory purposes and confers a power to make provision as to how they should do this.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment made to Clause 256 at line 26 on page 300.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment tidies up Clause 256 to remove reference to a provision that was not agreed to at Report stage.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment provides that new Clause (Protected landscapes), tabled in the Minister’s name and to be inserted after Clause 253, extends to England and Wales only.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment in the Minister’s name correcting the extent of section 253 (road user charging schemes).
“(c) section 253 extends to England and Wales and Scotland.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment corrects the extent of section 253 (road user charging schemes in London) to improve the drafting so that it extends to England and Wales and Scotland so that it reflects the extent of the Greater London Authority Act 1999, which it amends.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment provides that new Clause (Protected landscapes), tabled in the Minister’s name and to be inserted after Clause 253, comes into force 2 months after Royal Assent.
“(e) the decision is made—(i) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, before the upgrade date, or(ii) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant, before the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 479, line 9.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 479, line 9.
“(c) in a case within paragraph (1)(d)(i) and (e)(ii), that the plant will meet the nitrogen nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date;(d) in a case within paragraph (1)(d)(ii) and (e)(ii), that the plant will meet the phosphorus nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 479, line 9.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
“(d) the decision is made—(i) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, before the upgrade date, or(ii) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant, before the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 480, line 32.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 480, line 32.
“(c) in a case within paragraph (1)(c)(i) and (d)(ii), that the plant will meet the nitrogen nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date;(d) in a case within paragraph (1)(c)(ii) and (d)(ii), that the plant will meet the phosphorus nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 480, line 32.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, that the plant will not be able to meet the standard by the upgrade date;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant—(i) that the plant will not be able to meet the standard by the applicable date, or(ii) that the first effect described in paragraph (3A) will, on the applicable date, be more significant than the second effect described in that paragraph.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, that the plant will meet the standard by the upgrade date;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant—(i) that the plant will meet the standard by the applicable date, or (ii) that the first effect described in paragraph (3A) will, on the applicable date, be the same or less significant than the second effect described in that paragraph.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
“(3A) For the purposes of paragraphs (2)(b) and (3)(b)—(a) the “first effect” is the overall effect on the habitats site associated with the catchment permitting area of nutrients in treated effluent discharged by all plants that discharge into the area;(b) the “second effect” is the overall effect on the site of nutrients in treated effluent that would be discharged by all plants that discharge into the area if—(i) the upgrade date that applied to nutrient significant plants that discharge into the area was the same as the applicable date,(ii) the standard concentration (of nutrients) applied to those nutrient significant plants, and(iii) those nutrient significant plants were (on that basis) meeting the nutrient pollution standard on the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in the amendments to Schedule 16 at page 481, lines 11 and 14.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, to when the plant can be expected to meet the standard;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant, to when—(i) the plant can be expected to meet the standard, and(ii) the sewerage undertaker for the plant can be expected to be in compliance with conditions in the environmental permit for the plant imposed in pursuance of section 96G(3)(b) of the Water Industry Act 1991.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
““catchment permitting area”;“environmental permit”;“habitats site”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on various other amendments to Schedule 16.
““nutrient significant plant”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 481, line 15.
““sensitive catchment area”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on various other amendments to Schedule 16.
““standard concentration”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 481, line 15.
“(1A) In regulations 85A to 85C and this regulation—“catchment permitting area plant” means a nutrient significant plant that discharges (or will discharge) treated effluent into a catchment permitting area;“non-catchment permitting area plant” means a nutrient significant plant that discharges (or will discharge) treated effluent into a sensitive catchment area other than a catchment permitting area.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in various other amendments to Schedule 16.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage to Clause 173.
“(3) For the purposes of regulations 85A to 85C, the “applicable date”, in relation to a catchment permitting area, is to be determined in accordance with section 96G(6)(a) of the Water Industry Act 1991.(4) For the purposes of regulation 85C(3A)—(a) a habitats site is “associated” with a catchment permitting area if water released into the area would drain into the site;(b) “nutrients”—(i) in relation to an area designated under section 96C(2) of the Water Industry Act 1991, means nutrients comprising nitrogen or compounds of nitrogen;(ii) in relation to an area designated under section 96C(3) of that Act, means nutrients comprising phosphorus or compounds of phosphorus.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in various other amendments to Schedule 16.
“(d) the decision is made—(i) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, before the upgrade date, or(ii) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant, before the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 483, line 19.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 483, line 19.
“(c) in a case within paragraph (1)(c)(i) and (d)(ii), that the plant will meet the nitrogen nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date;(d) in a case within paragraph (1)(c)(ii) and (d)(ii), that the plant will meet the phosphorus nutrient pollution standard on and after the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 483, line 19.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, that the plant will not be able to meet the standard by the upgrade date;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant—(i) that the plant will not be able to meet the standard by the applicable date, or(ii) that the first effect described in paragraph (3A) will, on the applicable date, be more significant than the second effect described in that paragraph.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, that the plant will meet the standard by the upgrade date;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant—(i) that the plant will meet the standard by the applicable date, or(ii) that the first effect described in paragraph (3A) will, on the applicable date, be the same or less significant than the second effect described in that paragraph.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
“(3A) For the purposes of paragraphs (2)(b) and (3)(b)—(a) the “first effect” is the overall effect on the habitats site associated with the catchment permitting area of nutrients in treated effluent discharged by all plants that discharge into the area; (b) the “second effect” is the overall effect on the site of nutrients in treated effluent that would be discharged by all plants that discharge into the area if—(i) the upgrade date that applied to nutrient significant plants that discharge into the area was the same as the applicable date,(ii) the standard concentration (of nutrients) applied to those nutrient significant plants, and(iii) those nutrient significant plants were (on that basis) meeting the nutrient pollution standard on the applicable date.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in the amendments to Schedule 16 at page 484, lines 11 and 14.
(a) where the plant is a non-catchment permitting area plant, to when the plant can be expected to meet the standard;(b) where the plant is a catchment permitting area plant, to when—(i) the plant can be expected to meet the standard, and(ii) the sewerage undertaker for the plant can be expected to be in compliance with conditions in the environmental permit for the plant imposed in pursuance of section 96G(3)(b) of the Water Industry Act 1991.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
““catchment permitting area”;“environmental permit”;“habitats site”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on various other amendments to Schedule 16.
““nutrient significant plant”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 484, line 15.
““sensitive catchment area”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on various other amendments to Schedule 16.
““standard concentration”;”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on the amendment to Schedule 16 at page 484, line 15.
“(1A) In regulations 110A and 110B and this regulation—“catchment permitting area plant” means a nutrient significant plant that discharges (or will discharge) treated effluent into a catchment permitting area;“non-catchment permitting area plant” means a nutrient significant plant that discharges (or will discharge) treated effluent into a sensitive catchment area other than a catchment permitting area.” Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in various other amendments to Schedule 16.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment, which is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage, amends the provision to be inserted into the Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2017 by Schedule 16 so that provision functions in relation to catchment permitting areas.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment is consequential on amendments agreed at Report stage to Clause 173.
“(3) For the purposes of regulations 110A and 110B, the “applicable date”, in relation to a catchment permitting area, is to be determined in accordance with section 96G(6)(a) of the Water Industry Act 1991.(4) For the purposes of regulation 110B(3A)—(a) a habitats site is “associated” with a catchment permitting area if water released into the area would drain into the site;(b) “nutrients”—(i) in relation to an area designated under section 96C(2) of the Water Industry Act 1991, means nutrients comprising nitrogen or compounds of nitrogen;(ii) in relation to an area designated under section 96C(3) of that Act, means nutrients comprising phosphorus or compounds of phosphorus.”Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment defines terms used in various other amendments to Schedule 16.
Member’s explanatory statement
This amendment amends the long title to reflect the new Clause (Protected landscapes) tabled in the Minister’s name and to be inserted after Clause 253.
Earl Howe (Con)
My Lords, in begging to move that the Bill do now pass, I extend my thanks to all noble Lords who have contributed to a very detailed and proper scrutiny of this Bill. It is not possible for me to thank everyone individually, for which I hope I will be forgiven, but there are a few people I would like to mention specifically.
First, I am sure that the whole House will recognise and wish to thank my noble friend Lady Scott of Bybrook for the extraordinary amount of time and effort she has dedicated to the passage of this Bill, both inside and outside the Chamber. Her hard work and dedication have been an example to us all. It is equally appropriate for me to express gratitude to Opposition Peers, most notably the noble Baronesses, Lady Hayman of Ullock and Lady Taylor of Stevenage, on the Labour Front Bench and, for the Liberal Democrats, the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock, and the noble Lord, Lord Stunell, in their turn. My noble friend Lady Scott and I are grateful to them all for the fairness and good nature of our engagement and debate throughout the Bill’s passage. That far-off halcyon time when the levelling-up Bill did not figure in their weekly workload must seem an aeon ago.
I also thank those on the Back Benches for their many constructive contributions, in particular my noble friends Lord Moylan, Lord Randall of Uxbridge, Lord Lansley, Lord Young of Cookham, Lord Lucas, Lord Caithness and Lord Trenchard, as well as the noble Baronesses, Lady Young of Old Scone, Lady Jones of Whitchurch, Lady Randerson, Lady Bakewell of Hardington Mandeville, Lady Jones of Moulsecoomb, Lady Bennett of Manor Castle and Lady Hayman, and the noble Lords, Lord Berkeley, Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, Lord Shipley, Lord Crisp, Lord Best, Lord Lytton and Lord Carrington—and there have been many others.
The House of Lords Public Bill Office, the House clerks and the Office of the Parliamentary Counsel also have my admiration and gratitude for their extraordinary hard work. Last, but certainly not least, I pay tribute to all the members of the Bill team. If ever there was a Bill team deserving of our fulsome thanks, it is this one. The team officials in DLUHC are those I principally have in mind, but many others from departments across government have made an invaluable contribution to the delivery of this Bill. Again, on my noble friend’s behalf and my own, I thank them all for their immense hard work, patience and professionalism over these many months.
This Bill creates the foundations and tools necessary to address entrenched geographic disparities across the UK. It is designed to ensure that this Government and future Governments set clear, long-term objectives for levelling up and can be held to account for its progress. The Bill devolves powers to all areas in England where there is demand for it, empowering local leaders to regenerate their towns and cities and restore pride in places. It also strengthens protections for the environment, making sure that the delivery of better environmental outcomes is at the heart of planning decision-making. I hope that we can all wish it a fair wind. I beg to move.
Lord Young of Cookham (Con)
My Lords, may I say on behalf of the whole House that my noble friend Lord Howe has also borne some of the burden of getting the Bill through? No one can say “No” more politely than my noble friend, as he has had to do to a large number of my amendments.
The only point I really want to make is this: I have done 49 years in Parliament and I have never known a Bill quite like this one. I wonder whether my noble friend can tell the House whether any lessons have been learned from the passage of this Bill—which I think has now taken 24 days in your Lordships’ House —against the background of yesterday when we were told that there will be yet another planning Bill to deal with infrastructure. I express the hope that the next Bill on planning is a little shorter than the one that is about to pass.
Earl Howe (Con)
My noble friend Lord Young can be assured that there will be an exercise to derive those lessons that we think are appropriate from the passage of this Bill. In many ways, I am sure noble Lords would agree that the House has done its work extremely well by its thorough examination of this lengthy measure. However, there may be issues that we can all agree should become the focus of future legislation of a similar kind. I am grateful to my noble friend for raising that question.
The Lord Bishop of Chichester
My Lords, I apologise for my misplaced enthusiasm in wanting to add to these thanks. I shall speak briefly on behalf of my right reverend friend the Bishop of Bristol to record her thanks to the noble Baroness, Lady Scott of Bybrook, for all the constructive work that is represented in the Bill and to assure the noble Baroness of our continued prayers for her recovery.
In particular, my right reverend friend wanted to note the widespread welcome for clarification on the question of local authorities being permitted to offer financial support to church buildings, including parish churches. I know that the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales and the Methodist Church, which backed an amendment on this topic tabled by my right reverend friend, are also grateful that this grey area in the law has been taken up by the Government. It has been heartening to have the cross-party support of the noble Lords, Lord Cormack and Lord Best, especially, and of the noble Baroness, Lady Andrews, for this measure.
Local communities need physical, warm and safe space for many forms of social activities that build community and social cohesion. Worship is just one more example of this, and that in itself prompts the use of church buildings for wider purposes. The clarification of financial support for this from local authorities is helpful to us in England. However, I note that the issue of similar clarification remains of acute concern to churches in Wales, and I hope that the Minister will encourage His Majesty’s Government to bring the matter to the attention of the Welsh Government, with a view to bringing forward an equivalent legislative amendment as soon as possible.
Lord Stunell (LD)
My Lords, I am happy to take part in this debate simply because it is the last debate on the Bill in this House, at least until after the Conference Recess: we have had 16 days in Committee, eight days on Report and more than 1,000 amendments, skilfully disguised by the suffixes of letters. The noble Earl himself mentioned Amendment 247YYA as an example of how we have these invisible numbers. The Government have of course been a big contributor to the number of amendments, including 55 today. I do not object to those 55; they are a very sensible step forward to improve the Bill even further. Even so, I do not know if it is a record but the Government had, I think, four separate amendments to the Long Title of the Bill, which perhaps emphasises the point that the noble Lord, Lord Young of Cookham, made about the process.
Whatever our criticisms of the Bill, though, it leaves this House much better than it arrived, and I want to thank a wide range of people for helping that to be the case, not least the ministerial team. I add my thanks to the noble Baroness, Lady Scott of Bybrook, for her work in leading the ministerial team, and to the noble Earl and some other Ministers who stepped in at short notice, including the noble Baroness, Lady Swinburne, just last week. In my contact with the officials in the department, they were always polite, considerate and helpful. Catherine Canning last week was a very good and able representative of the Minister’s point of view in our discussions. So, whatever the criticisms of the Bill and the form in which it is now, I just say to the noble Earl that I hope that the ministerial team will work with their colleagues in the subsequent write-rounds and encourage them to the maximum extent possible to accept all of your Lordships’ valuable amendments in the other place, so that they can reduce the amount of ping-pong to the absolute minimum and we can keep the famous table tennis ball on the other side of the net.
I do not want to omit from my thanks the work there has been co-operatively between noble Lords in the Labour Party and ourselves, but also with our Cross-Bench friends and indeed with some of our friends on the Conservative Benches as well. Collectively, we have shown that it is possible to scrutinise thoroughly, to improve legislation and to produce an outcome that we can take some pride in—perhaps muted pride in some parts but, nevertheless, it is a step forward.
Behind the scenes, in our case I have the amazing and redoubtable Sarah Pughe, who has done a fantastic job supporting colleagues here in the Chamber with her drafting skills and her knowledge of parliamentary procedures. So, the Bill goes back to the Commons. I hope that when it comes back to us, it will be as near as possible the same document that we are sending to them.
The Earl of Lytton (CB)
My Lords, as it is not customary for anyone on these Benches to speak on their behalf, I just add thanks on my own behalf, which I hope will be shared by colleagues, to the Minister, particularly for his appreciation of the contribution made from these Benches. Of course, I send my best wishes to the noble Baroness, Lady Scott of Bybrook. Her courtesy throughout has been outstanding and her tenacity to be admired, and I add my best wishes for her restoration to good health as soon as possible. I add my thanks to the Bill team, even if we did not agree on quite a number of points, and to our clerks. I particularly thank the noble Earl’s colleague, the noble Lord, Lord Parkinson of Whitley Bay, for the way in which he responded to the question of building preservation notices, to the CLA, of which I am a member, and Historic Houses for their valuable input on that.
On the other matter of interest to me, namely building safety remediation, I am of course sorry that I could not persuade the Government or your Lordships to support a different way forward, but I owe a tremendous debt of gratitude to people outside—they know who they are and I will not mention them by name, but they have dedicated their time free and without any benefit to themselves to assist me with their comments and their critique. I also thank the many other experts, and professional and trade bodies, who were willing to share their thoughts with me.
I particularly express thanks to Amanda Walker, a leaseholder, for her courage in coming forward with her story, and the hundreds of other leaseholders who wrote to me with theirs. I thank Jake Fisher for his online petition, which gained 50,000 signatures in 25 days. My focus throughout has been on them and getting fair treatment for affected leaseholders generally, even if my approach has not always been fully understood or appreciated. I do not intend to give up trying.
Finally, I am most grateful for the support across the House for the general principle sitting behind the fact that we all, I think, believe that leaseholders should not pay for construction defects for which they are blameless. There is clearly a lot more work to be done, but I am enormously grateful for the general acceptance across the House of that principle.
Baroness Hayman of Ullock (Lab)
My Lords, I start by thanking the noble Earl for his very kind comments around the constructive work that we have all been doing together. I send our very best wishes to the noble Baroness, Lady Scott of Bybrook, who has been a remarkable workhorse on the Bill. Her door has always been open to us for any discussion and I thank her very much for that. Alongside her, a number of people need to be given a Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill endurance award, because it really has felt a bit like that at times: we have been ploughing through this since January. So, I thank her and the noble Earl, Lord Howe, but also the noble Baroness, Lady Bloomfield. People seem to have forgotten—we have been going on for so long—that she did an enormous amount of work in the early stages of the Bill, so we want to pass our thanks to her as well. We also thank the noble Baroness, Lady Swinburne, and all the visiting Ministers who have come in and talked to the different areas of their expertise.
We have done extremely constructive Cross-Bench work with the Government, noble Lords on the Government Benches, Cross-Benchers and our Liberal Democrat colleagues, particularly the noble Baroness, Lady Pinnock. It is very good to have been able to work so constructively on the, unusually, many different issues in this Bill that we have had to discuss, tackle and understand. On that note, I also thank all the organisations and NGOs that have provided so much information, time and support to us in understanding some of the more complex areas. I have a whole book of all their different names, which would take too long to go through—if you took part, we are very grateful; thank you for making the Bill better than when it arrived here.
Many Back-Benchers worked incredibly hard on this and we should be very grateful to them. I particularly thank my noble friend Lady Taylor of Stevenage, who has been the most tremendous support to me all the way through. I could not have done it without her help. I also thank our team; Ben Wood in our office has worked incredibly hard and tirelessly on this Bill, through recess and weekends. We have asked so much of him and he has always delivered everything. My final thank you is to the doorkeepers, who have sat through a few late nights with us on this and have always kept a smile.
There are quite a number of outstanding issues that we will come back to after the Recess, on which this House believes that the Bill could be improved. I hope that, ahead of ping-pong, when we revisit these issues, the Government will continue to work constructively with those of us in this House who believe they are important to improve the Bill. Our door is always open. We look forward to hearing from the Government on some of those issues.