Environmental Targets (Public Authorities) Bill [HL]

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Committee stage
Friday 13th June 2025 Lords Chamber

Moved by

[Lord Evans of Rainow]

3: Clause 2, page 2, line 23, at end insert—
“(z5) The Canal and River Trust.”

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

My Lords, this amendment seeks to add the Canal & River Trust to the list of public authorities that are subject to the provisions of the Bill, which would in turn make it subject to the provisions of the Environment Act 2021—a landmark Conservative legislative achievement. Our canal tow-paths, once the proud arteries of industrialised Britain, are now too often strewn with litter, fly-tipped waste and the detritus of neglect. My amendment would place additional duties on the Canal & River Trust, sending a message to the trust that those who use canals regularly demand cleaner canals.

When Britain largely deindustrialised and other modes of freight transportation became preferable, we were left with a question mark over the future of canals. If noble Lords who travel on the west coast main line look at the railway line, they will see that it follows the link of the Trent and Mersey Canal—as it weaves its way from the north-west down to London, you can see those former industrial and logistic communities of the past—but, today, millions of people want to use our canals as pleasant urban green spaces. They are a space for leisure and exercise. Many people live on our canals, and they have become an important space for wildlife in city centres.

Sadly, the state of many of these routes, particularly in urban areas, has deteriorated to an intolerable point because of increasing quantities of litter on our tow-paths. This is a creeping pattern of degradation, whose harms are civic as much as they are environmental. It was reported in the Islington Tribune on 23 May this year that local campaigners had founded the cleaner canals campaign, bringing renewed attention to this issue and underscoring the impact of litter on residents and wildlife alike. The campaign speaks for many who feel that the trust’s decision to remove garbage bins from the urban tow-paths two years ago was fundamentally wrong. One of the campaign’s leading voices, Oliver Mosley, expressed this plainly. Commenting in the article, he said:

“Despite receiving £50 million of taxpayers’ money annually, the Canal and River Trust have decided to remove bins from our canals in Islington, resulting in appalling levels of waste which are an eyesore and a threat to the wildlife”.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Krebs (CB)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Evans of Rainow, for raising this question and all those who took part in this short debate. I have the good fortune to live in central Oxford, very close to the Oxford Canal. Indeed, when I set off this morning, I did my usual 10-minute walk down the canal towpath from my house to Oxford station. The canal in Oxford, together with its canal banks, forms a wonderful corridor for wildlife, leading right into the city centre. I often see a heron fishing on one of the weirs and occasionally glimpse the iridescent blue of a kingfisher flying past. In the winter, I see groups of goosander that have migrated south for the winter from Scotland or Scandinavia.

I am lucky. Unlike in the examples cited by the noble Lord, Lord Evans of Rainow, in my neighbourhood the canal towpath is well maintained and litter free. I very much wish that were true of the rest of the canal network. In fact, my only complaint about the canal in Oxford is a rather different one: a number of residential canal boats—already referred to by the noble Lord, Lord Evans—are allowed to burn dirty solid fuel, which would not be allowed in other residences. I wish the Government would do something about this. After all, one of the six key targets in the Environment Act is to cut exposure to the most harmful air pollutant to human health, PM2.5. The canal boats could be a good starting point for reducing that pollution exposure.

In principle, I think it would be very good to add the Canal & River Trust to the list. However, this is now above my pay grade because I do not fully understand the position of the CRT. As the noble Earl, Lord Russell, said, and I looked it up myself, it is a registered charity and therefore governed by the Charity Commission and not subject to the same regulations as public authorities. I assume it would have to change its charitable objects in order to comply with the intention of this Bill, so I would like to take it away and understand it. In the meantime, I very much hope that the noble Lord, Lord Evans of Rainow, will see fit to withdraw his amendment, recognising that it has had a very sympathetic hearing from all around the House.

Before I sit down, I once again thank all noble Lords who have contributed to the debate this afternoon. I have not mentioned the Wildlife and Countryside Link and Green Alliance, which were very helpful in preparing the material for this Bill. I particularly thank the noble Baroness, Lady Hayman of Ullock, for agreeing to continue the discussion of how the ideas in the Bill can be taken forward.

The noble Baronesses, Lady Young of Old Scone and Lady Parminter, have already mentioned that there are two routes ahead of us. We all agree with the intention of the Bill, plus or minus some points. I take the points made by the noble Lord, Lord Hamilton of Epsom, and the noble Viscount, Lord Trenchard, and we all agree in general with the principle of improving our environment. The two routes that the Government have are either to accept that there will be piecemeal chipping away as Bills come forward and people try to achieve amendments, which is inefficient and time-consuming, or they could do it at one fell swoop very simply by accepting the Bill that I have proposed.

[Lord Evans of Rainow (Con)]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lord, Lord Krebs. I am quite unfamiliar with being treated sympathetically, but I do accept that in this case, the noble Lord has certainly done so. I thank my noble friends Lord Eccles, Lord Trenchard and Lord Effingham for their support. The noble Baroness, Lady Young of Old Scone, raised a very important point about the ambiguity of this trust because, as the Front-Bench spokesman for the Liberal Democrats said, it is a charity. Well, it is a charity, but it is in receipt of £50 million of hard-working taxpayers’ money. Any organisation that is in receipt of taxpayers’ money from central government is aware that the Government might need to have a wee word with it if it is felt that it is not providing the public service that it should be doing. I am disappointed that, over 13 years, the trust did not work out the business model so that it did not need the £50 million of taxpayers’ money. The whole point was that, over time, it would remove that subsidy. It failed to do that and also failed to supply simple things such as rubbish bins on canals in urban areas. It does a good job in the countryside, but it is urban areas in particular that I am thinking of. I am most grateful to noble Lords and I beg leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment 3 withdrawn.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Wednesday 26th October 2016 Commons Chamber

The Secretary of State was asked—

[Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)]

1. What recent assessment he has made of the strength of the Northern Ireland economy.

[Jack Lopresti (Filton and Bradley Stoke) (Con)]

3. What recent assessment he has made of the strength of the Northern Ireland economy.

[The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (James Brokenshire)]

Before I answer the questions, I am sure that the whole House will want to join me in condemning the murder of Joe Reilly last Thursday in Belfast. My sympathy is with his family and with the local community. It is a stark reminder of why we must all continue to work together to ensure that this sort of violence has no place in Northern Ireland.

The UK and Northern Ireland economies are fundamentally strong. In Northern Ireland, economic activity increased by 1.6% over the year and 64,000 more people are in work compared with 2010. That means that we are well placed to build a stronger economy that works for everyone.

[Graham Evans]

I welcome the growth of the Northern Ireland economy, and particularly the fact that unemployment has fallen to its lowest levels since Labour’s great recession. I also welcome last week’s excellent news of the investment from Thales. Will my right hon. Friend continue to prioritise making the case for Northern Ireland as a great place to live, work and do business?

[James Brokenshire]

I entirely endorse my hon. Friend’s comments. I will not tire in talking up the Northern Ireland economy and underlining what a great place it is to do business. He highlights investment; outside London, Northern Ireland is the leading UK region for attracting inward investment across a range of sectors. He is right to highlight the new and innovative investment from Thales, with its space propulsion facilities in Belfast, which underlines what a great place Northern Ireland is to do business.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Wednesday 11th June 2014 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I agree with the hon. Gentleman: turnout at some of these elections is very depressing. I think people feel that the European institutions are rather distant from them and do not see the relevance of them. Of course I am happy to look at what he says about citizenship, but I would prefer that we put our resources and effort into practical programmes such as the National Citizen Service, which is now a superb service that many young people are taking part in, so they can see the importance of engaging in their communities and in the world. I think that will lead, among other things, to greater political participation.

[Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)]

Q3. Will the Prime Minister join me in welcoming the 2 million new private sector jobs that have been created since 2010, and will he continue with the long-term economic plan, to make sure the figure goes up?

[The Prime Minister]

This is an important milestone that we have reached: there are now 2 million more private sector jobs than when this Government came to office. That is 2 million reasons for sticking to the long-term economic plan we have set out. May I thank the hon. Gentleman particularly for the work he has done for his constituents in Weaver Vale, in running job club after job club, to help make sure the businesses that need more workers are put in touch with the people looking for a job? That is a vital service that Members of Parliament are delivering, and he is leading the way.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Wednesday 6th July 2011 Commons Chamber

The Secretary of State was asked—

[Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)]

1. What recent assessment he has made of the threat to security in Northern Ireland posed by residual terrorist groups.

[Jake Berry (Rossendale and Darwen) (Con)]

6. What recent assessment he has made of the threat to security in Northern Ireland posed by residual terrorist groups.

--- Later in debate ---

[The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (Mr Owen Paterson)]

With your permission, Mr Speaker, I believe that the House will want to pay tribute to Sir Oliver Napier, whose funeral was held yesterday. He was a founding father and leader of the Alliance party, and a member of the power-sharing Executive in 1974. He led the way towards inclusive politics, and was widely respected across the entire community. He will be much missed.

The threat level in Northern Ireland remains at severe. Despite the overwhelming community rejection of violence, the terrorist groups continue to pose an indiscriminate threat to the safety of police officers and the general public, who want their lives to be free of fear, disruption and intimidation.

[Graham Evans]

The violent scenes that we have witnessed in part of east Belfast in recent days are obviously a matter of great concern. Will my right hon. Friend join me in sending our support and gratitude to the Police Service of Northern Ireland for its restraint, courage and success in combating that disorder as well as the continuing terrorist threat in Northern Ireland?

[Mr Paterson]

I am grateful to my hon. Friend for his question and I wholly endorse his comments. I happily put on record the Government’s deep appreciation of the restraint and skill with which the PSNI handled the recent disturbances.

However, I would put out a public appeal to all those who are considering expressing their views over the next few days. They, too, should show restraint. I remind them that the rule of law will prevail, and that this week, significant prosecutions have resulted from charges against those who broke the law a year ago.

Oral Answers to Questions

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Wednesday 23rd March 2011 Commons Chamber

[Glyn Davies (Montgomeryshire) (Con)]

4. What recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the registration of donations to political parties active in Northern Ireland.

[Graham Evans (Weaver Vale) (Con)]

10. What recent discussions he has had with ministerial colleagues on the registration of donations to political parties active in Northern Ireland.

--- Later in debate ---

[Mr Swire]

Indeed, I can. I remain firmly of that view. We are not in the position that we would like, but I am advised that there are serious doubts about whether the issues that I mentioned can be addressed under existing legislation, which is very tightly drafted. I hope to make provision to bring more transparency to existing arrangements when a suitable legislative vehicle can be found.

[Graham Evans]

Will my hon. Friend let us know when legislation will be brought forward to make sure that donations and loans made to political parties in Northern Ireland during the prescribed period are not disclosed when the prescribed period expires?

[Mr Swire]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, which was behind the introduction of the statutory instrument. I hope that this will happen at the earliest opportunity. Primary legislation will be required: we have extended the order for a further two years, so it allows us time to find a suitable legislative vehicle.

Northern Ireland

Lord Evans of Rainow Excerpts

Tuesday 27th July 2010 Ministerial Corrections

Departmental Official Hospitality

[Graham Evans]

To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how much (a) his Department and (b) its agencies and non-departmental public bodies spent on hospitality in each year since 1997.

[Mr Paterson]

On 12 April 2010 the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) transferred responsibility for policing and justice to the Northern Ireland Assembly. Comparable figures for the Department as it is now configured are not available.

Since 12 April the Department has spent £234 on hospitality.

The NIO has no agencies. It has one non-departmental public body which has incurred no cost on hospitality since 12 April.

[Official Report, 19 July 2010, Vol. 514, c. 5W.]

Letter of correction from Mr. Paterson:

An error has been identified in relation to the answer given to the hon. Member for Weaver Vale (Graham Evans) on 19 July 2010, Official Report, column 5W, on hospitality expenditure.

It has come to our attention that the figure of £234 was not up to date at the time of answering this Question as some relevant July costs had not been centrally recorded at the time the Question was answered. The updated figure should have been £438.63.

The corrected full answer should now read: