EU Fisheries Negotiations

Debate between Sarah Wollaston and Lord Benyon

Tuesday 8th January 2013 Commons Chamber

[Richard Benyon]

There is a perfectly acceptable international method for resolving these disputes, but it requires countries such as Iceland to take part in the process. We remain willing to discuss the matter with them in an open and meaningful way. The ball is in their court. In the meantime, this is a difficult time for the industry, with the threat to the viability of the pelagic fleet. I assure the hon. Gentleman that we remain absolutely committed to ensuring that bad practice is not rewarded and that we are working hard to achieve a happy solution to this problem.

[Dr Sarah Wollaston (Totnes) (Con)]

I congratulate the Minister on securing an increase in the quotas for cod and whiting in the south-west and for plaice and sole in the channel. How quickly does he think it will be possible to roll out the catch quota scheme to further eliminate discards?

[Richard Benyon]

I was really pleased that fishermen in my hon. Friend’s constituency entered the scheme last year. I want many more vessels to do so, because fully documented fisheries are the only way forward, not only to have proper management of our fisheries, but to address the concerns of all our constituents—even mine inland—who are affronted by the idea of perfectly edible fish being thrown away. Through schemes such as the catch quota scheme we can give assurances to our consumers and make life better for our fishermen, who are landing more and being better rewarded for it. This is an entirely virtuous circle.

Water and Sewerage Charges (South West Water)

Debate between Sarah Wollaston and Lord Benyon

Wednesday 9th March 2011 Westminster Hall

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Richard Benyon)]

It is a great pleasure to serve under your watchful eye today, Mr Amess. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay (Mr Sanders) on securing this important debate. I also congratulate him on his long association with this issue and on standing up for his constituents, like so many other hon. Members, of all parties, this afternoon.

My hon. Friend raised several issues, but a key point was about the role of Ofwat. Other hon. Members, not least the Opposition spokesman, mentioned its role, and it is important to understand how it operates. I am surprised that the hon. Member for Copeland (Mr Reed) has not quite grasped the fact that it is an independent body. It would be entirely wrong of me, as the Minister, to try to influence its approach to its independent role, which is written in statute. That is not to say that we are sitting back and allowing the status quo to go on existing. We are testing, deeply and in great detail, whether Ofwat is fit for purpose and in a suitable condition to go to the next phase. Twenty years after privatisation, it is right for us to examine all aspects of the water industry.

David Gray, a highly respected individual who has great experience in the regulatory world, is carrying out a detailed review. I urge the hon. Member for Copeland and all those who are interested in this fascinating subject to understand the review that is taking place, and the role that Ofwat plays. I am determined that the constituents about whom so many hon. Members have spoken so movingly should be at the forefront of our minds while we consider the issues in question. Ofwat has an important duty to protect and stand up for them, independently of the Government. When the Government get things wrong Ofwat has a duty to tell them so. It also has a duty to ensure that the water companies, which have monopoly interests, are responsible to the people concerned. I take that duty very seriously.

The hon. Member for Plymouth, Moor View (Alison Seabeck), who is no longer here, made a point about water poverty. My hon. Friend the Member for Torbay and others mentioned that there might be some people in the House—I am yet to meet them—who believe that the south-west is full of comfortable people who have moved there in retirement and are relatively wealthy. I know that, largely, the opposite of that is true and that many people and communities suffer high degrees of deprivation. Of course, there are wealthier communities. However, if people assume that any community in the south-west can take such a water bill increase because there is no poverty, they make a fundamental error. That is something I take very seriously.

Yes, I speak to people from the south-west, and, yes, I will listen. That point was raised by my hon. Friend the Member for Totnes (Dr Wollaston). I have listened and will continue to listen to people in the area. I know what an important issue this is and that it is a political as well as a social issue. The matter is fundamental to the concerns that hon. Members have voiced for much too long. I recognise that we must come forward with solutions and, in a moment, I shall talk about how we will achieve that.

I hope that I can address some of the other issues during my remarks and, of course, I remain willing to deal with them. A point was made about the adoption of private sewers. I cannot say precisely when we will introduce proposals on that, but the coalition has a very clear commitment to dealing with that important issue and to ensuring that we do so as equitably as possible. The hon. Member for St Ives (Andrew George) also has a long background in talking about the subject, and I appreciate the support, the many conversations that we have had and the assistance that he has given me on the matter. I accept his point about a default position, and I will follow that up with South West Water and continue to have conversations with him.

My hon. Friend the Member for Camborne and Redruth (George Eustice) has provided me with an interesting idea. I can tell him that officials are crunching his numbers as we speak and that he has contributed some thoughtful suggestions. At this stage, I cannot say how we will take that forward, but I will keep in touch with him. In passing, comments have been made about privatisation. All I shall say is that £90 billion has been invested in the water industry, which is a considerable achievement, and that other Governments have had endless opportunities to reverse what happened 20 years ago. I recognise the very real belief in the south-west that, in the case of that area, not enough thought was given. I will address some of those points, too.

First, I shall discuss the specific issue at hand. Ofwat has announced that average bills for household customers of South West Water in the coming year will increase from £486 to £517, which is an increase of 5.1%. Nearly all that increase is due to inflation, as water bill increases are linked to inflation.

[Dr Wollaston]

May I raise the point that the accepted figure is 8.1% because the figure that the Minister quotes assumes that people will be switching to water meters?

[Richard Benyon]

My understanding is that that is the figure over the piece. However, I am happy to look into that and give my hon. Friend an absolutely clear and unequivocal answer, because it is important that we know that figure. In her earlier remarks, I think she raised the point about why we use the retail prices index rather than the consumer prices index. [Interruption.] Sorry it was not her; it was my hon. Friend the Member for Torbay. Bills have been tied to inflation since privatisation because, when inflation is higher, water companies’ costs increase. As is the case with other regulators, Ofwat uses RPI. Although RPI was higher than CPI this year, it was actually lower than CPI when last year’s bills were calculated, so average bills that year were lower. We can argue about percentage points, but that is an important factor. Let us take that matter forward in our consultation, which I will come to in a moment.

I am acutely aware that nobody wants to see higher bills, particularly in these tough economic times. However, we should not lose sight of the fact that the money raised will pay for £159 million of investment in the region during the next financial year, which will benefit customers. I know that that sounds trite, and I am not diminishing the effect of the increase, but we must recognise that there are also benefits, including £14 million to improve tap water quality, £10 million to repair crumbling sewers and £28 million to further reduce pollution incidents.