Clause 23 - Modification of impounding licences
Water Bill [Lords]
3:45 pm
Mr Bill Wiggin (Leominster, Conservative)
The amendment is designed so that the Government can clarify the reason that in
''the case of a licence to obstruct or impede any inland waters, a variation may take the form of a requirement that the impounding works be modified in ways specified in the proposed new provision of the licence.''
That is harsh; either a licence is acceptable or it is not. It is an unnecessary provision, and that is why I want to delete it.
Watercress growers, to whom my hon. Friend the Member for Salisbury referred, impound water with which to wash their watercress beds. If they are told to modify the impounding works, their business might collapse. Such modifications would also be unnecessary for other businesses, but in some cases it will be impossible to gain a licence unless modifications are made. That is implicit in licence applications, which is why the provision is not necessary.