Clause 20 - Register of certain protected rights
Water Bill [Lords]
2:30 pm
Mr Elliot Morley (Minister of State (Environment and Agri-Environment), Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Scunthorpe, Labour)
We do not disagree with the principle of what the hon. Lady is saying. We entirely accept that it is important that people are aware of the protected rights register and that it should be brought to the attention of abstractors of small quantities of water. I can assure her that there is no need for the amendment. First, the agency will have a record of the former licence holders whose licences have fallen away by virtue of the change in the thresholds.
Secondly, the Bill applies the schedule 6 procedure in the Water Resources Act 1991 to the setting up of registers. That procedure requires an order that establishes a register to be advertised in the local press. We will expect the agency, in the normal course of its business, to liaise with stakeholder groups such as the National Farmers Union and to draw their attention to the measure. Together, clause 20 and new schedule 6 provide the right mechanism to bring the protected rights register to the attention of those who will need to register and those who need to know about it. What the hon. Lady wants is provided for in the Bill.