Clause 37 - Water Services Regulation Authority
Water Bill [Lords]
4:30 pm
Mr Elliot Morley (Minister of State (Environment and Agri-Environment), Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs; Scunthorpe, Labour)
The clause adds a new section to the Water Industry Act 1991 and repeals section 1 and schedule 1 of that Act. It establishes a new corporate body to be known as the Water Services Regulation Authority. The office of the director general of water services is abolished. It is possible that the new authority will still be commonly known as Ofwat. There is nothing to stop that. That is not a problem. The Government believe that having a regulatory board will reduce the chance of shifts of policy or approach resulting from the changeover of individual directors general and will encourage consistent and transparent regulation. The Better Regulation Task Force reached the same conclusion in its report on the economic regulators in 2001. In Wales, both the English and the Welsh versions will be used. I hope that that answers the hon. Gentleman.