Schedule 1 - The Water Services Regulation Authority
Water Bill [Lords]
6:00 pm
Mr Andrew Lansley (South Cambridgeshire, Conservative)
Clearly, we are not very far apart, but prioritisation is not in the legislation. In so far as it is not therefore part of the statutory framework for the new authority, it is conceivable that when it considers the range of objectives and duties that it must meet for the financial year ahead, its annual business plan might not set out with sufficient clarity how its forward work programme relates to those objectives and duties and how it intends to prioritise between them.
I agree that it is reasonable to suppose that an effective authority would do that. Harking back to my earlier point, it is also entirely reasonable to include it in the legislation as one element of best practice for a regulator. It has been increasingly incorporated into best practice for economic regulators generally since the Utilities Act 2000. Again, it is a case of the legislation reflecting the 2000 Act rather than other legislation on economic regulators that has been introduced in the intervening period.
I will not press amendment No. 242; the amendment about which the Minister and I disagree is No. 243. The spirit of the debate is that we tend to agree but we are discussing the extent to which it is proper for certain things to be set out in the Bill. In this case, the Minister should reconsider whether the forward work programme should have an explicit objective. People will look at the structure of the authority and the additional duties and want to know how the authority proposes to reconcile and prioritise the consumer and competition objectives and how they will relate to the social and environmental objectives. The forward work programme is the best place for that to be done.
I hope that the Minister will decide that the proposal has the merit to be included on Report. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment.
Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.
Question proposed, That this schedule be the First schedule to the Bill.