TABLE Proceedings Time for conclusion of proceedings Clauses 1 to 5, Schedule 1,
Clauses 6 to 14, Schedule 2,
Clauses 15 and 16, Schedule 3,
Clauses 17 to 30, Schedule 4,
Clauses 31 to 41, Schedule 5,
Clause 42, Schedule 6,
Clauses 43 to 48, Schedule 7,
Clause 49, Schedule 8,
Clause 50, Schedule 9,
Clauses 51 to 54, Schedule 10,
Clauses 55 and 56, Schedule 11,
Clauses 57 to 64, Schedule 12,
Clauses 65 and 66, Schedule 13,
Clauses 67 to 72, Schedule 14,
Clauses 73 to 78, Schedule 15,
Clauses 79 to 83 5.00 pm on 27th May Clauses 84 to 96, Schedule 16,
Clauses 97 to 135, Schedule 17,
Clauses 136 to 138, Schedule 18,
Clauses 139 and 140, Schedule 19,
Clauses 141 to 156, Schedules 20 and 21,
Clauses 157 to 170, Schedule 22,
Clauses 171 to 193, Schedule 23,
Clause 194, new
Clauses, new Schedules and any remaining proceedings on the Bill. 5.00 pm on 24th June
Energy Bill [Lords]
8:55 am
Clauses 6 to 14, Schedule 2,
Clauses 15 and 16, Schedule 3,
Clauses 17 to 30, Schedule 4,
Clauses 31 to 41, Schedule 5,
Clause 42, Schedule 6,
Clauses 43 to 48, Schedule 7,
Clause 49, Schedule 8,
Clause 50, Schedule 9,
Clauses 51 to 54, Schedule 10,
Clauses 55 and 56, Schedule 11,
Clauses 57 to 64, Schedule 12,
Clauses 65 and 66, Schedule 13,
Clauses 67 to 72, Schedule 14,
Clauses 73 to 78, Schedule 15,
Clauses 79 to 83
Clauses 97 to 135, Schedule 17,
Clauses 136 to 138, Schedule 18,
Clauses 139 and 140, Schedule 19,
Clauses 141 to 156, Schedules 20 and 21,
Clauses 157 to 170, Schedule 22,
Clauses 171 to 193, Schedule 23,
Clause 194, new
Clauses, new Schedules and any remaining proceedings on the Bill.
Good morning, Mr. O'Brien; I warmly welcome you to the Chair of our Committee. I am pleased that you will be supervising our deliberations, not least because of your long-standing interest in the subject. I also welcome all members of the Committee.
I am grateful to my hon. Friend the Under-Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, the hon. Member for Edinburgh, South (Nigel Griffiths) for representing the Government at the Programming Sub-Committee meeting earlier this week, and for ensuring that the Committee's time is planned effectively in the interests of achieving proper and thorough scrutiny of the Bill. I am grateful also to my hon. Friend the Member for
Staffordshire, Moorlands (Charlotte Atkins), who is here for the first part of our discussions. I do not think that she will find her duties on the Bill unduly onerous, given the high level of interest in energy policy among those of my hon. Friends who are serving on the Committee. I welcome the hon. Members for Tewkesbury (Mr. Robertson) and for Hazel Grove (Mr. Stunell), and their hon. Friends, and I look forward to their contributions to our debates.
I was pleased that, on Second Reading, hon. Members across the House generally supported the Bill in principle. There is wide support for making provision for the future management of nuclear decommissioning and clean-up at our civil nuclear sites. We need to make brisk progress to ensure that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority can be established on time, by April 2005. That concern underpinned some of the dates in the resolution of the Programming Sub-Committee. Similarly, it will enable the new British Electricity Trading and Transmission Arrangements to be implemented on a similar time scale.
The Committee will understand the importance of hitting those dates, but will want to ensure also adequate time for proper scrutiny of the Bill. I hope that all hon. Members will agree that the resolution represents a proper balance between those differing considerations. I commend it to the Committee.