Clause 31
Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill
1:15 pm
Lorely Burt (Shadow Minister (Small Business), Trade & Industry; Solihull, Liberal Democrat)
I beg to move amendment No. 56, in clause 31, page 18, line 15, at end add—
‘(5) No order under subsection (1) above is to be madebefore 2011.’.
This is quite an important clause, as it designates the Consumer Council for Water for abolition. The amendment would insert a new subsection, which says that that should not take place before 2011. The CCW was created recently, at quite considerable expense. I understand that it cost in the region of £1 million. I question whether abolishing it before it has even reached the crawling stage, let alone infancy, is the wisest course of action. The council needs time to establish itself if it is to transfer its skills, ability and expertise, and it should not just be killed at birth.
My noble Friend, Baroness Miller of Chilthorne Domer, gave a very full explanation of why the Liberal Democrats believe that 2011 should be the earliest date. She referred to the time line of various framework water directives and pricing rounds, and to the draft river basin management plans, which are to be published for public consultation in December 2008. The process will run until 2009, after which the revised plans will be published and there will be a formal response. To interfere with that and with the work of the CCW before then would be unfortunate and disruptive.
The pricing round that my noble Friend mentioned relates to 2009. In January 2010, companies will decide whether they want to appeal to the Competition Commission on the price limits that will have been set for them in 2009. The pricing round will have almost but not quite finished. Until 2009, the CCW’s input into that round will be very important indeed.
The CCW has undertaken work on the problems that have been experienced by all of us recently in relation to the lack of water, hosepipe bans and the difficulty of ensuring that people are treated fairly with regard to water matters. That work indicates that it would be better to allow the CCW to get off the ground.
The Government still need to make a case for incorporating the CCW into the NCC. There will be a hiatus in the way matters progress. Important plans and important pricing considerations will come to fruition by 2011, with a hiatus before the following round, so we believe that 2011 is the right date for any amalgamation of the CCW into the NCC.