Clause 2 - Duty to assess, plan and advise

Part of Civil Contingencies Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 3:30 pm on 27 January 2004.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Nigel Evans Nigel Evans Conservative, Ribble Valley 3:30, 27 January 2004

No; yet again, I do not. I specifically believe that ''from time to time'' is far too vague. The Minister said that different bodies have a different sense of emergency when dealing with different things. I fully agree, but it does not mean that they should be able to abdicate their responsibility for making contingency plans. That is what we are asking for in a number of areas in the Bill. I remember from this morning's discussion that the areas that could be determined to have an emergency is rather wide.

One of our criticisms of the Bill is that it too broad, although I accept that the Government have narrowed its provisions. Not only can the emergency take place in any part of the United Kingdom, but the definition deals with the loss of human life, homelessness and damage to property; it then deals with money, food, water, energy and fuel. It then introduces communications, disruption to transport and to services relating to health. I suspect that almost any incident that one could think of would fall within the scope of the Bill. That is why it should include effective measures to ensure that whatever happens, people will be ready.

That brings me back to the point that terrorists will try to cause as much damage as possible. Those insane suicide bombers want to cause terror, but they also want to perpetrate as much damage, loss of life and carnage as they can. Sadly, we have seen far to many examples of that happening around the world. Terrorists will take advantage of an element of surprise. They are not going to advertise the fact that they are going to act. Chilling as it is, we are the right body to discuss such matters, as we do not want to scare members of the public unnecessarily.

However, such incidents happen around the world, and sometimes we see it up front. I went to New York shortly after 11 September. I was there when the Foreign Secretary gave the readings in St. Thomas's church and Trinity church, and we gave a bell cast at the same London foundry as the Liberty bell. We met

some of the relatives of those who had died. Nobody thought that anything like it could happen; there was always a sense of security in the United States. The disaster happened on a huge scale. It could have been even worse had the other plane hit, as I understand that other terrorists were ready to fly a fifth plane. It is hugely worrying.