Clause 18 - Meaning of ''emergency''

Part of Civil Contingencies Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 10:00 am on 3 February 2004.

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Photo of Elfyn Llwyd Elfyn Llwyd Shadow PC Spokesperson (Home Affairs), Shadow Spokesperson (Business, Innovation and Skills), Shadow Spokesperson (Communities and Local Government), Shadow Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Shadow Spokesperson (Defence) 10:00, 3 February 2004

We have reached a very important point in the Bill. Clause 18 deals with many concerns held by commentators, and many Opposition Members want to investigate further the meaning of some words in the draft Bill.

This part of the Bill has been improved since the draft was prepared. Initially the wording read

''an event or situation which presents a serious threat'' and it now reads

''an event or situation which threatens serious damage''.

However, it seems to me that the event or situation does not need to be of any seriousness. That means that a relatively innocuous event could be considered to have implications of damage that might be sufficient to trigger the emergency powers. That is particularly relevant because the powers will almost certainly result in infringements of freedoms that could not be justified or tolerated if there were not an emergency. It is therefore vital that the trigger for using such powers is set at an appropriately high level.

I cannot read the clause without thinking about the fuel crisis; it looms very large. I accept that it was a serious threat. Nevertheless, one has to ask—for example, following the tenor of the arguments put forward by hon. Members—whether the picketing of Stanlow oil refinery would immediately trigger emergency powers, knowing what we do about the way in which the fuel crisis developed over 10 days from the picket? I addressed a public meeting in Rhuthun on the night that Stanlow was blockaded, and my final piece of advice to the farmers was ''Don't blockade Stanlow.'' Obviously, they took my advice to heart and immediately drove over to Stanlow. That point is a serious one. As only one oil refinery—although a major one in the UK—was involved, would such a case trigger the Government powers? It is important to investigate that.

We all want to know how far the clause will go. In light of the implicit infringements of liberty, it is important that we should tease out the responses and that they should be discussed fully. The decision as to whether the definition of an emergency has been satisfied is currently made by a Minister. I realise that the Queen is the primary decision maker, but she will undoubtedly take advice from one or two Ministers—well, she might. As the damage needs only to be threatened rather than actual, that may be a highly subjective decision based on assumptions of cause and effect. That takes us back again to Stanlow.

I appreciate that there will be parliamentary scrutiny and that is clearly a desired process, but that is not likely to occur within several days or more, by which time the regulations may have already had a considerable impact. The fact that they relate to movement to and from a place or to the destruction of property means that their effect is required to be immediate—in other words, before any parliamentary consideration can be given. There is therefore plainly a need for a high threshold, as illustrated by the Government's observation that flooding could trigger the use of emergency powers. Indeed, paragraph 35 of the explanatory notes refers explicitly to ''flooding''.

What I am saying may be double-edged, and I may be speaking against myself, but there will probably be a lot of low and medium-level flooding, as well as that caused by global warming, whether or not one accepts that that exists, although I believe that it is a problem. The Environment Agency is much exercised by flooding and the likelihood of serious flooding in the immediate future. I am trying to be helpful rather than stupid, and am keen to find out from the Under-Secretary what degree of flooding would cause these powers to be introduced? How bad and widespread would the flooding need to be? How many properties would need to be affected, and how many people's safety would need to be compromised? By definition, safety must be compromised even in a small flood, because people have to evacuate their properties. How devastating must the consequences be for these powers to be introduced? The damage must be defined as serious, so what does the Under-Secretary define as serious? I am very much assisted in these matters by Liberty, which is anxious to probe the intentions behind this part of the Bill. These are sensible amendments on a very important part of the Bill.