Incidental flooding or coast erosion: local authorities

I beg to move Amendment 126, in Clause 39, page 24, line 5, at end insert—

‘(d) dwellings,

(e) the protection of agricultural or other commercial interests.’.

With this it will be convenient to discuss Amendment 127, in Clause 39, page 24, line 26, at end insert—

‘(e) the views of owners and occupiers of land likely, in the opinion of the Agency, to be directly affected by the carrying out of the work.’.

These amendments in some ways mirror amendments 123 and 124, only Clause 39 applies to local authorities rather than to the Environment Agency. The amendments are the same. There is a concern about the powers that local authorities have to enter land and do work that does not include houses and commercial businesses. The Minister has given his answer to that. The other concern is to get the agreement of the landowner before the work is done or certainly to inform the landowner about the extent and nature of those works. The Minister was very generous in replying to the previous Amendment. If he could be equally generous on this one, we could come to an arrangement.

I will endeavour to come to some arrangement now if I can. Amendment 126 sounds wholly reasonable. It would give local authorities and IDBs powers under Clause 39 to cause flooding, an increase in the amount of water below ground or coastal erosion in the interests of dwellings or the protection of agricultural or other commercial interests. However, it is not necessary because local authorities and IDBs already have the powers to do things to reduce the potentially harmful effects of flooding or erosion on dwellings and agricultural or commercial interests under the Acts that I referred to previously.

It may be helpful to explain that clause 39 is about enabling authorities to carry out works that cause flooding, an increase in the amount of water below ground or coastal erosion for the beneficial effects on the environment, as opposed to reducing the risks from those processes. That is necessary because certain important aspects of the environment depend on those processes to sustain their interests. However, it is not clear how causing flooding or erosion could benefit dwellings or the protection of agricultural or other commercial interests. The debate is similar to the one that we had on clause 38.

In respect of amendment 127, my comments will be similar to what I said before. I think that the thrust of the amendment is broadly there. We need to consider the drafting and I am happy to take the amendment away and consider it, with a view to bringing something back on Report that achieves a similar result. I think that, on balance, what we have in the Bill already will deliver it, but to sum up the intention behind it and put it clearly in the Bill, I am happy to give that assurance.

I am grateful to have had this opportunity. These serious matters were raised with us by the Country Land and Business Association, which is why the amendments stand in our name. I am delighted that we have had the opportunity to debate them and I hope that the Minister will keep the matter under review.

On the basis that the Minister has offered once again to consider this proposal to see how it could go in the Bill, I beg to ask leave to withdraw the Amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

I beg to move Amendment 62, in Clause 39, page 24, line 39, leave out ‘under’ and insert ‘carried out in reliance on’.

This technical amendment adds greater precision and creates consistency in language between subsections (10) and (11) of clause 39. It is important to have such consistency, as otherwise the implication is that the two provisions have different meanings. The two provisions provide for grants to be paid by the Environment Agency and Welsh Ministers in respect of work carried out in reliance on the new environmental works powers, which are given to various risk management authorities by clause 39.

Amendment 62 agreed to.

Clause 39, as amended, ordered to stand part of the Bill.

Clause 40 ordered to stand part of the Bill.