Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

I was about to declare a past interest as a member of local authorities for nearly 27 years, with 20 years as a member of Lancashire County Council. I am only too well aware of the point that is being raised and I could not do other than recognise it, looking at the noble Lord, Lord Dixon-Smith, with his long experience of Essex County Council. However, once you start with a little list, all those other stakeholders will demand that they are put in the Bill, too. I am seeking to make it absolutely plain that there is no preclusion of appointment of people with that local authority experience. Speaking purely personally, I can see that such experience would be one of the stronger factors that would be taken into account, but if that were the only criterion beyond the general wording it could become prescriptive or lead to a lengthening list. I am certain that other stakeholders would come forward. Schedule 2, paragraph 3(3), on page 48, together with the OCPA code of practice, already requires that the Secretary of State has regard to the criteria necessary to select people who will enable the board to function effectively. It helps to ensure that board members will have demonstrated capacity in,"““some matter relevant to the exercise of the Commission’s functions””." Given the CRC’s public sector-wide remit, ““some matter relevant”” can be taken to include the rural affairs of local authorities, without specifically needing to say so. The noble Baroness, Lady Miller of Chilthorne Domer, spoke to Amendment No. 228, which would require the CRC board to consist solely of the chairmen of the regional rural affairs forums as ex officio members. While the CRC will work in close collaboration with the regional rural affairs forums, and there will be links between the CRC and the forums, the chairmen of the forums will not necessarily have the collective expertise and experience required by the CRC board—that point was mentioned by the noble Lord, Lord Cameron. The Secretary of State will be accountable to Parliament for the performance of the CRC, so it is right for her, rather than the chairman, to make the board appointments, using transparent selection procedures. At present, there is one RRAF chairman and one RRAF member on the Countryside Agency board—neither of them was recruited solely on that criterion, but clearly it enhanced their rural credentials. The chairs of the RRAFs meet Ministers quarterly, and I understand that the next meeting with the Minister, my honourable friend Jim Knight, is to be next week. I was asked about the role of regional rural affairs forums. They have a secretariat provided by government offices, although the chair is a non-government person. Their members are usually rural stakeholders from around each region. They exist to help to rural-proof things at regional level, especially now that the Countryside Agency does not have its regional presence. They are seen as a primary means by which grass-roots customers of government services can give feedback to government to ensure that those services meet the needs of rural people and that they deliver practical benefits on the ground. As touched on by the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Exeter, the chairmen of the forums are volunteers. That is a different role from being appointed to a national statutory body, which could weaken the link that the chairmen and their forums have with their own grass roots. The Secretary of State will be accountable to Parliament for the performance of the CRC, so it is right for her rather than the chairman to make the board appointments, but ex officio appointments would not be in line with the code of practice of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.