Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill

moved Amendment No. 112:"Page 9, line 21, after ““may”” insert ““, by order made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament,””" The noble Duke said: My Lords, in moving Amendment No. 112, I shall speak also to Amendment No. 117, which is grouped with it. The Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs has wide powers under a large number of Acts. Some of these Acts are the result of parliamentary deliberation in which many of us have taken part. I do not recall the passage of a single Defra Bill that has not been accompanied by the suggestion that the Secretary of State was about to be given excessive power. To be fair to the Minister, such accusations have not been confined to his department; it seems to be endemic to those who find themselves in government. The first of the amendments relates to schemes by which the Secretary of State may transfer property, rights or liabilities of a Minister of the Crown to Natural England, the Commission for Rural Communities or to a person acting on behalf of either. I think that my questions are quite natural and normal. Which Minister? Why should the Secretary of State be transferring property, rights or liabilities of another Minister anywhere? If the Minister in question is part of the Defra team, cannot the Bill just say so? Does the occasion of the transfer arise from another department’s legislation? Do Natural England or the CRC have any choice in whether they accept the Minister’s property? Then there is the question of ““a person””. Would this be a solicitor, for example, acting as a front man to protect the identity of the true recipient? Would such a manoeuvre occur only when the gift was to be shared and the person was, as it were, taking delivery before parcelling it out? Amendment No. 117 relates first to the power of the Secretary of State to give directions on the conduct of functions of national or international importance, to be carried out by the UK conservation bodies acting through the Joint Nature Conservation Committee. Secondly, it relates to the power to give directions to the JNCC on the giving of advice to any of the UK conservation bodies. In both cases, the Secretary of State has to consult with her opposite numbers before giving tongue, and must publish the full text. We feel, however, that the power to transfer property and to issue high-level directions should be subject to parliamentary scrutiny. I beg to move.