Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

I support Amendment 14 moved by the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, and I shall speak to our Amendments 15 and 18. It is of the utmost importance to ensure that the MMO remains transparent and reports on the steps it has taken to achieve its general objective. Indeed, I feel that that the MMO should go further, and that is why Amendment 15 would place a duty on it to produce a report detailing its objectives for the new financial year, setting out a business plan on how it intends to achieve them and, most important, whether the objectives for the previous year were met. Paragraph 25(2) of this schedule already provides that the MMO must prepare an annual report. However, without the specifications set out in this amendment, there is a risk that a report might not include the vital information that anyone scrutinising the MMO would need. Does the Minister agree that this would be a disadvantage because weaknesses in the organisation might go unnoticed and unimproved. The MMO will be a powerful body with a broad remit of functions and a high-profile central objective. It is therefore important that it is seen to be as transparent as possible. A report detailing objectives for the next year, how they are to be met and how the body fared in the previous year will help to make sure that it remains as transparent as possible and thus prevent it becoming just another useless quango. The marine programme plan would appear to be a suitable template for the type of report that it would be useful for the MMO to produce. It includes sections such as ““progress so far”” and how future progress will be measured, and ““our future work programme—key milestones””. These all contain detailed information with clear timescales showing both progress and objectives. Is this the sort of report the Minister hopes and expects the MMO to generate? How will he ensure that this happens? The quest for transparency is also why we have tabled Amendment 18. It has been included to make sure that the Secretary of State has to present reports produced by the MMO on how it has discharged its functions throughout the year before each House of Parliament within 12 months of the end of that year. This is in order to ensure that reports do not get buried if they contain bad news. It is of the greatest importance to have specific timescales for such reports. Does the Minister agree that it is not much good making it compulsory to produce a report on the annual progress of the MMO if there is no requirement for it to be made available to both Houses within a sensibly limited timescale? How, for example, can the actions and achievements of the MMO be properly scrutinised if the reports which it quite rightly has to produce may not be available for many years? Can the Minister elaborate on what sort of the timescale the Government have in mind for placing copies of these reports before Parliament? The success of the marine Bill and its commitment to sustainable development will necessarily depend in large part on the integrity of the MMO and its success in discharging its functions. It is therefore crucial that this large and important organisation is monitored and called to account for its actions, whether to praise its successes or question its failures. While the Secretary of State can play a part in this, does the Minister agree that parliamentary scrutiny is also very important? In order to carry out such scrutiny effectively, reports must be made available in a timely manner.