Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

I shall speak to Amendments 75, 77 and 79, which refer to the situation in Wales. What I have to say largely mirrors what the noble Lord, Lord Wallace of Tankerness, said and, to some extent, what the noble Duke just said. Amendment 75 refers to directions by the Secretary of State for Wales. It mirrors Amendment 74, in that the aim is to ensure that, before giving directions, the Secretary of State must also consult Welsh Ministers where such directions apply to the Welsh inshore region or, indeed, the Welsh offshore region. I am sure that the Minister will regard the amendment as making a perfectly reasonable request. There will be an impact on the Welsh inshore region, as featured on the department’s maps, which he kindly gave us recently. Given that the Welsh offshore region is now defined, consultation by the Secretary of State would clearly be necessary, not least for the fishery interests involved, before the MMO could fully consider the overall situation. What really concerns us is that later in the Bill—I shall not pre-empt that too much—there are references to inshore fisheries conservation authorities. There is concern in Wales that there is insufficient reference to the sustainability of fisheries. If the MMO has powers regarding IFCAs, it appears that they are not sufficient in Wales. That reflects what has just been said: devolution in Wales does not go anything like as far as it does in Scotland. Those matters need to be considered. In Amendment 77, the same principle about guidance applies in Clause 36. Where matters directly impact on a Welsh region, Welsh Ministers must be consulted. Clause 36(2) is inadequate, with its reference to, "““such other bodies or persons as the Secretary of State considers appropriate””." Our amendment would ensure that the guidance was subject to the Secretary of State consulting Welsh Ministers. I am sure that the Minister will not find that a difficult principle to absorb. Amendment 79 would ensure that, under Clause 38, the Secretary of State’s notice with the interim arrangements did not apply to the National Assembly for Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government, as the amendment would exclude those Acts of Parliament—the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the Government of Wales Act 2006—that established the Welsh Government and increased the powers of the National Assembly. Some of these matters are found in the 1998 Act, which deals with, for example, legal proceedings and the public interest, where the public interest is defined as being of the Welsh public in terms of devolution. These matters are of concern and, as far as IFCAs and MCZs are concerned, will come up later in the Bill.