Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

I am grateful to the noble Baroness for the amendment, in which she seeks to clarify certain aspects of the settlement and agreement that we reached with the devolved Administrations. As she indicated, clarity on these matters is of help, and I am grateful to the noble Duke, the Duke of Montrose, for identifying which areas need to be clarified. The trouble with the amendment is that it strikes at the heart of the settlement that we have reached with the devolved Administrations for marine planning. We have made available a briefing note and a dedicated session on devolution in relation to this Bill. Noble Lords have been seeking reassurance that new functions have not been legislatively devolved under this Bill; I assure the Committee that they have not. Rather, we have between us agreed a form of executive devolution. This recognises that, while the real benefits of marine planning are achieved only if authorities plan for all activities in the marine environment, it is important that such plans are agreed between Administrations so that we can feel comfortable that important matters, such as UK interests in oil and gas, shipping and defence, are protected. Under the Bill, the devolved Administrations become the planning authority for the relevant offshore region. They may prepare plans which affect both devolved and non-devolved matters. We believe that it would be almost impossible to plan in respect of devolved matters, predominantly fisheries, some nature conservation functions, renewable energy, and so on, without in some way also affecting retained matters, such as oil and gas exploration and exploitation, defence and shipping. It is because of the complex mix of devolved and reserved or non-devolved matters in the offshore areas that all plans for the offshore areas must be agreed by the Secretary of State before adoption by the marine plan authority, which is exactly the point made so effectively by the noble Duke, the Duke of Montrose. Similarly, this must also apply to a Welsh plan for the Welsh inshore region if it covers retained functions. This is to ensure appropriate protection for reserved or non-devolved functions, defined in the Bill as retained functions, in the offshore area. This requirement for the Secretary of State to agree all offshore plans and any Welsh inshore plans that relate to non-devolved matters is an important condition of the devolution package for this Bill, which was agreed by the Joint Ministerial Committee across all four Administrations last summer and autumn. It is an approach supported by the devolved Administrations as a way of agreeing to work together for the good of all of us across the UK seas. I accept that the noble Baroness, Lady Hamwee, approached this position with some element of scepticism; she wanted to be absolutely sure that we are not proceeding with the Bill except on the basis of an agreed position with the devolved Administrations. I assure her on that point, and I therefore hope that she will feel some confidence in withdrawing the amendment.