Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

We have already spent some time dwelling on the relationship between the MMO and the IPC. It is clear that the issue of the relationship between land and sea, development and conservation, planning and protection, and who should be in charge of each of these sectors, is one of the major themes of the Bill. I declare my full support for all that has been said by the noble Baronesses, Lady Hamwee and Lady Young. We are to some extent going over old ground. During our second day in Committee, I said: "““There is no mention of this relationship””—" between the IPC and the MMO— "““in the Planning Act, so these two pieces of legislation travel in parallel, yet never seem to join up””.—[Official Report, 21/1/09; col. 1709.]" As I have mentioned previously, in Committee on the Planning Bill my noble friend Lord Taylor said that he was unhappy about the fact that the IPC was considered above the MMO when it came to offshore developments, or those greater than 100 megawatts. We are still concerned. It is important to join up these two disparate and inextricably linked pieces of legislation and to make sure that marine plans are given the authority that they deserve. We on these Benches want to achieve consistency, clarity and effective marine management with the Bill. Therefore we agree that the IPC should have to make decisions in accordance with, "““the appropriate marine policy documents””." We are also concerned that the relationship between the MMO and the IPC should be properly scrutinised and appropriately defined in the Bill. We have introduced our two amendments to the Planning Act 2008 with the intention of delineating this relationship, not only to make it clearer but also to ensure that it suitably reflects concerns about the marine area and the authority of the MMO. Amendment 95 ensures that there is a duty to consult the MMO when making applications for development relating to coastal and offshore areas. It also ensures that the IPC must give notice inviting a local impact report to the MMO, even if only part of the application is considered coastal or offshore. Our second amendment makes sure that the national policy statement created by the IPC can cover marine areas, but only if it is subject to approval by the MMO. In addition, when the Secretary of State is developing the NPS, he must have regard both to marine policy statements and marine plans. These amendments are crucial to the working of the Bill. If the MMO is to be a functional and effective body, it cannot be subject to, and subservient to, the IPC and NPS. This is a difficult area, because the complexities of the relationship between land and sea, and the various developments, mean that it is not possible simply to divide one from the other. We need to employ subtleties to make sure that the MMO does not become just another quango that has to obey the IPC. Our amendments provide a solution to this thorny problem by integrating the Planning Act with the marine Bill in a way that ensures that neither the IPC nor the MMO is rendered ineffectual. Instead, they are encouraged to work together to make sure that both land and sea can be part of a broader plan of sustainable development. There is also the issue of who says no when the cumulative effect of human activities at sea is too harmful to the marine environment. This ability and need to say no is required by an EU directive. Who will say no? It presumably will not be the Secretary of State for the Department of Energy and Climate Change, or indeed the Secretary of State in charge of the IPC. We believe that it should be the MMO. I will be interested to hear the Minister’s answer to this. If the final say lies not with the MMO but with the Secretary of State for Defra, will it be made on the advice of the MMO? During the passage of the Planning Bill, the noble Lord, Lord Hunt, said that the relationship between the IPC and the MMO would be made plain during the course of this Bill. Perhaps the moment has now come and I look forward to his clarification.