Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for raising these issues again. On Amendment 100, we certainly agree that it is important that in the use of the exemption-making power under Clause 71 the licensing authority must adhere to the requirements outlined in Clause 66. They are factors that should be taken into account when determining what activities are appropriate to provide an exemption for, and whether that exemption is a blanket exemption or is to be given conditionally. It is reasonable to expect the licensing authorities to use the same fundamental principles that will be used to determine the impact of individual licence applications when making decisions on what activities are appropriate to be carried out without the need for a licence. We do not believe that there is a problem in relation to the Bill, but I have listened to the noble Lord and am prepared to give this matter further consideration. If I believe that we need to make a change, I will bring back an amendment at Third Reading to deal with the issue that the noble Lord has raised. So far as concerns Amendments 101 and 107, I hope that I can give reassurance in the way that the noble Lord has suggested. Placing exempted activities on the licensing register where appropriate provides transparency for those operating in the marine environment and allows each licensing authority to take into account the potential cumulative effects of both exempt and licensed activities undertaken in its area. We would expect many exempted activities to be registered in this way, and we have provided a clear mechanism in the Bill for that to happen. As I said in Committee, our concern is that a blanket requirement in the Bill would mean that some extremely minor, low-risk activities which would be exempted by order and would have a negligible impact on the marine environment would have to be listed. Examples of the kinds of activities that might fall into this category are already listed in the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 (FEPA) exemptions order and the Deposits in the Sea (Exemptions) Order 1985. I think that it is a question of proportionality. Would it be proportionate for those launching a vessel, dropping an anchor in port or, as the noble Lord, Lord Greenway, suggested, depositing a buoy around a hazard to be under a statutory duty to notify the licensing authority each time that they carried out such an activity? We would be concerned about significant and unnecessary additional burdens being placed on many industries, not least the fishing and shipping industries. Our approach to using the exemption orders will achieve the same aims that the amendments are striving for—the ability to monitor cumulative impacts and ensure protection of the environment—but without the unnecessary additional burdens on already challenged industries. The public consultation on the exemptions order that we are soon to launch will canvass public views on whether each activity that we propose to exempt should be required to be notified to the licensing authority and then be placed on the licensing register. We would prefer to leave some discretion until we have seen the outcome of that public consultation. However, I reassure the noble Lord that our clear intent is to ensure that we can monitor activities which may have a cumulative impact on the environment. The noble Lord asked whether the exemptions would be used in an inappropriate way, but of course that is not our intention. I hope that I have been able to give him the reassurance that he requires.