Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

My Lords, I have a great deal of sympathy with the noble Lord’s amendment. Given the encouraging reception another RYA amendment received when debated earlier, I hope that we can find a similarly constructive way forward here too. The noble Lord, Lord Greenway, is right to defend recreational vehicles from unfair discrimination. Ensuring that MCZs can, if necessary, be defended from damage by excessive recreational use is desirable, but deliberately exempting other vehicles from similar restrictions even though they too cause damage would be counterproductive. Earlier, the Minister rightly raised a concern about ensuring that the regulation this Bill produces does not result in an unreasonable burden on industry. This cuts two ways. Care also needs to be taken that the burden is not instead laid entirely on recreational vessels. I hope that the Minister will consider carefully before building into primary legislation a distinction between which sorts of vehicles are to be burdened. There are of course international law ramifications, but the Government’s initial reading of what we can do has already been seen to be perhaps rather hesitant.