My Lords, I beg to move that the draft Works Detrimental to Navigation (Powers and Duties of Inspectors) Regulations 2018, which were laid before Parliament in January 2018, be approved.
We are moving on to a somewhat different and more technical subject, and I am very pleased to see the noble Lord, Lord Bradshaw, in his place. He will presumably bring a great deal of technical expertise to this debate. The regulations will provide inspectors in BEIS’s Offshore Petroleum Regulator for Environment and Decommissioning, which I will refer to as OPRED, with powers to conduct inspections to assess compliance by operators of offshore hydrocarbon installations with the conditions of consents to locate as granted under Part 4A of the Energy Act 2008.
OPRED inspectors travel to offshore installations to monitor compliance with our offshore environmental regulatory framework. However, they do not have powers to conduct inspections to assess operator compliance with consents to locate conditions. The regulations will close that gap in enforcement capabilities by enabling inspectors to board offshore installations to assess operator compliance with the consents to locate regime, inspect and investigate any legislative breaches, and take enforcement action where required.
Consents to locate are required before offshore activities likely to cause danger to navigation are carried out. A condition of consents to locate is the need for operators to maintain navigational aids, such as lighting, foghorns and other signage, to warn shipping of the presence of offshore installations. Part 4A of the 2008 Act gives the Secretary of State powers to make inspection regulations for enforcing the consents to locate regime and create criminal offences. Regulation 3 of the regulations contains powers to allow inspectors to undertake examinations and investigations and Regulation 6 sets out the offences and penalties that would apply to a failure to co-operate with inspectors. Inspectors would normally conduct checks on the consents to locate regime when undertaking routine visits to offshore installations to determine operator compliance with other environmental legislation.
The regulations are needed due to an increasing trend from 2015 onwards whereby non-compliances by some operators with the consents to locate conditions, primarily the obligation to maintain functioning navigational aids, have not been remedied timeously despite OPRED’s efforts. Although most operators initially responded to incidents of malfunctioning navigational aids by deploying temporary collision-avoidance measures, notably the use of guard vessels around installations, and eventually resolved breaches after protracted negotiations, this is not an ideal situation. Notwithstanding the instigation by operators of temporary solutions, the risk to shipping of a collision with an offshore installation at night, or during times of poor visibility, remains until functioning navigational systems are reinstated.
Without powers to access offshore installations and conduct inspections, we are reliant upon operator good will or evidence from third parties, namely the general lighthouse authorities and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, in order to gather evidence to establish whether consents to locate requirements have been breached and to encourage operators to revert to compliance. The regulations would provide inspectors with powers to investigate and enforce an expedient return to compliance by operators, thus reducing the risk of offshore collisions occurring.
While the risk of a collision with shipping remains low and to date there have been no incidents of shipping colliding with UK offshore installations as a consequence of failed navigational aids, the human, environmental and economic impacts of a collision would be significant. There are invariably lengthy time lags before the resolution of non-compliances—in one instance it took four months before compliance was restored—which increases the risk of collisions at night or in adverse weather conditions.
The regulations will contribute to our aim of ensuring that offshore hydrocarbon activities are carried out in a safe, clean and environmentally sound manner. In 2017, OPRED conducted a consultation with the offshore sector on the regulations. Two responses were received seeking simple clarification. We replied to both consultees addressing their comments and agreeing to publish updated regulatory guidance once the regulations entered into force.
One substantive issue arose from the consultation regarding the provisions that would allow inspectors to take original documents as evidence in an investigation. To enforce the consents to locate regime effectively, it was our opinion that obtaining original documents would fulfil the legal obligation to gather the best evidence available should we need to pursue criminal proceedings against non-compliant operators. We decided to retain the power to seize original documents in the regulations, but took account of industry concerns by caveating it with limitations on the use of the power.
The objective of the regulations will be to achieve a high level of operator compliance with the consents to locate regime through inspections and the investigation of breaches, the use of enforcement notices instructing operators to take timely actions and the imposition of penalties. Given the need for the regulations, it would be useful if they entered into force on the day after they are made. I commend these regulations to the Committee.