Despite detailed and extensive debate during April and May of the Marine and Coastal Access Bill in the House of Lords, both during its Committee and Report Stage, the Government has resisted all arguments and attempts to have highly protected marine reserves (HPMRs) incorporated into the text of the legislation.
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Greenland whale death flurry 1883 - Image courtesy of York University
This long and fascinating exchange saw the climax of the arguments on the Government’s approach to conservation of our collapsing marine ecosystem. The opposition tried everything: reason, rhetoric and even tried to pull old Labour heartstrings with historical references to the high ideals of the post war reforming Labour government.
All to no avail.
This Bill is a framework bill – save your soppy conservation sentiment for secondary legislation. At least for now.
This debate was another mammoth session, finishing after 10 pm. Just two of the 315 clauses of the Bill were debated. Three issues dominated: does the Bill secure the safety of the marine environment from the predations of ’socio-economic’ interests? Is there sufficient scope for affirming the importance of beauty, heritage and other ’spiritual’ values? Are we sure all will know precisely where the boundaries of Marine Conservation Zones will be? You can read it in Hansard, or look at a slightly edited version: House of Lords Day 7
Many Peers remain dissatisfied with the Government ministers’ undertakings about safeguarding the seas.
Night time raid?
As we approach discussion of the heart of the Bill, at 9.15 pm on Day 5, 23 February 2009, we saw the first division of the House. The amendment seemed innocuous enough, it said:
101A: Clause 66, page 37, line 30, after second “the” insert “local and global”
and yet this precipitated a divsion! Of course, it was defeated. The argument was all about the meaning of the word ‘environment’ in the Bill. The first serious skirmish – what more is to follow?
Day 6 in Committee, on 3 March began, at last, to look at the Marine Conservation chapter and salvoes poured down, thick and fast from Liberal Democrat, Conservative and Cross Bench peers.
Were government defences breeched?
Not yet, apparently. We have transcribed the full text of this part of the debate, which records both how diligent are the opposition in the pursuit of safeguards for the marine environment, and how hard Government Ministers are having to work to reassure them. Lord Eden of Winton quoted the MARINET briefing to support his presentation (page 4).
