Shipments of Radioactive Substances (EU Exit) Regulations 2019

Debate between Lord Henley and Lord Jones

Tuesday 26th February 2019 Grand Committee

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Henley) (Con)]

My Lords, this new instrument is being made under powers set out in Section 8(1) of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018. It is being made to address specific inoperabilities arising from the UK’s withdrawal from the European Atomic Energy Community —Euratom—and would come into force on exit day only in the event of no deal between the UK and the EU. The instrument corrects deficiencies in retained EU law by revoking and replacing Euratom Regulation 1493/93 on the shipments of radioactive substances between EU member states. This instrument applies to the whole of the UK.

The regulations ensure that advance declarations will continue for shipments of sealed radioactive sources from the EU into the UK in the event of no deal. They enable the UK competent authorities to check that UK importers comply with requirements for the safe storage, use and disposal of sources before shipments are made. This process of advance declarations maintains the oversight of the UK competent authorities of the destinations and recipients of the sealed sources shipped into the UK. Therefore, in relation to imports, the regulations provide continuity for regulators and operators in a no-deal scenario.

The instrument covers the shipment of sealed radioactive sources. This means a radioactive material encapsulated by another material, usually metal, to prevent exposure. Such sources are widely used in industry, agriculture and medicine. Examples include sources to inspect the quality of welds on gas and water pipelines, to kill bacteria in food, to kill cancer cells in medical patients and to sterilise medical equipment. Approximately 100 businesses import radioactive sealed sources in the UK and the vast majority are in England. The regulations do not delay or restrict the UK’s ability to import such sources from the EU as they provide continuity with current practices.

Following exit, UK importers of sealed radioactive sources from the EU will be required, as previously, to make an advance declaration demonstrating that they comply with national requirements for the safe storage, use and disposal of sealed sources before shipments from the EU to the UK can take place. This declaration will be sent to the relevant competent authority in the UK, which will acknowledge receipt as per previous processes. The competent authorities are the ONR for nuclear-licensed sites and the UK environment agencies for non-nuclear licensed sites. The UK importer will then be required to forward the declaration to the EU-based exporter before the shipment can be made. These declarations can last for up to three years and cover more than one shipment. The UK will recognise all declarations made before exit day following the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. Shipments can continue to be made under existing declarations until those declarations expire.

In the event of no deal, the system cannot continue to operate in exactly the same way as now as the UK will no longer be a member state. The instrument maintains current arrangements in so far as possible, with three changes. First, the instrument applies only to imports from the EU into the UK, and will not apply to exports from the UK to the EU. This reflects the UK’s position outside the EU and that this legislation can cover only the arrival of shipments in the UK.

Secondly, the obligation on exporters in EU member states to submit a quarterly return of all shipments will no longer apply. This is because the UK cannot place an obligation on EU exporters to submit a return to a UK-based competent authority.

Thirdly, the instrument places the legal obligation to make an advance declaration on the UK importer, whereas the Euratom regulation placed the legal obligation to obtain the advance declaration on the EU exporter. This technical legal change is made for jurisdictional reasons but makes no difference to what is required of the importer in practice, since it would have needed to provide the information to the exporter. Therefore, requirements for making the declaration for UK importers remain the same.

The changes do not place any additional practical requirements on industry or regulators. We expect a very small, one-off familiarisation cost to all industry of between £1,400 and £9,000. Subject to Parliament’s approval of the regulations, guidance for operators will be published online in March alongside targeted industry engagement. Officials have been engaging with affected operators through various fora and channels, including the Environment Agency’s small users’ liaison group and the Radioactive Substances Policy Group. My department drafted this instrument in collaboration with the devolved Administrations, the UK environment agencies and the ONR.

In conclusion, the regulations are essential to demonstrate the UK’s continuing commitment to the highest safety standards for the control of radioactive substances and to ensure maximum continuity for UK importers. I beg to move.

[Lord Jones (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his exposition. I acknowledge that this is a complex and highly technical subject, but it is important to all citizens. I note on the first page of the document that “competent authority” means,

“in Wales, the Natural Resources Body for Wales”.

On page two, some lines down, it states that “shipment”,

“means the transport from the place of origin to the place of destination, including loading and unloading, of sealed sources”.

Should we presume that this refers to a sea voyage, as opposed to a road or rail journey? The word “shipment”, on paper, seems a trifle ambiguous.

In north Wales there are two nuclear power stations: Trawsfynydd in Meirionnydd and Wylfa in Anglesey, or Ynys Môn. I believe that the former is dormant and the latter is to be replaced, although I understand that plans for the new Wylfa are now on hold, which is a cause for concern across the island. It is not my intention to query those issues as such, but can it be presumed that shipment from plants such as these—should there be a need for shipment—would begin by road or rail? As I said, “shipment”, as referred to on page 2, is a trifle ambiguous. I recollect seeing the transportation by rail southwards from north-west Wales of a flask mounted on a rail-wagon frame. The flask, which was large and possibly made of steel or iron, was engaged within the train in just one wagon and was easily identifiable to people like me in the locality as a flask connected with the plants that I have instanced.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, I thank the noble Lords, Lord Grantchester, Lord Fox and the noble Lord, Lord Jones, of Wales, as we shall now refer to him, if he is happy—I am sure he will be—with such a grand title.

[Lord Jones]

And we won last Saturday.

[Lord Henley]

I think the less said about last Saturday the better, but that is another matter. I shall start, because of last Saturday, by dealing with the noble Lord’s question, which is pretty straightforward. I can assure him that “shipment” refers to any form of transport. It might have the word “ship” in it, but it also covers trains, which, as he knows, have been used a great deal over the years to move nuclear waste and nuclear materials around all parts of England, Wales and Scotland. Whether by road or whatever, “shipment” covers everything.

I note also what the noble Lord said about Wylfa. Now is neither the time nor the place to go over that again. We hope that something will emerge in due course, but he knows the reasons why that could not go ahead.

I turn to the questions asked by the noble Lords, Lord Fox and Lord Grantchester. On whether the measure covers both sealed and unsealed transportation, I know that my honourable friend Mr Harrington is meeting his opposite number, Dr Whitehead, about that tomorrow. I hope they will be able to resolve whatever uncertainties there were between the two of them on that matter. I hope also that they will be able to follow up the confusion relating to tracking and deal with the letter to which the noble Lord, Lord Fox, referred.

Carriage of Dangerous Goods (Amendment) Regulations 2019

Debate between Lord Henley and Lord Jones

Tuesday 26th February 2019 Grand Committee

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, again I thank all three noble Lords for their contributions; in particular I thank the noble Lord, Lord Jones, for his insights on CP Snow, particularly The New Men. It is a long time since I read any CP Snow, but I feel that I must go back and read some.

[Lord Jones]

May I recommend to the noble Lord Corridors of Power, which delineates activities here in this House?

Airbus

Debate between Lord Henley and Lord Jones

Tuesday 26th June 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, my noble friend is right to point out that we are in the middle of negotiations with the Commission, and it is important that we get those right. Obviously, there will not be clarity until negotiations are completed.

[Lord Jones (Lab)]

My Lords, will the Minister accept that the north-east Wales Airbus factory—6,000 strong—makes a magnificent contribution to Britain’s skills? It does training, high-tech and apprenticeships, directly in the line of Mr Chamberlain’s pre-war factory programme, which was Vickers, Hawker, BAE and now Airbus, which as a factory keeps the global fleet of Airbus aloft. If Britain is to retain her greatness, must not blue-chip companies such as Airbus be assured that their supply chains will be secure after Brexit? I declare my interest in the register.

[Lord Henley]

My Lords, I am very grateful to the noble Lord for emphasising just what skills and talents we have in north Wales; for that matter, we have them in other parts of the country. He was right to bring that to the attention of the House. As I said in earlier answers, we want to make sure that we continue to benefit from those skills, and I think Europe and the rest of the world will want to. That is why we will continue to negotiate as we are.

Small Business Commissioner (Scope and Scheme) Regulations 2017

Debate between Lord Henley and Lord Jones

Wednesday 6th December 2017 Grand Committee

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (Lord Henley) (Con)]

My Lords, the purpose of the statutory instrument before us today is to establish further detail about the Small Business Commissioner’s complaints scheme, as well as which small businesses qualify to use the complaints service.

Late payment remains a significant issue in the United Kingdom. According to data on business population estimates published by my department in October 2016, 99.3% of the 5.5 million private sector businesses were small businesses and 99.9% were small or medium-sized businesses.

Latest BACS Direct Credit figures report that the overall level of late-payment debt owed to small and medium-sized businesses stands at £14.2 billion. This is completely unacceptable for the small and medium business sector in the UK, which we all rely on for jobs, goods and services. There is no place for this sort of unfair payment culture in a well-functioning economy.

Provisions in the Enterprise Act 2016 established the Small Business Commissioner. I take this opportunity to welcome Mr Paul Uppal into the role as the United Kingdom’s first Small Business Commissioner, following the announcement of his appointment by my right honourable friend in another place the Secretary of State, Greg Clark, on 2 October this year.

Mr Uppal’s role will be crucial in supporting small businesses to resolve payment disputes with larger businesses and will help drive a culture change in payment practices and how businesses deal with each other. The commissioner will provide general advice and information to small businesses, delivered through the commissioner’s website, signposting businesses to existing support and dispute resolution services.

The website has been specifically developed so it is fit for purpose. My department has received positive feedback that it meets an information and service need currently not met. I can report that development work on the website was completed yesterday and the website will be launched alongside the rest of the Small Business Commissioner’s service before the end of this calendar year, subject to the proceedings before us today. Since the debate in another place on 21 November, the Small Business Commissioner and his team have also begun their programme of stakeholder engagement and have begun recruiting additional staff who will provide support on complaints casework.

The commissioner will be able to consider complaints from small business suppliers about payment issues with their larger business clients and make relevant recommendations. We are aware that small businesses may refrain from making a payment-issue complaint about a larger business for fear of it being detrimental to their relationship—for example, resulting in a threat to terminate their contract or similar bully-boy tactics. The regulations therefore ensure that the commissioner is not required to name the complainant to the respondent. They also allow the commissioner to disapply the condition that the small business making the complaint must talk to the larger business about the complaint before coming to the commissioner, where the commissioner considers that to do so would have a significant detrimental effect on the commercial interests of the small business making the complaint. The Act makes it clear that, in any report on complaints, the commissioner cannot name the complainant unless the complainant agrees to being named.

The commissioner can accept and consider complaints that relate to matters which occurred in the period between 6 April 2017 and the formal launch of the complaints service, as well as those relating to matters occurring after the launch date. This broadens access to the complaints service and will help the Small Business Commissioner gain impetus as soon as the office is officially open for business. The complaints service will launch as soon as possible following Parliament’s approval of these regulations, as has already happened in another place.

The Enterprise Act 2016 sets out the broad framework for the Small Business Commissioner. These measures apply to the whole United Kingdom. These regulations provide further detail about what a small business is for the purposes of qualifying for the commissioner’s services, including the complaints service. The regulations also provide further detail about the complaints scheme itself.

The regulations set out that a business must have a headcount of fewer than 50 staff on one of the assessment dates or during one of the assessment periods to qualify to use the commissioner’s services. They also set out the requirements that must be met before presenting a complaint; the requirements as to the form and content of the complaint; and the time limit for presenting a complaint, and the power of the commissioner to fix and extend time limits and to dismiss complaints. They also set out the matters that the commissioner must take into consideration when determining whether an act or an omission complained about was fair and reasonable, and the factors to be taken into account when deciding whether to identify a respondent in any report of any complaint.

My department consulted on how the Small Business Commissioner would handle complaints between 13 October 2016 and 7 December 2016, and published draft regulations in February this year. We understand that the key message from respondents to the consultation was that the regulations should be simple so that the Small Business Commissioner’s services are as efficient and effective as possible.

The regulations before us will enable the Small Business Commissioner to accept complaints on payment matters from small business suppliers about their larger clients. This is an important part of the Small Business Commissioner’s role in supporting small business. I commend these regulations to the Committee and I beg to move.

[Lord Jones (Lab)]

My Lords, I thank the Minister for his pithy introduction. The regulations surely have to be welcomed. It must be good news to many thousands of SMEs. I refer to the register of interests: I am president of Flintshire Business Week and Deeside Business Forum, which sits across the England/Wales border and has some 9,000 jobs. It is based at Deeside Industrial Park, which has 260 companies at least, most of which are SMEs. There is considerable interest from companies such as these in the regulations. Do we yet have a commissioner’s name in mind? Who shall choose? Shall it be salaried? What salary might it be?