"My Lords, I too welcome this 25-year plan for the environment. It is nothing if not ambitious. It is clearly a first step in making the country more liveable, both for us and for the plants and animals with which we share it and on which we depend. The plan …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"My Lords, I begin by declaring an interest in a company that designs and manufactures smart meters for gas, electricity and water; the amendment is about water.
I shall not rehearse the arguments about water metering, which were well aired in Committee. The present situation is clear: a householder who …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"My Lords, I thank the Government for their constructive response, and indeed for the clarification, which I think will be welcomed by many of the water undertakings that have expressed their concern about the present legislation and its lack of clarity. I would just comment that there is some concern, …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"My Lords, I have to confess that this is a part of the Bill that I have not followed particularly closely, but I have listened to the government and opposition arguments with great interest today and, indeed, have sympathy with both. I would just like to ask the Minister—..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"Thank you. The clarification that I seek is whether the Minister would be willing, when he brings back these amendments at Third Reading, to strengthen some of the words relating to consultation to something rather stronger and relating to an obligation...." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"My Lords, I have a question for the Minister in this general area. Does he feel that this proposed regulatory environment would cover cases in which fracking companies pipe sea-water on to land and then either dispose of it on land or, indeed, discharge it back into the sea? If …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"My Lords, I think that it depends almost exclusively on how that water has been treated by the company that has used it...." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"Before the Minister sits down, I hope he can help me with a small matter, which nevertheless would be significant for a minority. Given the duration of the scheme, there is likely to be a rebanding of council tax during that time. Somewhere it needs to be made explicit what …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech
"Amendment 161A scarcely needs any detailed discussion: we have spoken this afternoon on a number of occasions of the importance of getting information to people. Certainly, this was a plea that came to us through many of the verbal representations that we had when we saw various interested groups …..." Lord Oxburgh - View Speech