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Merchant Shipping Pollution Bill [HL]

In short, so far as concerns the supplementary fund, Parliament will be consulted through negative resolution. So far as future commitments are concerned, whole or part, it will be through affirmative resolution. So it will be through secondary legislation and affirmative resolution. I remind the Committee that this is a very narrow provision which may be used only to give effect to an international agreement relating to compensation for oil pollution provided that such an agreement modifies or replaces one of the instruments to which the UK is already a party or the Supplementary Fund Protocol. An Order in Council made under this provision must be laid before and approved by a resolution of each House. It will allow Parliament the opportunity rigorously to scrutinise any such legislation before it comes into effect, which I believe is the noble Lord’s concern. The noble Lord, Lord Hanningfield, referred to the Explanatory Notes. They will be amended. We agree that they are not as clear as they might be. The noble Lord asked about government amendments to make subordinate legislation in relation to the fund subject to the negative resolution procedure and about the limits being changed. The last time the limits were changed was in 2003. That perhaps gives some idea of the amount of time it will take before we are called upon to consider the limits. With that explanation, I hope that the noble Lord will withdraw his amendment.