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Road Safety Bill [HL]

My Lords, I am grateful to all noble Lords who have spoken in this debate. As has been recognised, the picnic areas provided for by the Bill are additional facilities and will be recognised as an advance. I take the anxieties of the noble Earl, Lord Attlee, on board. We need to improve facilities for truck drivers and others. That is part of the concept of the facilities, but he will recognise that our major concern is road safety. Drivers should have a decent place with limited facilities in which to pull off the road in safety and security while taking a necessary rest. These are picnic sites, not highway services. They are not a replica of facilities on the motorways but are very limited. Security is an important consideration and I recognise the point the noble Baroness, Lady Hanham, makes in that respect, but we believe that it can be covered by closed-circuit television and by people from the Highways Agency dropping in on sites as a regular part of their duties. The concept of these picnic areas is an advance on what we have at present and meets some of the points that the noble Earl, Lord Attlee, made. If these are probing amendments, I hope that I am being sufficiently probed that I give answers that reassure noble Lords. The problem with the amendments is that we do not think that the Secretary of State needs additional facilities. What is being sought here is picnic areas that will provide limited opportunities for rest. They will be an improvement on the very limited facilities that we have at the present time, to which the noble Earl, Lord Attlee, drew attention. We do not see these picnic areas having substantial facilities. They may have a snack bar provided by a private operator, the sort of thing that operates on truck stops up and down the country, but we are not seeking to create anything that looks remotely like a motorway service area. They will be a safe place for rest and recuperation and a break from driving a vehicle. Therefore, on security considerations, regular patrols by the Highways Agency will make sure that road traffic is moving smoothly. I recognise the anxiety about fly-tipping and the illicit transfer of goods and drugs, but we think that the closed circuit television that we will put on sites where we have anxieties will guard against them. On that basis I hope that noble Lords will recognise that we have thought through this issue of picnic areas. I do not think that a single voice has dissented from the concept. I hope that noble Lords will feel, therefore, that we have thought through the policy and that the amendment can safely be withdrawn.