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Merchant Shipping (Pollution) Bill [Lords]

I will indeed confirm that in my winding-up speech, but I understand that we do not have a veto. However, it is the normal practice that we work closely with the other states and try to achieve a consensual way forward. It is usually possible to achieve that. Unfortunately, the compensation available—£168 million—is not always sufficient. Under the system, full payment for claims has often been delayed until the full extent of the damage is known and the final costs of an incident can be assessed more accurately, a process that can take a number of years. We experienced such delays following both the Braer and the Sea Empress incidents. In the case of the worst incidents, when total costs exceed the amount of compensation available under the system, claimants may never receive full payment. The total cost of the 2002 Prestige incident, which affected Spanish, French and Portuguese coasts, far exceeds the limit of the basic regime, and it is expected that victims will never receive more than 30 per cent. of their claims. The membership of the international regime agreed that it was necessary to address that fundamental shortcoming and the supplementary fund protocol was developed.