---

Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill [Lords]

It is certainly important that there should be an ongoing dialogue and that enforcing authorities can reflect their experience on the ground to the primary authority. I agree with the hon. Lady about that. She asked about exemptions, and if she will bear with me I shall come to them in a second. The approach taken in the amendments would remove the primary authority’s right to give a decisive view on whether the enforcing authority should be able to proceed with an enforcement action. For that reason, we are not minded to accept them today. However, exceptions, situations where the enforcing authority does not have time and urgent situations are covered in clause 29, which states that the requirement need not apply"““where the enforcement action is required urgently to avoid a significant risk of serious harm to human health or the environment…or the financial interests of consumers””" or where the application of clause 28, which the hon. Lady is trying to amend, ““would be wholly disproportionate””. Built into the Bill is the understanding that there are situations in which an enforcement action will have to take place and the urgency or seriousness of a situation might mean that checking with the primary authority is not possible. If there is a difficulty, the LBRO is there to act as arbitrator and to consider objections by enforcing authorities. That is set out in schedule 4, which the hon. Lady also wants to amend. This is not about every enforcement action but whether an enforcement action is consistent with the advice issued by the primary authority. I can see that the hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford is eager to rise to his feet again, so I shall give way to him.