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Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

That is a helpful intervention by the noble Lord, and I will certainly consider all those matters. I suspect that if we had had a clause that was highly restrictive of access to MMO research, amendments would have been tabled to free it up. My sense is that there is a broad consensus in your Lordships’ House that we want information made available wherever appropriate. We should remember that the information that the MMO produces, commissions or has made available to it will be of enormous benefit in a proper way to all those stakeholders who are interested in the marine environment. In the best sense, the more that high-quality research is commissioned and made available, the more it will add to people’s learning. Getting the balance right is a challenge, but this point has been well made in the debate. I am happy to go away and see if we can come back either with amendments or with further explanation of how this ought to be dealt with.