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Marine and Coastal Access Bill [HL]

My Lords, I thank all noble Lords who have spoken for the generally warm welcome that they gave to this group of amendments. I am also very grateful for their generous comments about the officials working on the team. They very much appreciate those comments, which I of course endorse. The noble Lord, Lord Eden of Winton, spoke passionately on these matters, particularly in Committee. He still has one or two concerns but I think that we have gone as far as we can to reassure about our commitment to MCZs and to ecologically coherent networks. I think that he is right about flexibility. The construct of the Bill as it now stands allows flexibility for adjustments to be made as we gain more experience and as more scientific knowledge becomes available. I agree with him about monitoring, which is very important indeed, and it will be important that the regulatory authorities can respond quickly and effectively in the light of that monitoring. I absolutely endorse that. We will ensure that the spirit of that is conveyed to those who will have the very grave responsibility of taking these matters forward in future. Amendment 11 agreed.