---

Broads Authority Bill

My Lords, on behalf of the whole House I thank my noble friend. I was slightly alarmed when the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, teased me about the "Heigham" in the title. I can assure him that if it had been Potter Heigham I would probably have had a non-financial interest to declare, as opposed to the fact that it is the title of a ward that I represented in my city for some 20 or 25 years. Two points of substance have come out. The first is on the democratic deficit. The second is on the safety issues and therefore whether a Bill as such was necessary. I know that Bill does not go as far on the democratic deficit as many members of Your Lordships’ House would like. However, today we have found a way forward, as possibly an interim measure, to beef up the voice of local interests and to make sure they are adequately, thoroughly and properly heard by the Broads Authority. We now send this back to the Broads Authority with the clear views of the House expressed on that matter. The noble Lord, Lord Glenarthur, raised the issue of safety. He suggested that this could be done by by-laws and, if so, the Bill would not be necessary and therefore a lot of time and expense had been wasted. I do not believe that to be the case. Compulsory third-party insurance for boats, water skiing management, hire boat licensing, to take just three items which are essential for the safety of inexperienced users of the Broads, cannot be done by by-laws. They have to be done by this Bill. That seems to be an unanswerable argument. Like my noble friend, I should like to thank all those who have taken part in proceedings on the Bill—the right reverend Prelate the Bishop of Norwich, who is sadly missed today, and the members of the Private Bill Committee, represented here by the noble Lord, Lord Trimble, and whose proceedings I have read with admiration as they patiently interrogated and cross-questioned and made sure they understood with perfect clarity the points being raised. I should like also to thank the speakers today, many of whom—I think at least four of us—were personally involved in developing the Broads Authority in the 1980s. I think we are delighted to see what has happened since then. Finally, I say to the Broads Authority and its members and officers that they know as well as anyone in this House that they have a precious landscape in trust. I am confident that it is not only safe in their hands, but with the strength of this Bill behind it, they will continue to enhance it for the enjoyment of us all. Bill passed and returned to the Commons with amendments.