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Welsh Zone (Boundaries and Transfer of Functions) Order 2010

My Lords, the draft order does two things. First, it sets out the boundaries of the Welsh zone. Secondly, it transfers the exercise of fisheries functions in that zone from Ministers of the Crown to Welsh Ministers. I will set out some background to the establishment of the zone before turning to the rationale for the change. The Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 amended the Government of Wales Act 2006 to include a definition of the Welsh zone and allow the transfer of ministerial functions connected to fisheries, fishing and fish health to Welsh Ministers in that part of the zone that is outside territorial sea limits. The 2006 Act, as amended, defines the Welsh zone as the sea adjacent to Wales which is, first, within British fishery limits, and, secondly, specified in an Order in Council under Section 58, or in an order under Section 158. This order is brought forward under Section 58 of the 2006 Act. The boundaries of the zone are defined in Article 3 and the co-ordinates in the Schedule to the order. To the north of Wales, points 1 to 8 in Part 1 of the schedule replicate the boundary between England and Wales in the Dee estuary by following the line that was defined in the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 1999. At the end of those points, the boundary follows a simplified median line between Wales and north-west England until it makes contact with the Isle of Man territorial sea at point 11. The Isle of Man territorial sea limit is then followed in a westerly direction until the point where contact is made with the boundary of the Northern Ireland zone. From that point, the boundary follows the Northern Ireland zone in a south-westerly direction until point 12, where the Northern Ireland zone meets the extent of British fishery limits. Similarly, the southern boundary of the Welsh zone begins by following the boundary between England and Wales in the Severn estuary and the Bristol Channel, along the line that was defined in the 1999 transfer of functions order. It then follows a simplified median line in a south-westerly, and then westerly, direction until the boundary reaches the extent of British fishery limits at point 22 of Part 2 of the Schedule. The western boundary of the zone is the British fishery limit. I draw the Committee’s attention to the fact that the Welsh zone includes both the territorial sea adjacent to Wales, out to 12 nautical miles, and the sea outside the territorial boundary but within the defined limits. Welsh Ministers already exercise fisheries functions within the boundary of the territorial sea, and this order merely extends the area in which they may exercise those functions to include the area of the Welsh zone outside the territorial sea—in other words, beyond 12 nautical miles. Functions that can be transferred to the Welsh Ministers by an Order in Council under Section 58 of the 2006 Act are, in that part of the zone beyond the territorial sea, limited by Section 58(1)(a) to functions connected with fishing, fisheries or fish health. The fisheries functions that are to transfer from Ministers of the Crown to the Welsh Ministers are listed in Article 4 of this order. The functions are to be vested in the Welsh Ministers on the same basis that they are exercisable by them at present in the territorial sea adjacent to Wales. The functions to be transferred include powers under the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967, the principal Act used for the regulation of commercial fishing throughout England and Wales. It includes the power to restrict fishing for sea fish, including regulating the fishery for a specific species at a specific time or a specific location, and regulating the size of the fish that can be caught or landed and the methods by which that fishing is undertaken. The Welsh Ministers will also be able, under the Fisheries Act 1981, to make provision for the enforcement of EU restrictions and obligations relating to sea fish. The duty on Welsh Ministers under the Sea Fisheries (Wildlife Conservation) Act 1992 to have regard to the conservation of marine flora and fauna in discharging functions under sea fisheries legislation will also be extended to cover the whole of the zone. While most functions are being transferred entirely to the Welsh Ministers, in cases where a function is at present exercisable by them concurrently with UK Ministers in the territorial sea, it will also be exercisable on a concurrent basis in the rest of the Welsh zone. These concurrent functions are listed in Article 5 and include further functions under the Sea Fish (Conservation) Act 1967 in relation to the licensing of fishing vessels. The concurrent nature of the UK licensing functions is central to the principles of a single UK fishing licence. Also included are powers under the Sea Fisheries Act 1968 to regulate the conduct of sea fishing operations with regard to the identification and marking of fishing boats, as well as functions under the British Fishing Boats Act 1983 relating to the qualification for British fishing boats to be used in fishing, trans-shipment and the landing of sea fish. I will now move briefly to the policy underpinning this order. Noble Lords might like to note that, as set out in the Explanatory Memorandum that accompanies the order, the Welsh Ministers’ overriding policy aim is to create viable and sustainable fisheries in the waters around Wales, as described in the Wales fisheries strategy. The creation of the zone will simplify the jurisdiction, better reflect practical realities and enable the more coherent management of fisheries off the Welsh coast. The vast majority of the Welsh fishing fleet operates within the zone, and its creation would put Wales on a similar footing to the other devolved Administrations, each of which already has a fisheries zone. I draw the Committee’s attention to the fact that Parliament has already agreed the principle of the Welsh zone by virtue of its inclusion in the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009. The order simply gives the zone practical effect. A further effect of establishing the zone is to define the boundaries of the Welsh offshore region, one of the eight marine planning regions in UK waters created by the Marine and Coastal Access Act. The Act provides for the Welsh Ministers to be the marine plan authorities for both the Welsh offshore and inshore regions, and to prepare marine plans for these regions. The Welsh offshore region would not be defined in the absence of this order. The draft order has already been approved by the Welsh Ministers, and I commend it to the Committee.