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Flood and Water Management Bill

My Lords, I am eager to take on any responsibility as a Minister, but explaining to the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, what the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, means is not my function. As long as I understand what the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, is saying, that will have to do. The noble Lord, Lord Taylor, will have to get his enlightenment elsewhere. Of course we thought about this seriously. After all, it is one of the crucial definitions with regard to the Bill. We have defined it as, ""all water which is below the surface of the ground and in direct contact with the ground or subsoil"." That reinforces what the noble Lord, Lord Taylor, understood to be the definition of groundwater. This is a wider definition than that in the water framework directive, and does not only relate to water in the saturation zone of the soil. We think we have the correct definition. We are not sure that Amendment 7 would improve it. In fact, my note says that it might add confusion. I say to the noble Lord, Lord Greaves, that if he has confused the leading opposition spokesman, I am right in my prediction. I am also right in saying that I want the noble Lord to withdraw the amendment.