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Ms Hewitt: These amendments are technical and amplify the power contained in clause 8. Amendment No. 15 is intended to ensure that the clause works in the same way when an order facilitates electronic communication as when it authorises such communication. The clause 8 power can operate on both primary and secondary legislation. Amendment No. 16 makes it clear that clause 8 could also operate by modifying a power to make secondary legislation.
I commend the amendments to the House.
Mr. Allan: Again, I welcome the amendments. The Minister will be aware that in Committee hon. Members on both sides--including Labour Back Benchers, who made some important contributions--strongly expressed the view that the clause 8 powers should be put in place as swiftly and effectively as possible to facilitate the Government moving towards the use of electronic communications and storage of data. Clearly, the Government took that feeling on board and are trying to do so.
We welcome the fact that the amendments would facilitate that process and would enable the Government not to find unnecessary blocks further down the road to moving from traditional paper-based methods to electronic methods. In that context, the Liberal Democrats certainly see the amendments as an important addition to the clause. However, I reiterate our desire for the Government to move ahead with clause 8 powers as quickly as they can once the Bill becomes law.
Lords amendment No.16 agreed to.
Clause 9
Lords amendment: No. 17, in page 9, line 6, at end insert--
("and section (Modifications in relation to Welsh matters)(1)")
Ms Hewitt: I beg to move, That this House agrees with the Lords in the said amendment.
Madam Speaker: With this it will be convenient to discuss Lords amendments Nos. 18 to 21.
Ms Hewitt: This group of amendments is designed to ensure that the National Assembly for Wales can exercise the order-making power in clause 8 to authorise or facilitate electronic communications for functions that are exercisable by the Assembly.
Clause 9 (7) already gives powers to Scottish Ministers. I trust that hon. Members on both sides of the House will want consistency in the application of devolution. The amendments would give effect to that principle. Therefore, I commend them to the House.
Mr. Allan: Again, we welcome the amendments. On a small note of concern, however, let me say that the Minister will know that we are fully in favour of the devolution process that has taken place and see an important role for the National Assembly for Wales, but the trend seems to be for Welsh provisions to be tacked on to legislation late on. A similar process happened with the Learning and Skills Bill when systems that would put in place a comparable system to those in the Bill for England were added on later.
We are concerned that we did not see the comparable provisions for Wales in this Bill until this week, late in its passage through another place. I understand that that may be because of the time required to consult with Members of the Welsh Assembly and we certainly want consultation to take place in that way. Members of the Welsh Assembly should have a good look at the proposals before they are put on the amendment paper here. However, I should be interested to know if there are particular reasons why the Minister could not produce the amendments when the Bill was passing through its major stages in this House. Why did we have to wait until the Bill went to another place to see the Welsh provisions? It should have been fairly obvious at an early stage that they were necessary.
Lords amendments Nos. 18 to 21 agreed to.
Adjournment (Whitsun)
Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House do now adjourn.--[Mr. Pope.]
1.30 pm
Mr. Gareth R. Thomas (Harrow, West): I am grateful for the opportunity to speak in the debate. I was lucky enough to be one of the first Members to take part in the NCVO--National Council for Voluntary Organisations--secondment scheme, which mirrors the work of the Industry and Parliament Trust. As part of my stint, I spent two days with Alcohol Concern, including visiting alcohol misuse counselling services in my constituency. It became clear to me that we urgently need a strategy to deal with alcohol misuse.
I know that the Government are very committed to such a strategy, but I hope that my hon. Friend the Parliamentary Secretary, Privy Council Office will impress on Ministers at the Department of Health the urgency of the matter. If we are serious about wanting to improve our public health, we must tackle alcohol misuse. It crops up in many places--either as a direct cause of ill health or as a key contributory factor.
The impact of alcohol misuse on the national health service and on the family is well known; it also affects teenage pregnancy statistics and vulnerable people. The effects can be seen in exclusions from schools and in social exclusion in the wider sense. The impact is felt in the workplace and in accidents and crime. One in six people attend accident and emergency units as a result of alcohol-related incidents or problems. About 31,300 hospital admissions are due to alcohol dependence syndrome; there is a huge impact on the NHS.
In relation to families, between 60 and 70 per cent. of men who are convicted for assault on their partner committed the assault while under the influence of alcohol. Heavy drinking by parents is a factor in more than 50 per cent. of child protection case conferences. It clearly has a powerful impact in cases of child abuse.
Alcohol misuse affects the vulnerable. About 65 per cent. of suicide attempts are linked to excessive drinking. There are implications for pregnancy--especially teenage pregnancy. About one in five men and one in six women admit to having unsafe sex after drinking too much. That is another strong reason for the urgent introduction of a strategy to deal with alcohol misuse.
It is surely tragedy enough that 11 to 15-year-olds are drinking, but the mean weekly consumption of alcohol among that group rose from about 5.3 units in 1990 to 9.9 units in 1998. About 20 per cent. of excluded pupils were suspended for drinking at school.
Between 20 and 30 per cent. of all accidents are alcohol related; 15 per cent. of drownings and about 39 per cent. of deaths from fire are linked to alcohol. Another alarming statistic is that about 50 per cent. of rough sleepers are alcohol dependent.
I know that the Government are committed to a strategy to deal with alcohol misuse. I hope that my hon. Friend the Minister will apply some gentle pressure in the way that only he can do to ensure that the strategy is brought forward as a matter of urgency.
I want briefly to raise two other key issues. The first is the siting of mobile phone masts, an issue that is of great concern in my constituency. I praise Harrow council for
the way in which it has sought to ensure that all mobile phone mast applications are carefully considered. Many residents in Salisbury road in the Headstone South ward of my constituency have argued vociferously against the planned siting of a mobile phone mast close to their homes, and the Montesole Court residents have liaised with me about a particular aspect of the process by which mobile phone mast applications are considered. Members of the Pinner Green residents association are also greatly concerned about an application for a mast to be located in their area.As a matter of urgency, we need to implement the recommendations of the Stewart inquiry. Members on both sides of the House will be frustrated on occasions by the fact that they cannot stop or overturn decisions to grant planning permission to such masts. I share that frustration given the number of masts that have been sited in my constituency. Rather than assuming that the masts are a good thing, we need to ensure that full and proper consideration is given to the siting of the masts through the normal planning process. When permission has been granted for a mast, we should consider whether residents should not be able to appeal against the decision that has been made.
I hope that my hon. Friend the Minister will stress to the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions the need for one of the recommendations of the Stewart inquiry to be implemented. It concluded that, for all base stations including those with masts under 15 m, permitted development rights should be revoked and that the siting of all new base stations should be subject to the normal planning process. I hope that that point will be identified as a matter for the immediate attention of planning Ministers.
The final issue that I want to raise is the need for Ministers to encourage the promotion of corporate social and environmental responsibility. In that context, I praise the Co-operative bank, which won an award--the first such award--on the 4 May for the quality of its social reporting. The award was presented by my hon. Friend the Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs and the bank summed the issue up nicely when it said:
- A social reporting award for the UK is long overdue--the process of producing a "warts and all" report can at times be a painful experience, particularly when competitors produce glossy PR brochures which focus on style over substance.
With those few remarks on three entirely different subjects, I hope that my hon. Friend the Minister will be able to encourage action by the Ministers responsible for the issues that I have described.
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