Speeches by Farron.

“I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. In my first speech of what I suspect will be our last sitting—we will see—let me thank you, Dr Huq, and every member of the Committee. It is no fault of anyone here, but I think these Committees are something of a charade. There was a brief time under the Theresa Ma…”

“We pushed the Minister earlier on the Cunliffe review. I thought it had been explicitly stated that ownership was off the table for that review. By talking about mutuals being a potential outcome, is the Minister saying that what is actually off the table is full-scale nationalisation, but that mutualisation, public be…”

“Holiday lets play an important part in the tourism economy; 20 million people visit the lakes every year, and they need somewhere to stay. Having said that, in the last five years especially, we have seen a gobbling-up of the long-term private rented sector and local people forced out by a massive growth in short-term …”

“I am grateful for that well-informed and thoughtful intervention. The hon. Member is absolutely right: that is what we should do. To be reasonable, we want people who understand the industry working for the regulators. We understand why there could be a benign reason for what is happening, but nevertheless, we trace it…”

“I will say a brief word on the new clause. This is important, and I would like to add to the detail that my hon. Friend the Member for Witney has set out. Essentially, we have two problems here, one of which is that water companies are not statutory consultees, and they should be. I take the point that it could be more…”

“We are not going to push this to a vote. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion. Clause, by leave, withdrawn.”

“That is an excellent point, and if I was pushing the new clause to a vote, that might make me think twice. I am not the only person who has done this, but I have spoken at length on this issue, not just during this Committee, to make the point that we understand that this is a heated debate, which at times has become q…”

“I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion. Clause, by leave, withdrawn. New Clause 35 Companies to be placed in special measures for missing pollution targets “In section 2 of the Water Industry Act 1991, after subsection (2D) insert— ‘(2DZA) For the purposes of ensuring that the functions of water and sewerage underta…”

“Holiday lets play an important part in the tourism economy; 20 million people visit the lakes every year, and they need somewhere to stay. Having said that, in the last five years especially, we have seen a gobbling-up of the long-term private rented sector and local people forced out by a massive growth in short-term …”

“I thank the hon. Member for the intervention; I am sure that is the case, and the two are not mutually exclusive. I want to see houses built. The great frustration in our communities in the lakes and dales and just outside is that we desperately need homes that are affordable, and we want homes to be zero carbon. We wa…”

“I confess that all of us in Westmorland and across rural Britain feel a sense of terror at this news, as we recall the devastation and horror of the 2001 outbreak. I will never forget the looming sense of dread and threat as the disease got closer to our farms, or the dread when the disease was diagnosed and whole herd…”

“It is a genuine pleasure to serve under your stewardship, Mr Dowd. I pay tribute to the hon. Member for Monmouthshire (Catherine Fookes), who made a great speech, and has introduced this important issue to this place this morning. I pay tribute to all Members who made remarks during this debate, including, of course, t…”

“In-depth analysis is not going to tell us anything other than that there is massive inconsistency across the country. Of course, WaterSure provides benefits, but it is different depending on where someone lives. The benefits received by someone living in a Yorkshire Water area, United Utilities or Northumbrian Water ar…”

“I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. The new clause is similar in scope to the last one, and I do not want to detain the Committee long. The clause refers to the duties of the water regulator under the Water Industry Act 1991, and lists duties against which the regulator would be able to mark water com…”

“I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time. The Environment Agency will have more powers as a consequence of the Bill. There will be greater regulation and there will be an impact on the Environment Agency as an organisation. It is my privilege to represent large chunks of the English Lake district. We have a…”

“I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.”

“New clause 12 is a short, and I hope consensual, measure relating to chalk streams, which we have already discussed, and new clause 27 deals more widely with the powers of national parks. Some 85% of all the chalk streams on planet Earth are in the south of England. The impact that that has on the biodiversity of this …”

“The hon. Member makes a very good point, and we will later come to a new clause that we tabled about planning, because undoubtedly development and industrial activity also have an impact. However, this goes back to my original comment about the importance of singularity in regulation; while we recognise that the water …”

“I do not think it is unrealistic—we need to be ambitious—but I absolutely accept that there are multiple sources of pollution. I promise to be brief in talking about my patch, which is not of interest to everybody. It is key to point out that pollution in Windermere generally comes from three sources. It is true that a…”

“In short, I am happy not to push new clause 12 to a vote now, nor will I seek to push new clause 27 to a vote when we get to that stage. I beg to ask leave to withdraw the motion. Clause, by leave, withdrawn. New Clause 13 Guidance on poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances “After section 86ZA of the Water Industry A…”