§ 7.15 p.m.
§ Lord Lucas rose to move, That the draft regulations laid before the House on 1st March be approved [13th Report from the Joint Committee].
§ The noble Lord said: My Lords, in moving these regulations, I shall speak also to the Electricity Supply Industry and Water Undertakers (Rateable Values) Amendment Order 1996.
1141§ I deal first with the electricity and water order. Rateable values of large public utilities are set by order by the Secretary of State. Nuclear Electric plc is to split on 31st March. The order before the House today takes the rateable value in England of Nuclear Electric plc and splits it. Only the value in England is being split by this order. That is because property occupied by Nuclear Electric plc in Wales is to remain with that company under its new name of Magnox Electric plc. The new values and the changes to the order have been fully discussed with the companies concerned, which agree with the changes that we are proposing.
§ The order also changes the rateable value of Bournemouth and West Hampshire Water. The change is the result of the company convincing us that we did not give it equity of treatment with other water companies in 1994. We failed to take full account of property that it had vacated. Again, the change has been agreed with the company.
§ I turn now to the second order. The chargeable amounts regulations do not make provision for splits of property which appear in the central rating lists and have values prescribed by the Secretary of State. The split of Nuclear Electric means that these regulations also need to be amended. The regulations before the House today make such provision. They also make further changes to the transitional arrangements applying to local list property; that is, property which is valued by the valuation officer rather than by the Secretary of State. Those changes rectify anomalies in the original regulations which, if uncorrected, would unfairly increase the future rates bills of some ratepayers.
§ These anomalies have yet to affect any ratepayer. The changes that we propose are entirely and unambiguously in ratepayers' favour. If pressed, I have with me a long and involved explanation of them all that I still find hard to understand having read it slowly several times over. I am of course prepared to read this explanation into the record, but I hope that any noble Lord whose curiosity is purely personal will have mercy on other noble Lords and on the servants of this House and will content himself with asking me to write him a letter. I beg to move.
§ Moved, That the draft regulations laid before the House on 1st March be approved [13th Report from the Joint Committee].—(Lord Lucas.)
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.