HL Deb 25 March 1996 vol 570 cc1560-4

8.34 p.m.

Lord Lucas rose to move, That the order laid before the House on 29th February be approved [I2th Report from the Joint Committee].

The noble Lord said: My Lords, this order prohibits all fishing activities in the area designated in it which are or may be affected by oil and other chemical pollutants as a result of the grounding of the oil tanker "Sea Empress". The order also prohibits the harvesting of edible seaweed—laver, dulse and caragheen—and a plant commonly known as samphire or glasswort. It is important that we are clear about the purpose of the order. It is made under the Food and Environment Protection Act 1985 and its purpose is to protect the consumer from potential danger from eating contaminated seafood.

I recognise that fishermen welcome the order because they believe that a statutory ban strengthens their case for compensation. But the legislation does not permit us to impose the order for that purpose and the extent of the area affected is dictated by the needs of consumer safety.

With that in mind, I am extremely grateful to the local fishermen for their responsible attitude in imposing a voluntary ban on fishing as soon as the incident occurred. That gave us the time to designate the area on the basis of scientific analysis of samples of fish and shellfish from the area and on computer modelling of the likely spread of the oil. Had we not been given that time for study and analysis, the area of the ban would have been much more indiscriminate. The designated area covers about 810 square miles and extends from St David's Head to Port Eynon Point.

Your Lordships may also be aware that we made a separate order on 20th March banning fishing for salmon and migratory trout in all rivers discharging into the area. It proved too complicated to negotiate a voluntary ban and consumer safety demands that we ensure that no contaminated fish enter the food chain. That order will be debated in this House on a later occasion.

We are continuing to monitor levels of hydrocarbons in fish and shellfish both inside and outside the area of the current ban. The analysis of total hydrocarbons is being undertaken by the Directorate of Fisheries Research at Burnham on Crouch. It is using samples collected under the guidance of the Sea Fisheries Inspectorate at Milford Haven.

The inspectors have been closely involved from the start, both in liaison with local fishermen on behalf of the Government and in the co-ordinated response to the incident by all agencies. I am grateful to them and to all those involved in the Joint Response Centre for their hard and effective work.

Enforcement of this order is being undertaken by environmental health officers from the local authorities, by the Milford Haven Port Health Authority and by officials of the South Wales Sea Fisheries Committee. All those have been issued with the appropriate authorisation to supplement the role of the Sea Fisheries Inspectorate. I pay tribute to their efficiency and willingness to undertake this work. We have also increased the number of surveillance flights over the affected area and sea fisheries protection vessels have increased the frequency of their visits.

Your Lordships will wish to know how long we expect the order to stay in place. I cannot yet answer that question. As I have said, we are continuing to monitor levels of contamination both inside and outside the area. We will use those results to determine whether the area should be amended or whether the ban should be lifted on certain species.

At present, levels of total hydrocarbons in fin-fish and crustacea are comparatively low. However, the water is cold and feeding activity is probably low. We need to check whether the levels rise as the water warms up. There also remains a possibility of further contamination from the large quantities of dispersed oil in the water column. In addition, the beached and landed oil is being remobilised. The order must remain in force until it is clear how these situations are developing. It seems likely, however, that it will be possible to lift the ban on fishing for fin-fish and crustacea first. We will have to consider whether that needs to be confined to specific areas in the light of the scientific analysis.

That analysis does not only include testing total hydrocarbons; we are also looking for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). That is a more complicated and time-consuming procedure, but as some of these substances are known or suspected human carcinogens, it is vital that we determine their concentrations before the ban is lifted.

I well recognise the effect that this ban is having on both commercial and leisure fishing. When the effect is fully known, the insurers of the "Sea Empress" and the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund will meet all valid claims for economic loss. Meanwhile the insurers are paying hardship cases immediately; I understand that cheques have already been issued to seven of the nine fishermen who have submitted claims. I am grateful to the insurers for their willingness to help in this way.

In the longer term, of course, we need to ensure that consumers are confident that fish from Wales is of high quality and good to eat. We will be exploring how to do that with the industry and with relevant promotion bodies.

The order is designed to ensure the safety of consumers. I appreciate that many leisure and sport fishermen return their catch to the sea and that it does not enter the human food chain. Nevertheless, I make no apology for our caution over this or over the order in general; we are not prepared to take risks with consumer safety. I beg to move.

Moved, That the order laid before the House on 29th February be approved.—[12th Report from the Joint Committee].—(Lord Lucas.)

Lord Williams of Mostyn

My Lords, I am grateful to the Minister for explaining the difficult circumstances which obtain. He has already answered some of the questions that I had intended to ask. The situation is disastrous, as he indicated. An area of no less than 810 square miles is subject to a prohibition order for an indefinite period.

One tends to forget the effect that the disaster has had on west Wales. The order extends the prohibition from St. David's in the west to the Gower Peninsula at Port Eynon Point. The loss affects not only sea fishermen—because the Minister mentioned consequential prohibitions on salmon and sewin fishing. For instance, the coracle fishermen in Carmarthen have had to stop. I endorse his comment that the fishermen have behaved with extraordinary fortitude and generosity of heart. However, I am bound to say that many of them believe that the Government might have reciprocated with a full public inquiry along the lines of that of the noble and learned Lord, Lord Donaldson, into the "Braer" disaster. It appears that the consequences of this catastrophe will be greater than those of the "Braer".

I was pleased to hear the Minister say that, with the assistance of his persuasive powers, the insurers have behaved in a more flexible way than many insurers behave. It is most heartening to hear that seven of the nine claims have already been paid. However, that is limited to fishermen. There will be a colossal knock-on effect on the tourist industry. Will those claims also be paid by the insurers? Has any estimate yet been put on the number of people who will be affected economically, either directly or indirectly? Has any estimate been made of the likely financial loss which will arise out of the imposition of this order? I understand that the Minister might legitimately say that it is too early to comment. However, I should like as much precision as he can give, not for my own specific purposes but because of the deep worries of many people I know in the area. I have known the area well for many years and I know that people are seriously worried about the future of their lives and their livelihoods in that beautiful part of Wales.

Of course, the order, or something like it, is necessary and there will be no objection from us. However, alas, one hears the clang of the stable door banging shut long after the horse has galloped away over the horizon.

Lord Lucas

My Lords, I am grateful for what thanks were contained in the noble Lord's remarks. I share the tributes that he paid to all those involved locally who have helped so much in making the best of a very unfortunate incident, to put it mildly. I can confirm that the compensation fund is open to those other than fishermen. Indeed, I believe that the first person to claim ran a windsurfing school. However, the immediate fund of £2 million is restricted to the hardship which people suffer rather than to the extent of their economic loss. As yet we have no current estimate of the eventual economic loss. We have yet to see the opening of the tourist season. It is confidently predicted that the beaches will be clear by Easter, but the effect of the scare on tourism has yet to be seen.

We hope that fishing will return to normal reasonably rapidly but, drawing analogies from the "Braer" disaster, the shellfish fisheries may be affected for many years. Shellfish do not metabolise hydrocarbons—they do not expel them from their bodies—and one must wait until the shellfish which have ingested them die.

There is nothing that I can add in answer to the noble Lord. I commend the order to the House.

Lord Williams of Mostyn

My Lords, before the Minister sits down, I am grateful for the assistance that he has given and I recognise that there are limits. However, he said that it was hoped that the beaches would be clear by Easter, which is only a couple of weeks away. I should declare a limited interest, having attempted to catch fish on the River Towy for some years. Is there any indication of when the river fishing might return to normal, including coracle fishing?

Lord Lucas

My Lords, in order to establish that the sewin and the salmon are not polluted we must first catch some. We are trying to do so through the use of established nets near the river mouths. As yet, none has been caught because the fish do not appear to have returned. It will be a matter of, it is to be hoped, as few weeks as possible before we can establish that they are free from pollution. We will then open the fisheries immediately.

Lord Williams of Mostyn

My Lords, I am grateful.

On Question, Motion agreed to.