"Sea Empress" Inquiry: Report (Hansard, 26 February 1997)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Transport (Viscount Goschen)
My Lords, subject to the completion of the consultation process required by the accident investigation regulations, the chief inspector expects to submit his final report to the Secretary of State at the end of next month. The report will then be published as soon as possible thereafter.

§ Lord Clinton-Davis
My Lords, will the noble Viscount bear in mind that we have now had a number of versions from him and his colleagues about the date of publication? On 27th November, we were told that the report was supposed to be submitted in February. On 18th February, the Minister's colleague, Mr. Bowis, said in another place that it would be submitted in a month. But then on 25th February he said in Committee that he did not know when to expect the report to be published. Bearing in mind it is now over a year since that very serious accident occurred, are not Parliament and the country entitled to see the report, to measure its conclusions and to learn the lessons from it before the House is prorogued, which, one assumes, is likely to be round about the end of March?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I agree that it is important that the report is published as soon as possible. That has always been the Government's position and that remains our position. However, the independent investigation is being conducted by the marine accident investigation branch. It is not under the control of the department or Ministers. It is for the chief inspector to conduct the investigation and to come to his conclusions and at that point to follow the statutory process for consultation with those who are affected.
1185 Different estimates of when we expect the report to be published have been given, but I can only give the House the information that is currently available.

§ Lord Dean of Beswick
My Lords, whatever the conclusions of the report, does the Minister accept that what transcends anything else in the view of the people of the area is the question of who will meet the cost of the huge bill for that remedial treatment? Can the Minister give an undertaking now that the Government will ensure that none of the cost is forced on to the local authorities in the area and therefore on to the local people?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, as the noble Lord and the House will know, there is an international regime to cope with compensation for exactly such occurrences. I refer to the International Oil Pollution Compensation Fund. That fund has already paid out a considerable sum of money. I understand that it is currently in the region of £6 million. Claims are submitted to the fund which then evaluates their validity. At the moment, the fund is paying 75 per cent. of claims.

§ Lord Dean of Beswick
My Lords, will the Minister give the undertaking for which I asked? He has not yet given it.

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I have described the international regime which provides exactly the compensation the noble Lord seeks. It is the Government's view that the limit will not be breached and that all relevant and valid claims will be met by the fund.

§ Lord Hooson
My Lords, in reality is not the Minister telling the House that the report will not be published before the House is prorogued—that is, before the general election?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I have neither said one way nor the other. I do not know when the House will be prorogued so I cannot give the noble Lord or the House that information. Once the statutory processes are over and the chief inspector has submitted his report to the Secretary of State, we shall publish it as soon as possible thereafter. It is clearly in the Government's interest so to do—and in the interests of the wider maritime community.

§ Lord Parry
My Lords, does the Minister agree that the fouling of the haven (with which he is familiar, having been there and spent time there) is a very real and desperate tragedy, and that the time that it has taken to resolve some of these legal and legalistic problems only exacerbates the difficulties? That beautiful area of our land has some of the highest unemployment in the country. It is in the region of 33 per cent. in real terms. The area's basic economic survival now depends on people in both Britain and the world rapidly understanding that the area's tourism potential has not been permanently affected. We are all anxious to see the 1186 problems resolved and to be able to return to promoting Pembrokeshire, in all its beauty, as an attractive area for tourists.

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I agree with the noble Lord's concerns and the thrust of his remarks. The clean-up operation was extremely successful. Over 1,100 people worked on it, and the main amenity beaches were open by Easter 1996. I believe that the clean-up has been better than most people envisaged would be possible. Tremendous efforts have been made. I agree that the first priority now is to get the accident investigation completed and the report in the public domain so that we can learn its lessons as soon as possible. Secondly, we must make sure that we talk up the tourist potential of the very beautiful area the noble Lord described.

§ Lord Harmar-Nicholls
My Lords, but does not my noble friend recognise that whatever the conclusions of the report, the accident will cost somebody a lot of money and that that should not be the responsibility of the local authority? My noble friend said that other sources contribute, but he has not ruled out the possibility (under the laws that we have established) of making that the responsibility of the local authority. I do not think that it should be the local authority's responsibility.

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, local authorities have a significant role in this process. They are there on the scene, often with considerable expertise and assets at their disposal, to assist with the clean-up operation. I certainly commend the local authorities' work in this respect. They did not look for payment beforehand, but went straight ahead with the work in hand. They worked extremely hard and long hours in order to achieve the clean-up. However, as I have said, there is an international regime specifically to cater for exactly such expenses. After having performed an analysis of the total amounts that will be involved, it is the Government's view that all valid claims will be met and settled by the compensation fund.

§ Lord Clinton-Davis
But meanwhile, my Lords, is it not the case that the local authorities are bearing at least 25 per cent. of the financial cost? I hope that the Minister will convey to the chief inspector the disquiet that has been expressed in the House today about the urgency of the publication of the report. It should not simply be laid on the Minister's desk. Does not the Minister recognise that if there are criticisms—perhaps major criticisms—to be made of the Government's actions or inactions, it might not be in the interests of this Government to see the report published before the election?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I should think that I would be in the best position, as the Minister most directly involved, to say that the Government believe that the report should be published as soon as possible. We want to learn its lessons. It is an independent report. Ministers have not influenced—of course, we would not 1187 want to influence—the contents of that report. We want to see it in the public domain as soon as possible. However, statutory processes have to be followed to give those who are criticised in any way full opportunities to make sure that there is no injustice.

§ Lord Cledwyn of Penrhos
My Lords, what contribution will the owners of the "Sea Empress" make?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, the owners of the "Sea Empress" were insured and their insurers will pay the contributions up to the limit of the liability, as set out in international law, for the tonnage of the "Sea Empress".

§ Baroness Farrington of Ribbleton
My Lords, the Minister stated that the Government believe that the financial shortfall which is currently being borne by the local authorities will be met by the appropriate funds from outside. In the event that that is not the case, will the Minister give the House an assurance that those local authorities which acted immediately and without thought of the eventual cost—and have been praised by the Minister for that—are not left with the bill for any part of that operation?

§ Viscount Goschen
My Lords, I am not able to give that assurance; but I can repeat what I have said. We have looked carefully at the figures involved. Those figures are in the public domain. I shall be happy to write to the noble Baroness and provide detailed estimates of each category of claim: tourism, local authorities' preventive measures, and so on. We firmly believe that on the estimates that have been produced in the course of time the local authorities will be able to claim in full the costs that they have incurred. The Government have also incurred very substantial costs but they are prepared, as in the case of the incident involving the "Braer" to place their claim at the back of the queue.