Contributions
2,186 recent contributions in Hansard
HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Eighth sitting)Amendment 4 is a minor change to clause 62(4), which sets out the requirements for the SAU’s report following post-award referral. The amendment ensures clarity and consistency…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Eighth sitting)Clause 61 sets out the process for the subsidy advice unit’s report following a post-award referral by the Secretary of State under clause 60. Amendment 58 provides for a new…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)Under the powers in the Bill as drafted, when the Secretary of State decides to exercise the call-in power, that direction has to be published. In addition, the SAU has to provide…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Eighth sitting)Clause 64 provides for a limited number of exemptions from some or all of the provisions on the referral of subsidies and schemes to the SAU. The objective of subsections 1 and 2…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)Yes, I can give the hon. Lady that assurance. Those schemes will be set out rigidly and subject to the affirmative procedure, so we can have parliamentary scrutiny, but none the…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)The clause requires that public authorities refer certain subsidies and subsidy schemes to the subsidy advice unit before they are given or made. Two types of subsidies or schemes…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)There is not going to be a rating, because the SAU is not a regulator or enforcer, but it is responsible for making sure that the situation is made as clear as possible so that…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)The meaning of the term “serious deficiencies” is intended to mirror the common understanding of those words, so we do not believe the requirement to define it further is…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)One of the problems is that, if we define it in the way I think the hon. Lady is after, we then lose some of the flexibility. I was just about to say that the exact situation will…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)Absolutely—that is exactly what I was going to come on to. The hon. Lady has obviously seen the next paragraph I was going to read. The Secretary of State would not be taking that…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)I think I get the general gist of where the hon. Lady is going with that point. That is why, rather than trying to define them as not complying, we are trying to define them…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)As I say, the Secretary of State will be acting on behalf of the UK Government. Subsidy control is a reserved power, as we established in the debate for the United Kingdom…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)Clause 55 gives the Secretary of State the ability to direct a public authority to request a report from the subsidy advice unit on a proposed subsidy or subsidy scheme. That may…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)We will hear the hon. Lady’s comments again. Question put and agreed to . Clause 55 accordingly ordered to stand part of the Bill . Clause 56 Voluntary referral to CMA Question…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)It is in the interests of the SAU and everybody else that this system works. If the quality of evidence that public authorities are giving is causing complexities, feedback to…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)It would be in both. That reporting is there to say what subsidies exist and how the framework is working, but those conversations would also be happening all the time through the…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)Clause 58 sets out what would happen if the subsidy advice unit agreed to report on a subsidy or scheme that has been voluntarily referred, and that subsidy or scheme is then…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Seventh sitting)The CMA is independent and will use its expertise. I think that we have crossed wires here, because actually the clause allows the Secretary of State to talk about the content of…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Eighth sitting)The amendment would extend the Secretary of State’s post-award referral power, set out in the clause, to the devolved Administrations. The debate is similar to one we had earlier.…04 Nov 2021HANSARDSubsidy Control Bill (Eighth sitting)Clause 60, as we have heard, provides a power for the Secretary of State to direct a public authority to refer a subsidy or scheme to the subsidy advice unit after it has been…04 Nov 2021