Mary Henry (Independent)

I move amendment No. 38:

In page 62, lines 20 and 21, to delete "or was not being complied with in any respect".

I did not table this amendment because I favour any disrespect for the licences people may hold, but because it is a serious issue for a company to be cited in the Environmental Protection Agency book as not having complied with its licence. Should we try to make more of an effort to distinguish between serious contraventions of a licence – such as emissions from a factory or unit – and those of a technical nature? Perhaps that is already the case and the EPA examines seriously the nature of a licence contravention. For example, if it was a requirement in a licence to take samples from a river on 14 days and they were only taken on 12, that would not be the same as causing a major fish kill. Are all offences treated equally or does the EPA make a distinction when writing its reports? It is damaging for companies to be mentioned as having been in breach of their licences. That is why I tabled the amendment.