First of all, I thank the Minister for her explanation of this SI. I struggled to understand it, and I suppose it must be of some comfort to know that at least one Member of your Lordships’ House—namely, the Minister—does understand it. Basically, as the Explanatory Memorandum says, EU law,
“sets out the baseline aviation security standards”,
applicable in the UK. As I understand it, the purpose of the SI in front of us is to ensure that,
“the legal framework has the same practical effect”,
after we have left the European Union. It says:
“Regulation 300/2008 and a number of the related EU instruments are being retained in United Kingdom law by virtue of the Withdrawal Act”.
Consequently, the instrument,
“keeps the effect of the regulatory framework the same in practice”.
I too have a number of questions, and I have to say they are suspiciously similar to those that the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, has already asked. I too refer to paragraph 6.4 and raise the same point that the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, raised. It says:
“In doing so, this instrument makes provision in relation to powers in Regulation 300/2008 (e.g. to amend detailed aviation security requirements) so as to confer these powers on the Secretary
of State. In certain cases, the exercise of these powers is subject to the affirmative resolution procedure where it is considered that greater Parliamentary scrutiny is appropriate”.
So we are talking about something of some significance: detailed aviation security requirements. Like the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, I would like to know how the decision will be made as to whether it should be the affirmative resolution procedure or the negative procedure. Perhaps the Minister could give some examples of amendments to detailed aviation security requirements that might be made under the terms of Regulation 300/2008 and that would go through the process and the procedure mentioned in paragraph 6.4, so that we can get some feel for the kinds of matters that we as Parliament might be being asked to agree to or accept.
I too refer to paragraph 6.6, which contains this reference to “Commission Decision C(2015) 8005”. I think we get some assistance earlier on in the document in finding out the purpose of this decision. It says in paragraph 2.4 that the contents,
“are not published, by virtue of provision in Article 18 of Regulation 300/2008”.
It then states:
“The Decision prescribes detailed requirements which correspond to the detailed requirements set out in Regulation 2015/1998 but which, if published, would compromise the efficacy of the security measures applied at airports (e.g. the detailed specification of screening equipment or the minimum percentage of passengers required to undergo a particular form of screening)”.
As has already been said, we are told that the decision will therefore not be published on exit day in accordance with paragraph 1 of Schedule 5 to the withdrawal Act, and for this reason cannot be the subject of provision made under Section 8 of that Act.
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I was going to ask what would happen then, as Section 8 removes deficiencies in retained EU law and so ensures that legislation is operable in the UK. However, as I understand what the Minister has said, changes—presumably we are talking about amendments to these security arrangements—will be imposed by direction from the Secretary of State. It would be helpful if the Minister could confirm what I think she has already said: that those directions will not be published. The traveling public will not know what they are and, as I think she said, it will be done on what is euphemistically known as a need-to-know basis. If that is the case, how will we know—and how can the Secretary of State be held to account—that appropriate amendments to airport security arrangements have been made? How will we know if he has covered the right issues? How will we know if the changes he has put forward are appropriate? On the face of it, it seems that there is no way in which the Secretary of State can be accountable for what he or she is doing. Perhaps the Minister could comment on whether that is the effect of the arrangements as set out in this SI.
Paragraph 7.2 goes on to talk about the Aviation Security Act and the provision that relates to Commission inspections. It says:
“Normally, two United Kingdom airports a year are subject to such inspections, and the United Kingdom ‘Appropriate Authority’ (the Secretary of State, assisted by the Civil Aviation Authority) is inspected once every three years. These inspections will not take place after exit day, since the United Kingdom will no longer be part of the EU”.
If at the current time the Secretary of State, assisted by the Civil Aviation Authority, is inspected once every three years, who will inspect the Secretary of State and the Civil Aviation Authority in future? As far as I can make out, this document seems remarkably silent on that question. I invite the Minister to fill in what appears to be a gap, or, if it is not a gap, to point out to me where it sets out what the future arrangements will be for inspecting the Secretary of State and the CAA.
Moving on, paragraph 7.3(b) says:
“Regulation 8 amends Article 4 so as to replace legislative powers exercisable by the Commission with regulation making powers exercisable by the Secretary of State in respect of the basic standards of aviation security and to set criteria to permit derogation from these standards and adopt alternative measures”.
Am I right in thinking that this is a new power for the Secretary of State to permit derogation from the standards? Do we have any derogations at present? Have we been trying to get any derogations to date but have failed to do so, which presumably we might be able to achieve once the Secretary of State is making the decisions on derogations?
Paragraph 7.3(c) says:
“Regulation 9 amends Article 5 so as to transfer powers to the Secretary of State to determine the responsibility for covering the costs of aviation security functions”.
I appreciate that I ought to know the answer to this, but will the Minister explain where these powers are being transferred from—the Commission or somewhere else? What is this power and who has responsibility at present for covering the cost of aviation security functions in the UK, bearing in mind that the Secretary of State will determine that responsibility in future?
I will not repeat the question asked about paragraph 7.3(h), which relates to operating licences. However, I too am extremely interested to know what the answer is.
Paragraph 7.3(i) comments that:
“Regulation 18 amends Article 15 so as to transfer responsibility for airport inspections to the Secretary of State”.
I take it this means transferring it from the Commission. Has the Commission ever found fault during any airport inspections so far, or do we have a 100% record in that regard?
Moving on, paragraph 7.8(f), at the bottom of page 7, says:
“Chapter 6 (see regulations 59 to 120)”—
which is an awful lot to have to wade through—
“is amended to introduce the concept of UK-ACC3 to replace the existing EU wide ACC3 scheme”.
As I understand it, ACC3 stands for an air cargo carrier from a third country. Over the page, it goes on to say:
“To minimise any disruption or additional burden on industry, on the first day after the United Kingdom leaves the EU UK-ACC3, RA3, or KC3 designations will be issued to all carriers who currently hold an EU ACC3 designation and fly cargo into the United Kingdom, and their supply chains”.
Can I take it from that, and if I have understood correctly what this is trying to say, that exactly the same standards will be applied under UK ACC3 as apply at present under EU ACC3?
Paragraph 7.8(i) says that in chapter 11,
“the provision for the mutual recognition”—
an issue we discussed earlier for operation licences—
“between Member States of training competences is omitted”.
What is the impact of this and what replaces it? From reading it, I have not been able to make up my own mind as to what exactly the impact will be and whether anything is there to replace it when reference is made to the omission of training competences.
Finally, the Minister will not be in the slightest bit surprised that I am asking this. On the consultation outcome, a number of bodies are referred to. Are the trade unions represented on any of the bodies that were consulted? If not, were the trade unions in the industry consulted at all in the consultation that took place in respect of this SI?