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UTILITY WEEK | 7TH - 13TH OCTOBER 2016 | 11 Policy & Regulation Policy & Regulation "Our departure from the EU means we can develop policies that are tailored to our most precious habitats and wildlife – not a one-size-fits-all approach." Environment secretary Andrea Leadsom OVERHEARD AT THE CONFERENCE… ● "I try and stay as close as I can as I don't fancy running a gauntlet of eggs." – A party member on protesters and choosing conference accommoda- tion. ● "These seats are so close together. They're really trying to pack us in." – The cosy nature of a fringe event doesn't please everyone. ● "I've heard the new [BEIS] department is said 'Bays' but also 'Bees'. One thing I hope to get from conference is what to call it for certain." – Tax Payers Alliance chief executive John O'Connell, chairing fringe event. ● "We're meant to be in contact with nature, that's why being kept in a dark room without sight of the sky is considered torture - like here!" – A party member shares a joke at an environmental fringe event. 1 What role do you see for markets within the wholesale and retail utility arenas? With markets, we talk about com- petition and we talk about innova- tion. Innovation needs to benefit consumers, whether its new prod- ucts, services or competitive prices. However, there are some sectors, and the retail energy market is one, in which the vigour of competition in not always sufficient. A troubling development is that the most loyal customers have lost out from the best value deals available and that undermines con- fidence. We are troubled and intend to act to deal with this problem as we see it – people who are loyal are punished for that loyalty. Greg Clark, business and energy secretary 2 What steps should the government take to help protect energy and water customers? In the energy market we have had the Competition and Markets Authority review and it has made a whole series of recommendations. I don't really think there is an issue at the moment around that. Those things need to be pursued and then we will see where we get to. It is a case of not second guessing a pro- cess that is already in place. There may be more that can be done and then we will review it. Afterwards, there could be some more things that can be done, and if that is the case, we will do so. Jesse Norman, energy and industry minister 3 How will EU environmental and water quality regulations shape post-Brexit regulations in the UK? The prime minister has told us we will be effectively nationalising the acquis so there is continuity. We will be enshrining all the EU body of legislation into UK law, which is the quickest, easiest, but also the most smooth transition we could make. What this means is the day after we leave the EU the law still remains but they're UK laws not EU laws. Certainly there are things we will want to change and some quite significantly. But this isn't some revolution that will happen overnight or next year, but some- thing that will happen over time. Andrea Leadsom, environment secretary THREE KEY QUESTIONS From the floor Mathew Beech There's more to politics than Brexit, except for the fact that all anyone is really interested in is Brexit. In Birmingham, there was one word that reverberated around the confer- ence centre and which could not be escaped: Brexit. Despite Theresa May's insistence that the conference, and indeed the government, is about more than Brexit, it was the one thing that dominated. And many of the members were happy about it as well. May has made clear that "Brexit means Brexit", but what began to emerge is what this actually translates into for the UK. Initially, Brexit will mean nothing much in legislation terms. EU policies will just be copied and pasted into UK law. The nature of Brexit – whether Westminster burns its bridges with Brussels or continues to remain close to our continental cousins – is crucial. Party members prefer the harder edged solution, although those in government dismiss the option being a binary hard or so choice. However, May hinted that a hard exit is likely when she dismissed talk of a "trade-off " over immigration and trading with Europe. While this talk will please many Eurosceptic Tories, the Europhiles in the party remain concerned, and with May's honeymoon as the new leader and prime minister over, keeping all the dissenting voices and differing views on side will present a tough challenge. Just ask Jeremy Corbyn. KEY POINTS More than Brexit – prime minis- ter Theresa May before the confer- ence said she did not want it to be all about Brexit, as she sought to push forward domestic policies. All about Brexit – however, the conference has been dominated by Brexit and its impact on the UK. Hard or soft – the key question is whether the UK gets a soft Brexit, whereby close relationships with the EU are maintained, or a hard Brexit, with a more distant and removed relationship. May's keynote speech hinted that Brexit may be of the harder variety. Acquis – the immediate Brexit aftermath had its uncertainty re- moved as Theresa May stated that EU laws will be adopted by the UK, giving businesses, including utili- ties, some certainty. One size doesn't fit all – the in- dustrial strategy talk and the envi- ronmental protection talk revolved around specific deals and policies, not only for the UK outside the EU, but also for regions within the country. This will provide flexibility to build on each region's strengths and address their issues.