# The Planning (Inquiry Procedure) Rules (Northern Ireland) 2015, Article 6: Receipt of Statement of Case etc.


(1) The Department shall ensure that within—
(a) 6 weeks of the starting date, or
(b) where a pre-inquiry meeting is held pursuant to rule 5, 4 weeks of the conclusion of that pre-inquiry meeting,
2 copies of its statement of case have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission and a copy has been served on each statutory party.
(2) The Department shall—
(a) include in its statement of case details of the time and place where the opportunity to inspect and take copies described in paragraph (15) below shall be afforded including, in any case in which the Department relies on paragraph (16), the details mentioned in that paragraph; and
(b) where rule 4(2) applies, within the period specified in paragraph (1) send a copy of its statement of case to the person concerned.
(3) The applicant shall ensure that in any case where a pre-inquiry meeting is held pursuant to rule 5, 2 copies of his statement of case have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission and a copy of his open statement has been served on each statutory party.
(4) The inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send a copy of the Department’s statement of case to the applicant and a copy of the applicant’s statement of case to the Department.
(5) As soon as practicable, the applicant shall send to the Department and the Department shall send to the applicant a copy of any document, or of the relevant part of any document, referred to in the list of documents comprised in the other party’s statement of case, as may be required in writing by the other party.
(6) The inspector or planning appeals commission may in writing require a person, who has notified them of an intention or wish to appear at an inquiry, to send—
(a) 3 copies of that person’s statement of case to the inspector or planning appeals commission; and
(b) a copy of that person’s open statement to the applicant and each statutory party.
(7) A person required by the inspector or planning appeals commission under paragraph 6 to send 3 copies of his or her statement of case to the inspector or planning appeals commission and a copy of his or her open statement to the applicant and each statutory party, shall ensure that these are served on the inspector or the planning appeals commission, the applicant and each statutory party within 4 weeks of the inspector’s or planning appeals commission’s written requirement.
(8) The inspector or planning appeals commission shall as soon as practicable—
(a) send to a person from whom they require a statement of case in accordance with paragraph (6) a copy of the open statement of the applicant and the statement of case of the Department; and
(b) inform that person of the name and address of each person to whom his or her open statement is required to be sent.
(9) The inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt of a statement of case received under paragraph 6(a), send a copy to the Department and the applicant.
(10) The inspector or planning appeals commission may in writing require any person who has sent to them a statement of case in accordance with this rule, to provide such further information about the matters contained in the statement of case as they may specify and may specify the time within which the information shall be served on them.
(11) The Department or applicant required to provide further information, shall ensure that—
(a) 2 copies of that information in writing have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission within the specified time; and
(b) a copy has been served on each statutory party within the specified time,
and the inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send a copy of the further information received from the Department to the applicant and a copy of the further information received from the applicant to the Department.
(12) Any other person required to provide further information shall ensure that—
(a) 3 copies of that information in writing have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission, within the specified time; and
(b) a copy has been served on each statutory party within the specified time,
and the inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send a copy of the further information to the Department and the applicant.
(13) A person other than the applicant who sends a statement of case to the inspector or planning appeals commission shall send with it a copy of—
(a) any document; or
(b) the relevant part of any document,
referred to in the list comprised in that statement, unless a copy of the document or part of the document in question is already available for inspection pursuant to paragraph (15).
(14) Unless they have already done so, the inspector or planning appeals commission shall within 12 weeks of the starting date send a written statement of the matters referred to in rule 5(2)(a)(ii) to—
(a) the applicant;
(b) the Department;
(c) each statutory party; and
(d) a person from whom they have required a statement of case.
(15) The Department shall afford to a person who so requests a reasonable opportunity to inspect and, where practicable, take copies of—
(a) any statement of case or open statement of case, written comments, information or other document a copy of which has been sent to the Department in accordance with this rule; and
(b) the Department’s statement of case together with a copy of any document, or of the relevant part of any document, referred to in the list comprised in that statement, and any written comments, information or other documents sent by the Department pursuant to this rule.
(16) For the purposes of paragraph (15) an opportunity is to be taken to have been afforded to a person where that person is notified of—
(a) publication on a website of the documents mentioned in that paragraph;
(b) the address of the website;
(c) the place on the website where the document may be accessed and how it may be accessed.
(17) If the Department or the applicant wish to comment on another person’s statement of case they shall ensure that within 9 weeks of the starting date—
(a) 2 copies of their written comments have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission;
(b) a copy of their written comments has been served on each statutory party,
and the inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send a copy of the written comments received from the applicant to the Department and a copy of the written comments received from the Department to the applicant.
(18) A person who sends a statement of case to the inspector or planning appeals commission under this rule and who wishes to comment on another person’s statement of case, shall ensure that not less than 4 weeks before the date fixed for holding of the inquiry—
(a) 3 copies of that person’s written comments have been served on the inspector or planning appeals commission; and
(b) a copy of that person’s written comments have been served on each statutory party,
and the inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send a copy of the written comments to the Department and the applicant.
(19) The inspector or planning appeals commission shall, as soon as practicable after receipt, send to the appointed representative any statement of case, document or further information or written comments sent to them in accordance with this rule and served on them within the relevant period, if any, specified in this rule.
(20) For the purposes of this rule “open statement” means such part (if any) of a statement of case as does not include or refer to closed evidence.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisr/2015/189/article/6 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/planning-inquiry-procedure-rules-northern-ireland-2015/article-6
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.