Explanatory note
England and Wales
(This note is not part of the Rules)
Section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“the 1990 Act”) provides that a local planning authority may be designated by the Secretary of State. Where an authority is designated a person applying for planning permission for major development may choose to submit their application to the Secretary of State for determination.
These Rules regulate the procedure to be followed for hearings in England caused by the Secretary of State to be held before he or an inspector determines applications made in relation to planning permission under section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 on or after 1st October 2013.
These Rules are part of a package of provisions in relation to section 62A applications—
the procedures to be followed in relation to relevant applications made directly to the Secretary of State under section 62A of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 are set out in the Town and Country Planning (Section 62A Applications) (Procedure and Consequential Amendments) Order 2013;
the fees to be charged in relation to section 62A applications and pre-application advice are prescribed in the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) Regulations 2012, which were amended by the Town and Country Planning (Fees for Applications, Deemed Applications, Requests and Site Visits) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013;
the rules in relation to hearings held to consider relevant applications are set out in these Rules;
the provisions which apply where the application is to be determined by way of written representations, instead of a hearing, are set out in the Town and Country Planning (Section 62A Applications) (Written Representations and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2013.
These Rules come into force on 1st October 2013. Rule 3 makes provision for use of electronic communications and service of documents.
Rule 4 provides for the date to be fixed for the hearing and notification of that date and of the time and place of the hearing and of the name of the inspector holding the hearing.
Rule 5 provides for the publication of a pre-hearing report in relation to the relevant application by the Secretary of State
Rule 6 provides that hearings must be open to the public and that where persons attend to report on the proceedings (such as recording or filming the hearing or reporting it via social media) reasonable facilities should be provided. Rule 6 also prescribes those entitled to appear at a hearing, Rule 7 provides for the procedure at a hearing and Rule 8 makes provision for site inspections.
Rules 9 and 10 provide, respectively, for the procedure after a hearing in respect of standard applications and recovered applications. They provide for a statement to be written (“the inspector’s statement”). They also provide that the Secretary of State or an inspector may disregard representations received after the close of a hearing. Provision for the publication of decisions is set out separately in the Town and Country Planning (Section 62A Applications) (Procedure and Consequential Amendments) Order 2013.
These Rules implement section 1 of, and Schedule 1 to, the Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013. That Act was subject to a full impact assessment which can be found at www.legislation.gov.uk. Copies of that impact assessment may be obtained from the Planning Directorate, 1st Floor, Department for Communities and Local Government, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London, SW1E 5DU.