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Establish the Infrastructure Planning Commission and make provision about |
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its functions; to make provision about, and about matters ancillary to, the |
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authorisation of projects for the development of nationally significant |
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infrastructure; to make provision about town and country planning; to make |
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provision about the imposition of a Community Infrastructure Levy; and for |
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Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and |
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consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present |
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Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:— |
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The Infrastructure Planning Commission |
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1 | The Infrastructure Planning Commission |
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(1) | There is to be a body corporate called the Infrastructure Planning Commission |
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(in this Act referred to as “the Commission”). |
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(2) | The Commission’s functions are those conferred on it by or under this or any |
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(3) | Schedule 1 is about the Commission. |
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(1) | The Commission must issue a code about the conduct expected of |
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Commissioners in connection with the performance of the Commission’s |
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(2) | The code must include— |
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(a) | provision requiring each Commissioner to disclose financial and other |
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interests in accordance with the procedure established under section 3, |
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(b) | such other provision as the Secretary of State may direct. |
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(3) | The Commission must arrange for the code to be published. |
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(a) | must keep the code under review, and |
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(b) | may from time to time revise it or replace it. |
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(5) | References in this Act to the code of conduct issued under this section include |
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the code as revised or replaced under this section. |
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(6) | A failure to observe any provision of the code does not of itself make a |
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Commissioner liable to any criminal or civil proceedings. |
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3 | Register of Commissioners’ interests |
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(1) | The Commission must establish a procedure for the disclosure and registration |
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of financial and other interests of Commissioners. |
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(2) | The Commission must arrange for the register entries to be published. |
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(1) | The Secretary of State may make regulations providing for the charging of fees |
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by the Commission in connection with the performance of any of its functions. |
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(2) | Regulations under subsection (1) may in particular make provision— |
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(a) | about when a fee (including a supplementary fee) may, and may not, |
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(b) | about the amount which may be charged; |
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(c) | about what may, and may not, be taken into account in calculating the |
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(d) | about who is liable to pay a fee charged; |
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(e) | about when a fee charged is payable; |
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(f) | about the recovery of fees charged; |
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(g) | about waiver, reduction or repayment of fees; |
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(h) | about the effect of paying or failing to pay fees charged; |
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(i) | for the supply of information for any purpose of the regulations. |
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(3) | The regulations may provide for the amounts of fees to be calculated by reference to |
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costs incurred by the Commission— |
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(a) | in the performance of any of its functions, and |
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(b) | in doing anything which is calculated to facilitate, or is conducive or incidental |
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to, the performance of any of its functions. |
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National policy statements |
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5 | National policy statements |
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(1) | The Secretary of State may designate a statement as a national policy statement |
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for the purposes of this Act if the statement— |
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(a) | is issued by the Secretary of State, and |
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(b) | sets out national policy in relation to one or more specified descriptions |
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(2) | In this Act “national policy statement” means a statement designated under |
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subsection (1) as a national policy statement for the purposes of this Act. |
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(3) | Before designating a statement as a national policy statement for the purposes |
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of this Act the Secretary of State must carry out an appraisal of the |
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sustainability of the policy set out in the statement. |
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(4) | A statement may be designated as a national policy statement for the purposes |
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of this Act only if the consultation and publicity requirements set out in section |
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7 have been complied with in relation to it. |
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(5) | The policy set out in a national policy statement may in particular— |
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(a) | set out, in relation to a specified description of development, the |
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amount, type or size of development of that description which is |
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appropriate nationally or for a specified area; |
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(b) | set out criteria to be applied in deciding whether a location is suitable |
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(or potentially suitable) for a specified description of development; |
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(c) | set out the relative weight to be given to specified criteria; |
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(d) | identify one or more locations as suitable (or potentially suitable) or |
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unsuitable for a specified description of development; |
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(e) | identify one or more statutory undertakers as appropriate persons to |
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carry out a specified description of development; |
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(f) | set out circumstances in which it is appropriate for a specified type of |
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action to be taken to mitigate the impact of a specified description of |
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(6) | A national policy statement must give reasons for the policy set out in the |
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(7) | The Secretary of State must arrange for the publication of a national policy |
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(8) | In this section “statutory undertakers” means persons who are, or are deemed |
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to be, statutory undertakers for the purposes of any provision of Part 11 of |
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(1) | The Secretary of State must review each national policy statement whenever |
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the Secretary of State thinks it appropriate to do so. |
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(2) | After completing a review of a national policy statement the Secretary of State |
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must do one of the following— |
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(b) | withdraw the statement’s designation as a national policy statement; |
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(c) | leave the statement as it is. |
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(3) | Before amending a national policy statement the Secretary of State must carry |
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out an appraisal of the sustainability of the policy set out in the proposed |
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(4) | The Secretary of State may amend a national policy statement only if the |
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consultation and publicity requirements set out in section 7 have been |
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complied with in relation to the proposed amendment. |
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(5) | Subsections (3) and (4) do not apply if the Secretary of State thinks that the |
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proposed amendment (taken with any other proposed amendments) does not |
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materially affect the policy as set out in the national policy statement. |
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(6) | If the Secretary of State amends a national policy statement, the Secretary of |
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State must arrange for the amendment, or the statement as amended, to be |
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7 | Consultation and publicity |
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(1) | This section sets out the consultation and publicity requirements referred to in |
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(2) | The Secretary of State must carry out such consultation, and arrange for such |
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publicity, as the Secretary of State thinks appropriate in relation to the |
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| This is subject to subsections (4) and (5). |
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(3) | In this section “the proposal” means— |
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(a) | the statement that the Secretary of State proposes to designate as a |
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national policy statement for the purposes of this Act, or |
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(b) | (as the case may be) the proposed amendment. |
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(4) | The Secretary of State must consult such persons, and such descriptions of |
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persons, as may be prescribed. |
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(5) | If the policy set out in the proposal identifies one or more locations as suitable |
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(or potentially suitable) for a specified description of development, the |
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Secretary of State must ensure that appropriate steps are taken to publicise the |
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(6) | The Secretary of State must have regard to the responses to the consultation |
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and publicity in deciding whether to proceed with the proposal. |
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8 | Consultation on publicity requirements |
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(1) | In deciding what steps are appropriate for the purposes of section 7(5), the |
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Secretary of State must consult— |
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(a) | each local authority that is within subsection (2) or (3), and |
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(b) | the Greater London Authority, if any of the locations concerned is in |
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(2) | A local authority is within this subsection if any of the locations concerned is |
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(3) | A local authority (“A”) is within this subsection if— |
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(a) | any of the locations concerned is in the area of another local authority |
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(b) | any part of the boundary of A’s area is also a part of the boundary of |
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(4) | In this section “local authority” means— |
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(a) | a district council in England, |
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(b) | a county council for an area in England for which there are no district |
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(c) | a London borough council, |
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(d) | the Common Council of the City of London, |
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(e) | the Council of the Isles of Scilly, |
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(f) | a county council, or county borough council, in Wales, or |
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(g) | a council constituted under section 2 of the Local Government etc. |
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(Scotland) Act 1994 (c. 39). |
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9 | Sustainable development |
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(1) | This section applies to the Secretary of State’s functions under sections 5 and 6. |
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(2) | The Secretary of State must, in exercising those functions, do so with the |
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objective of contributing to the achievement of sustainable development. |
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10 | Suspension pending review |
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(1) | This section applies if the Secretary of State thinks that— |
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(a) | since the time when a national policy statement was first published or |
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(if later) last reviewed, there has been a significant change in any |
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circumstances on the basis of which any of the policy set out in the |
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(b) | the change was not anticipated at that time, and |
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(c) | if the change had been anticipated at that time, any of the policy set out |
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in the statement would have been materially different. |
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(2) | The Secretary of State may suspend the operation of all or any part of the |
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national policy statement until a review of the statement has been completed. |
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(3) | If the Secretary of State does so, the designation as a national policy statement |
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of the statement or (as the case may be) the part of the statement that has been |
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suspended is treated as having been withdrawn until the day on which the |
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Secretary of State complies with section 6(2) in relation to the review. |
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11 | Pre-commencement statements of policy, consultation etc. |
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(1) | The Secretary of State may designate a statement as a national policy statement |
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for the purposes of this Act even if— |
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(a) | the statement has been issued by the Secretary of State before the |
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(b) | the statement sets out national policy by reference to one or more |
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statements issued by the Secretary of State before the commencement |
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(2) | If an appraisal of the sustainability of the policy set out in a statement is carried |
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out before the commencement day, the Secretary of State may treat the |
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appraisal as meeting the requirements of section 5(3). |
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(3) | The Secretary of State may take account of consultation carried out, and |
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publicity arranged, before the commencement day for the purpose of |
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complying with the requirements of section 7. |
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(4) | “The commencement day” means the day on which section 5 comes fully into |
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