New Towns Act 1981

SCHEDULE 5 E+W Procedure for Authorising Compulsory Acquisition of Statutory Undertakers’ Operational Land

Part I E+W

Acquisitions by development corporations and local highway authorities E+W

1 E+W An application by a development corporation or local highway authority for the purposes of section 13(1)(a) above shall be in such form as may be prescribed, and shall describe by reference to a map the land to which the application relates.

2 E+W As soon as may be after submitting the application to the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister the acquiring authority shall serve on every owner, lessee and occupier of any land to which the application relates a notice in the prescribed form—

(a) describing the land;

(b) stating that an application under section 13(1)(a) above has been submitted in relation to the land and is about to be considered by the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister;

(c) naming a place where a copy of the application and of the map referred to in it may be seen at all reasonable hours; and

(d) specifying the time (not being less than 28 days from the service of the notice) within which, and the manner in which, objections to the application may be made.

3 (1) If— E+W

(a) no objection is duly made by any of the persons on whom notices are required to be served, or

(b) if all objections so made are withdrawn,

the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister may, if they think fit, make a compulsory purchase order in accordance with the application, with or without modification, but shall not, unless all persons interested consent, make the order with any modification which would extend it to any land to which the application did not relate.

(2) If any objection is duly made by any of the persons on whom notices are required to be served and is not withdrawn, the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister—

(a) shall, before making an order on the application, consider the objection, and

(b) shall, if either the person by whom the objection was made or the acquiring authority so desire, afford that person and the acquiring authority an opportunity of appearing before and being heard by a person appointed by the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister for the purpose,

and they may then, if they think fit, make an order on the application.

(3) An objection shall not be deemed for the purposes of section 13 above or this Schedule to be duly made unless—

(a) it is made within the time and in the manner specified in the notice in that behalf; and

(b) a statement in writing of the grounds of the objection is comprised in or submitted with the objection.

4 E+W A compulsory purchase order made on such an application shall be in such form as the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister may determine, and shall describe by reference to a map the land to which the order relates.

[F1 5 E+W As soon as may be after a compulsory purchase order has been made on such an application the acquiring authority shall serve on any person who, if Part 2 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 applied to the acquisition, would be entitled to a notice under section 12 of that Act (notice to owners, lessees and occupiers), a notice in the prescribed form—

(a) stating that the order has been made,

(b) naming a place where where a copy of the order and of the map referred to therein may be seen at any reasonable hour,

(c) containing a prescribed statement about the effect of Parts 2 and 3 of the Compulsory Purchase (Vesting Declarations) Act 1981, and

(d) inviting any person who would be entitled to claim compensation if a declaration were executed under section 4 of that Act to give the acquiring authority information about the person’s name, address and interest in land, using a prescribed form.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Sch. 5 para. 5 substituted (2.2.2017) by The Housing and Planning Act 2016 (Compulsory Purchase) (Corresponding Amendments) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/16), reg. 1(2), Sch. para. 4(3) (with Sch. para. 4(4))

[F2 5A (1) A development corporation making an application under this Part of this Schedule may include in the application a request for a direction that compensation is to be assessed in accordance with section 14A of the Land Compensation Act 1961 (cases where prospect of planning permission to be ignored); and if it does so the following provisions of this paragraph apply. E+W

(2) The corporation must submit a statement of commitments together with the application.

(3) A “statement of commitments” is a statement of the corporation’s intentions as to what will be done with the project land should the acquisition proceed, so far as the corporation relies on those intentions in contending that the direction would be justified in the public interest.

(4) Those intentions must include the provision of a certain number of units of affordable housing.

(5) The notice under paragraph 2 must—

(a) state that the request has been made and what the effect of the direction would be, and

(b) name a place where a copy of the statement of commitments may be seen at all reasonable hours.

(6) The Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister may permit the corporation to amend the statement of commitments before the decision whether to make an order on the application is made.

(7) But they may do so—

(a) only if satisfied that the amendment would not be unfair to any person who duly made or could duly have made an objection for the purposes of paragraph 3, and

(b) only if the statement of commitments as amended will still comply with sub-paragraph (4).

(8) If the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister decide to make an order on the application under paragraph 3, they may include the direction in the order only if satisfied that the direction is justified in the public interest.

(9) If an order is made with the direction included, the notice under paragraph 5 must—

(a) state the effect of the direction,

(b) explain how the statement of commitments may be viewed, and

(c) explain that additional compensation may become payable if the statement of commitments is not fulfilled.

(10) In this paragraph—

• “the project land” means—

  (a)

  the land proposed to be acquired further to the compulsory purchase order, and

  (b)

  any other land that the corporation intends to be used in connection with that land;

• “unit of affordable housing” means a building or part of a building that is constructed or adapted for use as a separate dwelling and—

  (a)

  in the case of a building in England, is to be used as—

  (i)

  social housing within the meaning of Part 2 of the Housing and Regeneration Act 2008, or

  (ii)

  housing of any other description that is set out in regulations made by the Secretary of State, or

  (b)

  in the case of a building in Wales, is to be used as housing of a description that is set out in regulations made by the Welsh Ministers.]

Textual Amendments

F2 Sch. 5 para. 5A inserted (31.3.2024 for W. for specified purposes, 30.4.2024 for E.) by Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (c. 55), ss. 190(3)(b), 255(7) (with s. 247); S.I. 2024/92, reg. 4 (with reg. 6(6)); S.I. 2024/389, reg. 2(l)

Part II E+W

Acquisitions by Secretary of State E+W

6 E+W A compulsory purchase order made by the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister in pursuance of section 13(1)(b) above—

(a) shall be in such form as they may determine; and

(b) shall describe by reference to a map the land to which the order relates.

7 E+W Where the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister propose to make such an order they shall prepare a draft of it, and then shall as soon as may be serve on every owner, lessee and occupier of any land to which the draft relates a notice in such form as they may determine—

(a) describing the land;

(b) stating that the making of the order is proposed;

(c) naming a place where a copy of the draft and of the map referred to in the draft may be seen at any reasonable hour; and

(d) specifying the time (not being less than 28 days from the service of the notice) within which, and the manner in which, objections to the proposal may be made.

8 E+W Paragraphs 3 and 5 above have effect in relation to such an order—

(a) with the substitution, for references to an application and to the making of a compulsory purchase order upon it, of references to such an order as prepared in draft and to the making of such an order, and

(b) with the omission of the references in paragraph 3(2) to the acquiring authority.

Part III E+W

Modification of Schedule 4 Part V in relation to compulsory purchase orders made in pursuance of s. 13 E+W

9 E+W Part V of Schedule 4 to this Act has effect in relation to a compulsory purchase order made in pursuance of section 13(1) above with the substitution, for the references to the date on which notice of the confirmation or making of the order is first published in accordance with that Schedule, of references to the date on which the service of notices required by paragraph 5 above is completed.