Law of Property Act 1925

194 Restrictions on inclosure of commons. E+W

(1) The erection of any building or fence, or the construction of any other work, whereby access to land to which this section applies is prevented or impeded, shall not be lawful unless the consent of the Minister thereto is obtained, and in giving or withholding his consent the Minster shall have regard to the same considerations and shall, if necessary, hold the same inquiries as are directed by the M1 Commons Act, 1876, to be taken into consideration and held by the Minister before forming an opinion whether an application under the Inclosure Acts, 1845 to 1882, shall be acceded to or not.

(2) Where any building or fence is erected, or any other work constructed without such consent as is required by this section, the county court within whose jurisdiction the land is situated, shall, on an application being made by the council of any county . . . F1 or district concerned, or by the lord of the manor or any other person interested in the common, have power to make an order for the removal of the work, and the restoration of the land to the condition in which it was before the work was erected or constructed, but any such order shall be subject to the like appeal as an order made under section thirty of the Commons Act, 1876.

(3) This section applies to any land which at the commencement of this Act is subject to rights of common:

Provided that this section shall cease to apply—

(a) to any land over which the rights of common are extinguished under any statutory provision;

(b) to any land over which the rights of common are otherwise extinguished, if the council of the county [F2 or metropolitan district] . . . F1 in which the land is situated by resolution assent to its exclusion from the operation of this section and the resolution is approved by the Minister.

(4) This section does not apply to any building or fence erected or work constructed if specially authorised by Act of Parliament, or in pursuance of an Act of Parliament or Order having the force of an Act, or if lawfully erected or constructed in connexion with the taking or working of minerals in or under any land to which the section is otherwise applicable, or to any [F3 telecommunication apparatus installed for the purposes of a telecommunications code system.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words repealed by Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70), s. 273(1)(3), Sch. 30

F2 Words inserted by Local Government Act 1985 (c. 51, SIF 81:1), s. 16, Sch. 8 para. 10(5)

F3 Words substituted by Telecommunications Act 1984 (c. 12, SIF 96), s. 109, Sch. 4 para. 16

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 194 applied by Towyn Trewan Common Act 1963 (c. 4), s. 6(4); excluded by New Forest Act 1964 (c. 83), ss. 3(2)(4)(6),4(1); saved by Commons Registration Act 1965 (c. 64), s. 21(1)

C2 Functions of Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food under s. 194 now exercisable by Secretary of State: S.I. 1955/554 (1955 I, p. 1200), 1965/143, 1967/156 and 1970/1681

C3 S. 194(2) amended by Administration of Justice (Appeals) Act 1934 (c. 40), s. 2(1), Sch. Pt. I

C4 S. 194(2) extended by Norfolk and Suffolk Broads Act 1988 (c. 4, SIF 81:1), ss. 2(5), 23(2), 27(2), Sch. 3 para. 38(1)(b), Sch. 7; and (19.9.1995) by 1995 c. 25, ss. 70, 125(2), Sch. 9 para.1(2)(b) (with ss. 7(6), 115, 117, Sch. 8 para. 7)

C5 S. 194(4) excluded (28.6.1995) by 1995 c. iii, s. 21(1) (with s. 25)

Marginal Citations

M1 1876 c. 56.